It’s a miracle that Vanvouver-based musician Dan Bejar has any free time in which to be interviewed. His primary band Destroyer will be playing in DC tonight at the Black Cat (as a stop in a small regional tour) and he also does duty as a songwriter/voice of lunacy in Canadian supergroups The New Pornographers and Swan Lake. Laymen may know him as the guy who slurs “Sounds fun!” in the former’s “Myriad Harbor,” but his contributions to the current scene are much deepier and murkier than bright-by-comparison work with TNP would suggest. 

Bejar’s desultory delivery belies the dense wordplay that runs through his songs. Rife with allusions to other work, fragmented story telling and mysterious women, the songs are easy to listen to but hard to grasp. His work most recently took a left turn with Destroyer’s “Bay of Pigs” EP, which features a 13 minute foray into ambient disco. 

I was lucky enough to send Bejar some email questions (he doesn’t do phoners) and get a couple longstanding questions… well, further obfuscated. But at least now I have something to go on, right? 

The New Gay: The obvious place to start here is with the Bay of Pigs 12″. Why ambient disco? Why now? Will this be the direction Destroyer goes in in the future, or just an experimental sideline?

Dan Bejar: What did you think of the the song “Bay of Pigs”? It’s attempts to create some sort of misty lay of the land with an abused Jackie O. at it’s heart.  By abused I mean beaten, maybe physically. Hard to say? But she’s too zen, too wasted, to care. And young, I mean early 30’s, which by today’s standards is young. For a wife and mother at the end of her rope retracing the steps of her life. I guess it’s a song about D.C., at the end of day. How do you think this song is not the same as every other Destroyer song?

TNG: What is your process in creating the web of characters and musical allusions that often characterize a Destroyer song? Do you start with the lyrics, the music, the story, or do they all come together somehow organically?

DB: I always start with the lyrics, because starting with the music means the words will be bad. I force myself to care about the music end by wrestling with it for years. Trying to figure exactly why it’s even so necessary. There’s never a story because stories are irrelevant. And somehow through all these different permutations of caring and not caring, a song appears. And it is, like you said, somehow quite organic.

TNG: You’ve earned a sort of “reclusive genius” reputation. How much of this is earned? Are you as eccentric a person as your music would suggest, or that only a side of you that’s expressed in your music?

DB: People in Vancouver see me buying groceries all the time. Just like people in London must see Sade buying groceries at some point. Right? [Ed. Note: If any readers have seen either of these people buying groceries, please let us know in the comments.]

TNG: What is the significance of the name Jackie to you, given its appearance in two New Pornographers  songs (“Jackie” and “Jackie Dressed in Cobras”) and one Swan Lake song (“Paper Lace.”) Granted, the Swan Lake song was Spencer Krug’s, but it struck me as too big a coincidence not to ask about.)

DB: I can’t speak for Spencer, but in any song I write where the word Jackie turns up, it is a crystal clear substitute for the words “Daniel Bejar.” I’m serious. [Ed. Note: See his answer to the first question, and then let me know if you believe this.]

TNG: As your side projects like Swan Lake and The New Pornographers become increasingly popular, where does Destroyer fit into your career? Will it become a side project itself, or will it remain at the forefront. (And don’t worry, I promise there will be a minimum of questions about your two other bands.)

DB: I didn’t know that the popularity of Swan Lake and the New Pornographers was increasing. I’m actually quite sure of the opposite being the case.

TNG: What is your involvement with The New Pornographer’s next release? Do you still see TNP as a band or a collection of solo artist who get together from time to time? Do you see yourself continuing to work with them in the future?

DB: I just recorded some songs for the new New Pornographers album. I think they could be good. I might even tour with them when the new record comes out. Everyone’s spread out across the continent and we’re all old now, so things move a bit more slowly. Physically, it hurts us to move quickly. They are some of my oldest friends and it would be weird for that to change.

TNG: When can we expect a new Destroyer LP?

DB: No time soon.

TNG: What are your feelings on having your old releases re-released on vinyl? How much of that was your decision?

DB: That was Sean Elliott’s (he runs Nominal Records) decision. But I wholeheartedly backed his decision 100%. They came out on vinyl back in the 90s, so I don’t see why they shouldn’t be made available on vinyl 10 years later. Plus the new versions sound 10 times better than the old.

TNG: Finally, what can we expect from this upcoming run of Destroyer shows? Will it be in the vein of Bay of Pigs, or feature more old or new material? Anything you’d like to tell all your fans?

DB: The upcoming Destroyer shows involve me just playing an acoustic guitar and singing songs from the last 15 years, but everyone already knows this. It is possible I might try to sing one or two new songs, depending on the mood of the city I’m in. TNG