Art Bears were formed during the recording of Henry Cow's fifth album in January 1978. Disagreements had arisen over the album's content: Frith, Cutler and Krause favoured song-oriented material, while the rest of the band preferred instrumental compositions. As a compromise, Frith, Cutler and Krause agreed to release the songs already recorded on their own album, "Hopes and Fears", under the name Art Bears, with the rest of Henry Cow credited as guests. The instrumental material appeared later on the final Henry Cow album, "Western Culture" (1979).