In this week’s darkly educational episode, Charles and Lisa unzip the fur suit and expose one of the music industry’s most ridiculous, poorly-kept secrets: when a label says a musician was “attacked by a bear,” it usually means the only wildlife involved was cocaine, bad decisions, and a manager who’s very tired.
Lisa dives deep into the surprisingly furry folklore around Ian Astbury of The Cult — a man who absolutely looks like he could punch an actual bear, but whose “bear encounter” might’ve involved less forest and more backstage fridge contents.
Meanwhile, Charles gives a grim, shadow-soaked look at the recently departed Sam Rivers, whose own “bear attack” story was so suspicious the bears themselves released a statement denying involvement. Charles explores how far labels will go to keep the truth hidden — including inventing new species of bears just to pin the blame.
It’s dark, it’s funny, it’s the only podcast brave enough to ask:
If all these musicians are getting mauled… why aren’t there more bears on the charts? [Ep 113]
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Produced by: Charles Mooney
Executive Producers: Charles Mooney and Lisa Umbarger
Original Music by: Charles Mooney and Lisa Umbarger
Kazoo Solo by: Courtney Mooney
