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Hospice album cover

The Antlers – Bear Lyrics

The Antlers · Hospice
Pop

There's a bear inside your stomach
A cub's been kicking from within
He's loud though without vocal cords
We'll put an end to him
We'll make all the right appointments
No one ever has to know
And then tomorrow I'll turn 21
We'll script another show

We'll play charades up in the Chelsea
Drink champagne, although you shouldn't be
We'll be blind and dumb until we fall asleep
None of our friends will come
They dodge our calls
And they have for quite awhile now
It's not a shock, you don't seem to mind
And I just can't see how

We're too old
We're not old at all
Just too old
We're not old at all

There's a bear inside your stomach
A cub's been kicking you for weeks
And if this isn't all a dream
Well, then we'll cut him from beneath
Well, we're not scared of making caves
Or finding food for him to eat
We're terrified of one another
And terrified of what that means

But we'll make only quick decisions
And you'll just keep me in the waiting room
And all the while I'll know we're fucked
And not getting un-fucked soon
When we get home we're bigger strangers
Than we've ever been before
You sit in front of snowy television
Suitcase on the floor

We're too old
We're not old at all
Just too old
We're not old at all
Just too old
We're not old at all

Just too old
We're not old at all
Just too old
We're not old at all
Just too old
We're not old at all

About This Song

"Bear" is a haunting and devastating song that uses the metaphor of a bear/cub to address an unwanted pregnancy and abortion within the context of an abusive relationship. The song's central image transforms the fetus into something wild and threatening that must be eliminated, reflecting the complex emotions surrounding reproductive choices made under duress. Musically, the track showcases The Antlers' signature blend of delicate indie folk instrumentation with Peter Silberman's falsetto vocals, creating an intimate yet expansive soundscape that mirrors the internal turmoil of the narrative. The production is deliberately sparse and fragile, with reverb-drenched guitars and subtle orchestration that builds emotional weight without overwhelming the vulnerability of the vocals. What makes "Bear" particularly powerful is how it captures the isolation and secrecy surrounding difficult decisions-the couple drinks champagne in denial while friends abandon them, highlighting themes of shame, complicity, and emotional numbness. The song's placement within the *Hospice* album's larger narrative about caring for someone in an abusive relationship adds layers of meaning about control, sacrifice, and the ways trauma can force impossible choices. The track resonated deeply with listeners because it addressed taboo subjects with remarkable empathy and poetic honesty, refusing to offer easy moral judgments while exploring the psychological complexity of reproductive autonomy. Its delicate musical arrangement contrasts sharply with the weight of its subject matter, creating a profound emotional dissonance that lingers long after the song ends.

Comments (20)

