Not many students at UCLA can boast a résumé that
includes several released albums. But Franklin Bruno, a philosophy
graduate student currently finishing his dissertation, has also
made a name for himself in the music industry.
Bruno essentially belies the stereotype of the starving,
Bohemian musician looking for a record deal. He has attended UCLA
since 1995; prior to that time he was already gaining notice as the
frontman of his band Nothing Painted Blue, which Bruno describes as
“basically, at bottom, an indie rock power trio.”
Since then, Bruno has gone on to collaborate with John
Darnielle, leader of the respected underground rock band Mountain
Goats, on several different projects, including their partnership
under the moniker the Extra Glenns and Bruno’s instrumental
work on some Mountain Goats albums.
Bruno and Darnielle shared similar musical interests and a
mutual affinity for songwriting.
“The first thing I actually remember about (Darnielle) was
him coming all enthusiastic to the local café (in Claremont)
and telling me that a certain poem by Vachel Lindsay would make a
good pop song,” said Bruno. “I actually ended up
setting it to music and playing it for a while in my band Nothing
Painted Blue.”
Bruno has also extended his love of songwriting to solo
projects. In 2002, his record “A Cat May Look at a
Queen” received critical praise for its simple melodies and
knack for addressing the complex emotions of everyday life without
irony.
“I think there are a lot of songwriters who make
everything a really big deal,” Bruno said. “To some
extent it does the scale of human emotion maybe a disservice to
always make (a song) super romantic or super over-the-top.
I’m kind of committed to having songs that express mixed
feelings rather than “˜everything is great’ or
“˜everything is terrible’ because I think that’s
most of what people experience.”
Bruno cites inspiration for his compositions from musical
influences such as the strong songwriting and interesting
arrangements of the Go-Betweens, or the “incredibly
well-crafted” songs of Irving Berlin.
In addition to Bruno’s philosophical studies and
songwriting, he serves as a regular contributor to LA Weekly
““ an experience Bruno describes as
“broadening.”
“It put me into the position of having to deal with music
that I wouldn’t normally,” said Bruno.
“I’ve ended up having to come to grips with
what’s going on in other kinds of music that isn’t
going on in the kind of music that I’m immediately drawn to.
I often find that it’s really interesting and that
there’s something there that I wouldn’t have expected
if I had just gone with a certain knee-jerk reaction.”
Although Bruno involves himself with academic and journalistic
pursuits in addition to his songwriting, he considers his
relationship with music to be “more than a hobby; less than a
job.” Bruno’s musical endeavors are not his main source
of income; however as an artist he constantly strives to produce
his best work.
“I would say that I pursue (music) the way that someone
might pursue trying to write the best poems they can, or paint the
best paintings they can, whether or not the main issue is selling
the paintings,” said Bruno. “I mean, gosh, were Emily
Dickinson’s poems just a hobby?”