The name of the band is as curious as they come, the lo-fi pop it is renowned for perhaps even more so. But if there is one singular thing about Bark Bark Disco that is truly amazing, it is the way this bedroom-based Maltese outfit has drawn in fans from all over Europe and as far away as Japan.
The lightheartedness and lo-fi elements have always been at the core of my songwriting
Of course, attracting international attention is nothing new to Bark Bark Disco really – its mainman Morris Woodcock (or so it says on the CD cover) is none other than Ian Schranz.
Besides being the singer, songwriter and instrumentalist (with a little incidental help from his friends) in Bark Bark Disco, Schranz is also the drummer with Maltese indie act Beangrowers, whose four albums and countless gigs all over Europe and America have, over the course of several years, earned them something of a cult following that spans right across the globe.
Despite spending much of his time behind the Beanies drumkit, Schranz’s first foray into music actually involved the guitar; a talent he seems to have only pursued away from the public eye for many years, at least up until the subtle emergence of Bark Bark Disco.
Considering that the band’s debut single Song For The Lovers was accompanied by a tongue-in-cheek video tribute to a French erotic legend and featured footage from a 1980s adult film, subtle may not quite be the right choice of word after all.
In fact, it really isn’t, especially because since being uploaded in January 2010, the video has clocked up close to 420,000 views, and that figure keeps rising. So what exactly prompted Schranz to stop fiddling about with his guitar in private and share his music with everyone?
“I’ve been writing songs forever, really”, Schranz says, “but most of them weren’t quite suitable for Beangrowers as they had more of a humorous slant.
“The idea to have my own project actually dates back to the early years of Beangrowers. I’d come to rehearsals and share my ideas for new songs, and Alison (Galea, Beangrowers singer and guitarist) would suss out the ones that weren’t right for the band and tell me I should keep them for a solo project.”
It became something of an inside joke, but at some point he realised the number of songs lying there unused – “except maybe when I played them for a laugh at some BBQ singalong” – was getting bigger, and that maybe it was time to do something with them.
“Some people did ask me why I hadn’t recorded my songs yet, but what finally convinced me to take the step was hearing someone else play my song when I was at a BBQ. There and then, realising my songs did have some appeal after all, I decided I was going to record them.”
In contrast to the professional approach Beangrowers adopted in recording their music, Schranz admits that his intentions for Bark Bark Disco were much simpler.
“With Beangrowers, there’s a certain amount of discipline, a level of professionalism that must be maintained. This project was something where I could work more fluidly, where mistakes were actually part of the process and helped shape the end result.”
This lo-fi approach also meant that in next to no time, his project went from being a random collection of bedroom pop songs to a recorded album that would soon start attracting attention.
“Your Mum Says Hello was recorded in just a few weeks in my bedroom,” he says, clearly pleased at his DIY job. The organic approach is something Schranz also applies to his live gigs, as anyone who has seen Bark Bark Disco perform will know only too well.
“I’m not looking to play slick performances; the idea is to go onstage, play the songs and go with the flow.”
The flow, if the gigs I’ve been to are anything to go by, also means having the odd guest onstage.
“Bark Bark Disco was always meant to have a laidback attitude and a revolving door of guests. The album features (Shostakovich’s Nightmare frontman) Anton Tufigno and backing singer Luise, and Adolf Formosa was involved too for a while.
“The next album will probably have different guests, and there will probably always be a guest or two when I play live.”
Lately, however, the set-up seems to have evolved further, with No Snow/No Alps bassist Daniel Cassar and Stolen Creep drummer Rebecca Theuma now beefing up the band’s live performances.
“The idea is to develop a fuller sound in a live setting, although I still play a few songs on my own too. I suppose having musicians around me will probably also influence the songwriting and the overall sound of the next album.”
That may be true, but the odds of Bark Bark Disco losing sight of its quirky lo-fi indie pop are slim. This is what has endeared the band to so many people in different countries and prompted various bands (among them local act Megafun, whose take on She’s The One is probably the best of the lot) and a few amateurs too (as a Youtube search readily confirms) to cover Bark Bark Disco’s songs.
“The lightheartedness and lo-fi elements have always been at the core of my songwriting, so they will definitely still play a part when it comes to writing the new songs,” Schranz assures before adding that there will be one other prominent difference from Your Mum Says Hello.
“Alison was supposed to produce this album, but she was abroad and couldn’t make it. This time I’m going to make sure she’s around to do it.”
Meanwhile, Schranz will be busy looking to boost Bark Bark Disco’s profile ever further than his track record to date which, apart from gigs around Europe and Japan, includes getting played and mentioned on Tom Robinson’s BBC6 radio show.
“I’ve been lucky enough to play before some great artists here in Malta, namely Bonnie Prince Billy and Handsome Furs, and getting played by Tom Robinson was very helpful in getting to play gigs in London. It’s all been happening quite fast really, but I’m looking forward to see where this takes me.”
Your Mum Says Hello is available as a free download from the band’s official website www.barkbarkdisco.com.
bugeja.michael@gmail.com