Bastille: nodding to David Lynch

The British band Bastille creates electro pop to fill stadiums, and yet sounds very intimate. “The lack of guitars stirred up our creativity.”

No, we don’t aim to bring about a musical revolution, that’s our name because I was born on 14 July. Extremely self-important,” says Dan Smith with a smile, the singer of Bastille who swears by an Eraserhead haircut. That’s no coincidence; Smith is a film freak. The title of Bastille’s debut, Bad Blood, reads like gory pulp cinema, while their music videos, like the one of their great hit “‘Pompeii” look very cinematic. And of course “Laura Palmer” is a nod to Twin Peaks, indeed, also by David Lynch.

The polished, guitar-divested pop that accompanies these images toys with steamy synths and rolling drums, but has just enough indie jib not to be completely faceless. “The void created by the absent guitars stirred up our creativity. It made our sound much fuller,” Smith says. The singer has clearly listened to the adventurous indie pop of Brooklynites like Yeasayer, and blends that with his love for 1990s pop hits, a recipe to fill stadiums. The group has already had a taster of that, as the supporting act of Muse. Did that give you an appetite for more? “Oh, we’re not so incredibly ambitious to mark our whole trajectory. Touring around Europe with our music is already much more than I had ever dared to dream. I’m actually a terribly pessimistic guy. I’m always quick to drag anyone on cloud nine right back down to earth.” [Laughs]

Bildungsroman
Before their debut was even released, mixtapes appeared on which Bastille rearranged big pop hits. Hip-hop fans? “Hmm, yes. I do like that urban feel of Frank Ocean and The Weeknd. But it was also just an excuse to keep recording and being involved in music. And to reveal some of our influences, not only through songs but also film quotes. When we didn’t yet have enough of our own songs, we played ‘What Would You Do?’ by City High as a joke. Very unusual for a pair of British boys, but everyone joined in enthusiastically. That’s the fun of songs like ‘Killer’ by Adamski and ‘What Is Love’ by Haddaway too: they are chiselled in our collective memory thanks to their fantastic hooks.”

“Pompeii”, “Things We Lost in the Fire”, and “Bad Blood” are melancholy reflections on lost youth, Smith confesses. “Many of the lyrics are suggestive of a fear of adapting. In your mid-twenties, you start thinking about the direction you want your life to take. Being in a band is cool, but at the same time, there is nothing so insecure.” Smith likes to describe Bastille’s music as the equivalent of a Bildungsroman. “A coming-of-age story that is both nostalgic and futuristic, filmed by David Lynch. Although it all should get a little weirder then, 
I guess.” [Laughs]

BASTILLE • 27/11, 20.00, SOLD OUT!, Ancienne Belgique, boulevard Anspachlaan 110, Brussel/Bruxelles, 02-548.24.24, www.abconcerts.be