by LORRAINE CARPENTER

From Vancouver, at the heart of a band called Destroyer, at the nexus of folk, rock, pop and prog, Dan Bejar recognizes that his first decade as a musician has been marked by “things… which people might identify as an absence of career wisdom.” These may include shunning the press and downplaying his role in the New Pornographers, but, he says, “at the end of the day, it’s all gonna go down as having been some pretty savvy shit.” Considering the quality of, and acclaim for, his recent albums—the latest being Destroyer’s Rubies—he might be right. The Mirror, at Bejar’s request, communicated with him by e-mail.

Mirror: Does your work come naturally, or is it labour-intensive?

Dan Bejar: The music comes less and less naturally the more I do it. Even once I pound out the chords and try to cinch some semblance of a vocal melody, things can still change around a lot depending on who’s playing or recording the song—it’s real collaborative. I don’t labour over lyrics, but I write way, way slower than I did in the ’90s. This all being said, I thought Destroyer’s Rubies was really easy, which probably has a lot to do with the band.

M: I imagine you’ve gotten more comfortable performing live.

DB: Comfort doesn’t really come into play, but dragging my ass on stage inspires slightly less terror than it used to.

M: You’ve said that you’re no fan of touring. I imagine that singing with humour and feeling, over and over again, becomes like acting. How do you deal?

DB: The times when it feels like acting wear me down, like they would anyone who isn’t a very good actor. Other times, I can get really into it, but doing it for a month straight is rough. I still get pretty nervous. Nervous, then despondent.

M: A lot of people (including myself) have described Destroyer’s Rubies as more accessible than your previous work. Was that intentional?

DB: It was not intentional, and I don’t think it’s the most “accessible” Destroyer album. There is usually an idea going into a recording, but I would say that this record was the most open-ended in that the original idea got tossed out pretty early on in the game and we just did what came naturally.

M: You’ve hit the glossies with this latest album, but I get the impression that you’re not entirely comfortable with media coverage, particularly the mainstream media.

DB: Obviously, if I had the luxury, I would pass on doing press altogether. Mainstream and “underground” alike have had very little interest in Destroyer activities up until the last couple years, but these days I do stuff that’s necessary to generate the kind of attention that will translate into raw revenue. Thing is, mainstream coverage is usually so ham-handed, and not very functional in generating album [or ticket] sales, that in the end it’s probably more harmful than anything. It’s not so much political, as just trying to save your own ass in the long run, which I guess is kinda political. But it’s not like I spend my days dis-inviting myself from Letterman and Spin magazine either.

With Magnolia Electric Co. and Nedelle at
la Sala Rossa on Sunday, March 26, 9 p.m. $15

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