Ian Schranz (born March 9, 1977), best known by the stage name Bark Bark Disco, is a Maltese indie musician. Schranz first began his career as the drummer of the band

Beangrowers Beangrowers are a Malta, Maltese three-piece indie rock Musical band, band consisting of Alison Galea (lead vocals, vocals, guitar and keyboard), Mark Sansone (bass guitar) and Ian Schranz (drums and Electronic music, noise). All three were born ...

before establishing himself as a solo artist. Schranz released a demo single under the name Bark Bark Disco called "Song for the Lovers" which was a tribute to 1970s adult actress

Brigitte Lahaie Brigitte Lahaie (born Brigitte Lucie Jeanine Van Meerhaeghe; 12 October 1955) is a French radio talk show host, mainstream film actress and former pornographic actress. She performed in erotic films from 1976 through 1980 and is a member of t ...

, and was taken from Erwin Dietrich's film ''Six Swedish Girls in a Boarding School''. It received half a million views on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

in two weeks. Following this, organisers asked him to play a solo show opening for

Bonnie Prince Billy Joseph Will Oldham (born January 15, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. From 1993 to 1997, he performed and recorded in collaboration with dozens of other musicians under variations of Palace (Palace, Palace Brothers, Palace Son ...

in a masonic cemetery in

Valletta Valletta ( ; , ) is the capital city of Malta and one of its 68 Local councils of Malta, council areas. Located between the Grand Harbour to the east and Marsamxett Harbour to the west, its population as of 2021 was 5,157. As Malta’s capital ...

. Schranz has collaborated extensively with other artists such as JOON, Andre Herman Dune aka Stanley Brinks,

Johnny Jewel Johnny Jewel (born John David Padgett; May 31, 1974) is an American musician, record producer, composer, and visual artist. He is a multi-instrumentalist who is known for using all-analog equipment. Jewel has been recording and releasing material ...

and

Jeffrey Lewis Jeffrey Lewis (born November 20, 1975) is an American singer-songwriter and comic book artist. Early life Lewis was born in New York City and grew up on the Lower East Side. He attended State University of New York at Purchase, graduating in ...

among others.

Personal life

In an interview for

The Times of Malta The ''Times of Malta'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Malta. Founded in 1935, by Lord and Lady Strickland and Lord Strickland's daughter Mabel, it is the oldest daily newspaper still in circulation in Malta. It has the widest circu ...

with Ramona Depares, Schranz describes meeting the two other members of his first band, Beangrowers, when they were fourteen years old. Ian Schranz has survived

bacterial meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, intense headache, vomiting and neck stiffness and occasionall ...

three times, making him a recurrent meningitis sufferer. He and his brother David became co-owners of the Hole in the Wall, Sliema, a cafe and live music venue in

Sliema Sliema ( ) is a town located on the northeast coast of Malta in the Districts of Malta#Northern Harbour District, Northern Harbour District. It is a major residential and commercial area and a centre for shopping, bars, dining, and café life. ...

, Malta, in 2015. The brothers gentrified what had been a sports bar, and turned it into a hip venue for live music.

Permanent members

* Ian Schranz – vocals, guitar, keys, bass and drums

Guest members

* JOON, Rebecca Theuma, Katryna Storace, Daniel Cassar, Daniel Abdilla, Antonio Tufignio, Mark Zizza, Stanley Brinks, Freschard

Discography

Albums & EPs

* ''On the Dance Floor - EP'' (Italians Do It Better, 2022) * ''Holy Smokes'' (Minty Fresh, 2018) * ''Your Mum Says Hello!'' (2010)

Singles

* "Your Broke My Heart to Pizza" (2024) * "On the Dance Floor" (Italians Do It Better, 2022) * "Borderline" (Italians Do It Better, 2021) * "Hot Love" (Italians Do It Better, 2021) * "Get Up and Run" (Italians Do It Better, 2021) * "'Til the End" (Italians Do It Better, 2020) * "Another Play" (Italians Do It Better, 2020) * "Honey I Love You Now" (Minty Fresh, 2018) * "Big Love" (Minty Fresh, 2018) * "Song for the Lovers" (Parasol, 2013)

References

External links

*
Times Article

Lovin Malta USA Tour

WMSE Radio USA

Lovin Malta

Italians Do it Better, Artist Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bark Bark Disco Lo-fi music groups New wave groups Male new wave singers Maltese guitarists Male guitarists Maltese male musicians Indie rock groups Maltese musical groups Noise pop musical groups One-man bands