  • Anonymous
    Hospice Hospice Hospice. This album is just..wow. I suggest you listen and appreciate The Antlers.
  • Anonymous
    The songs about abortion.
  • Anonymous
    Not abortion, though the lyrics could suggest it. It's cancer, the whole album is based around it. Most epic sad album of 2010.
  • Anonymous
    I don't agree- the song is definitely about abortion, not cancer. Take a look at the lyrics again- they just don't fit for being about cancer. "Hospice" is about dying, and an abortion is a form of that.
  • Anonymous
    This song i definitely about cancer. I could see how you would think it would be about abortion if you look at the song on its own but in the context of the rest of the album, it is definitely about cancer. The whole thing is about someone losing their lover to a fight with cancer. I suggest going back and listening to the whole album through while reading the lyrics. I think you'll be convinced.
  • Anonymous
    "Moving onto what very well may be the album’s best song; “Bear†depicts the couple in a flashback, where they are seemingly debating the pros and cons of having an abortion to an unplanned pregnancy. The instrumentation starts almost as a child’s lullaby, a huge irony considering that this song is about killing a child. The shift between the metaphor of referring to the child as both a “Bearâ€and a “Cub†is a great way that the couple’s fear of not only raising the child is shown, but what the child will be when it grows up: “Well we&#039re not scared of making caves. Or finding food for him to eat. We&#039re terrified of one another and terrified of what that means. But we&#039ll make only quick decisions, and you&#039ll just keep my in the waiting room. And all the while I’ll know we&#039re *#^$%@, and not getting unfucked soon. When we get home we&#039re bigger strangers than we&#039ve ever been before. You sit in front of snowy television, suitcase on the floor.†It’s a terrific way of conveying the seeming hopelessness of their relationship."From Bruce of GiantBomb.com
  • Anonymous
    Why does it really matter if its about cancer or abortion? Take it for what its worth to you, if you've been through either with a loved one you should know they are both incredibly difficult and intimate, and realize that life is not about debating the meaning of songs with strangers but interpreting them in a way that means the most to yourself.
  • Anonymous
    Fucking idiots.Google Hospice, it is an album about a doctor who falls in love with his patient who has cancer, and he has to sit there and watch her die.
  • Anonymous
    It's deffinately about abortion. Hospice is not JUST about a dying cancer patient. Look at "Two", which is about a girl dying of anorexia.If the child/baby imagery isn't clear enough, theres always the tune in the begining and throughout the calm part of the songs that sounds exactly like a baby chime. You can practically imagine a baby sitting in their cradle with that music playing in the background...
  • Anonymous
    Very similar to Ben Folds-Brick lyrically, such as pretending nothing is happening during a celebration, doing this in secret, feeling like they no longer know each other afterwards.The baby-lullaby style is risky and might be almost to ironic, but it fits well.
  • Anonymous
    I dont understand how this song is debatable? It's so CLEARLY about abortion, there are some parts that cancer just doesn't fit. "There's a bear inside your stomach, the CUB'S been kicking from within"...also, another major part: "Drink champagne although you shouldn't be" When someone has cancer, drinking alchohol is still okay...not drinking alcohol is such a strict rule during pregnancy for women....
  • Anonymous
    i dont think we will ever know for sure what the song is intended to be about unless the singer tells us. we can interpret almost any song a seemingly infinite number of ways. i think that is what makes music appeal to so many people. take this song for what it is: great.
  • Anonymous
    It's kind of sad that people just don't look at the actual artwork, instead they rely on general ideas and other people's words about an artwork to form their interpretations, an artist himself can be totally wrong about his work's effect. Good art resists paraphrase and Art happens between listener and song, you meet halfway, it brings up feelings you have that are rooted in reality. Nothing in this song supports the cancer theory, it very clearly is directed towards abortion, look at the words alone. The album varies from telling a direct story about a hospice/patient relationship but also clearly forays into a regular emotionally draining relationship.
  • Anonymous
    to the guy who said: f-ing idiots, google hospice..." you need to just LISTEN TO THE LYRICS OF THE SONG, christ, if Hospice had a bonus track of a cover of I am the walrus by the beatles you'd say that song was about cancer because of some general summary of a very layered thing you read on GOOGLE...
  • Anonymous
    It seems to be about a Hospice worker who falls in love with a patient, who's to say they didn't have sex. She could have needed an abortion. The two ideas seem to fit well together, even compliment each other.
  • Anonymous
    I work for hospice. It sounds like this man has a girlfriend who possibly has colon cancer. He's loud without vocal chords means, it's an ugly cancer, meaning it's definately obvious as it's eating away at her, etc. they are not scared of the surgery to remove it, not afraid to get rid of it but realize that even ridding of it won't help much as they are screwed. None of their friends call b/c everyone is scared of dying, they usually want to stay away because they don't know how to handle the information. He's not scared to be with her. He knows that what she has is terminal as he says "were fucked and won't get unfucked anytime soon". She has her suitcase on the floor, meaning, she's permanently packed up. She's dying.
  • Anonymous
    I don't really know about whether this is about Abaortion or Cancer or NEITHER.But I do know I love this
  • Anonymous
    It's a song! It's interpretive how you wish - there's no right or wrong. Song writing is an art, you can interpret how you wish that's the beauty of songs and art in general you take from it what you want - enjoy it rather than argue what it's about
  • Anonymous
    At first I used to think that this album told the story of a hospice working falling in love with his patient and the story of said patient's husband watching his wife die. However after a long time of soaking this album up I believe the entire album is just the story of the hospice worker falling in love with a patient.As cancer is a slow and cruel illness, I think a lot of people overlook the fact that this story could have taken place over any ammount of time, most likely anywhere between a few months to a year, hence the relationship they build in that time which leads to many of the songs, including this, sounding like they're written from a husbands perspective.I doubt they get married, but possible engaged due to mention of silver rings in later songs (also talking of later songs, someone said they thought Two was about anorexia, I think it's still about an incident in 'Sylvia's' childhood when they believed she might have been anorexic, however weight loss and lack of appetite are also early symptoms of cancer. Of course Two mentions that she was young at the time but don't forget she's only a young woman now'As for this song, Bear, I believe the cubs and abortion references are all a metaphor for the cancer. Like a shotgun wedding for a pregnant bride, it was the cancer that brought (if not forced) them together and her lack of time left that caused such a rushed and poorly thought out relationship.Maybe they talk about the cancer like an unwanted child as a coping mechinism from the harsh reality of what it really is or maybe it's their longing to be like a regular fucked up young pregnant couple rather than the position they're in.
  • Anonymous
    i highlyy recommend you read this review on the album, it made the story and each songs meaning so much clearer.

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