Fun fact - Wojtek was a bear who was enlisted in the Polish Army during World War II, rising to the rank of corporal, before retiring to Scotland and living out his life in Edinburgh Zoo.
I'm presuming that it is this ursine and its Scottish connection is where Glasgow band wojtek the bear (all lower case) took their name from. The band released their debut album last year, and are just about to set sail with Belle & Sebastian, Teenage Fanclub & a host of other heavy hitters on a set of Mediterranean dates.
The group have just released their latest single, and second of 2019, called "a long wait for bad news". Musically, the song calls to mind the sound of fellow compatriots Idlewild & King Creosote, a melancholic folk-inflected indie-rock song, held together by the sorrowful and haunting tones of Tam Killean.
"A long wait for bad news" by wojtek the bear will feature on "old names for new shapes", a limited edition 10" vinyl collecting the band's planned single releases for the year, in November 2019.
