Neighbor Darren DeFranco On His Band’s Upcoming Show At Bar Chord, How Ditmas Park Influences Him & Why Gin And Tonics Are The Best For Rocking Out

This Saturday, February 21, neighbor Darren DeFranco and his band, The Mean Beans, will be performing at Bar Chord (1008 Cortelyou Road) at 8pm.  Before they rock our socks off, we wanted to learn more about our neighbor and his band – and Darren gave us some insight into what we can expect this weekend, our neighborhood’s musical community, and more:

Tell us about yourselves! Who are The Mean Beans? And where does the band’s name come from?

The Mean Beans is my brain child. It has sort of a rotating cast of members consisting of various people I’ve met from the greater New York City area, and the roster really depends on who is available at any given time. The only real constant in the band is me. As for the name, the best I can remember is that a few of my friends were hanging out at a bar, shooting the breeze, and my girlfriend was making up silly word combinations like she does and somehow stumbled on the Mean Beans. I just thought it would make a funny band name and it just stuck.

How long have you lived in Ditmas Park? How did you wind up in the neighborhood? Is anyone else in the band from Ditmas Park?

I’m from New Jersey originally, moved to Brooklyn in February of 2012, then to Ditmas Park about a year ago. So I guess in the grand scheme of things I’m fairly new to the neighborhood. What drew me to Ditmas Park is that it has more of a suburban, relaxed, chilled out feel versus other parts of the city. One of my life dreams is to own one of the Victorian homes around here. They are so beautiful. No one else in the band lives in Ditmas Park except my girlfriend, who will be playing keyboards at the show.

For our neighbors who are going to the show, what can they expect? It seems like a lot of your stuff is really fun and upbeat – good Saturday night music!

Definitely. It’s all positivity – I want people to come out, party, and have fun. I want everyone to just feel good and have a great time. Expect catchy tunes, tight grooves, some songs you know, and some songs you’ll soon know.

Is this your first time playing at Bar Chord? How did you guys hook up with the bar?

This is indeed my first time at Bar Chord. I always knew about the bar but finally decided to check it out when I had a friend come to visit and wanted something fun to do and something cool to show off about the neighborhood. I loved the bar; it has a very cool rock feel and a such a fun atmosphere. The band playing sounded great, and I immediately knew I wanted to play there.

There are so many musicians living in Ditmas Park – what have you found the music community here to be like?

I’ve attended open mics at La Crepe Et La Vie and was really impressed with the quality of musicianship in Ditmas Park. Peoples’ styles are so diverse, much like the neighborhood itself. Yet I found the music community to be so accepting of one another; it was really nice to see.

Who are some of your musical influences?

I grew up listening to classic rock bands like The Beatles, Queen, The Who, and Led Zeppelin, from both my dad and listening to Q104.3. But as a child of the 90’s, bands like Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer, and Oasis are also super important to me. I then studied a lot of jazz in high school and college and a lot of those chord progressions worked their way into my music. But my heart is always with pop and dance. I love the grooves from Michael Jackson, Earth Wind & Fire, Prince, and Madonna, as well as contemporary pop acts like Daft Punk. I guess you put all those in a blender and you get me.

Are there places in Ditmas Park that have influenced your music? If so, how?

Walking around the neighborhood you hear so many different sounds coming from passing cars, apartments, and the people themselves, and I think all together it forms the soundtrack to the neighborhood. Those grooves definitely work their way into our music – in fact, I do a lot of home recording and if you listen carefully, you can even hear the literal hisses and growls of cars and buses on the songs.

And, since you’ll be at Bar Chord, we have to ask – what’s your drink of choice when you’re playing?

I’d have to go with a gin and tonic – it’s really light and doesn’t weigh you down like a heavy beer or a sugary drink. I hate playing on a full stomach. Plus, it’s clear – so if you spill it on your clothes, it won’t stain.

To get a glimpse of Darren’s music, you can check it out here.