Bis (band)

Bis
Bis performing at London's Buffalo Bar in 2012. L-R: John Disco, Sci-fi Steven, Manda Rin.
Background information
Origin	Glasgow, Scotland
Genres	Pop punk, electronica, indie pop, Britpop
Years active	1994–2003 2007 2009–present
Labels	Chemikal Underground Grand Royal spinART Records Lookout! Records Wiiija PolyGram Micro, Inc. Recordings Do Yourself In
Associated acts	Manda Rin The Kitchen The Amphetameanies Data Panik Dirty Hospital Juno! Batteries
Website	bisnation.com
Members	Steven Clark John Clark Amanda MacKinnon

Bis (/bɪs/ biss) are a Scottish indie pop band composed of Steven Clark (Sci-fi Steven), John Clark (John Disco), and Amanda MacKinnon (Manda Rin), formed in 1994. The band's name, rhyming with 'this', derives from "black iron skyline", a lyric from the song "Twilight of a Champion" by The The. The band broke up in 2003, but re-formed briefly in 2007 for a series of concerts. In 2009 they re-formed again, and released a new album in 2014.

The three musicians formed Bis in late 1994 while Rin and Disco were in secondary school and Steven had recently finished there. After releasing their first singles the following year, they appeared on BBC Television's Top of the Pops in 1996 performing "Kandy Pop" from their Secret Vampire Soundtrack EP ahead of its release. Much was made at the time about them being the first 'unsigned' band to do so, when in reality dozens of bands — especially in the late 1970s and in the cases of 'novelty' acts — had appeared on the show with singles released on labels they either had no formal contract with other than as a distributor or, as with Bis, agreements signed on a single by single basis.

Bis released a number of EPs, three of which entered the UK Singles Chart in 1996, followed by several singles between 1997 and 1999. "Eurodisco", from second album Social Dancing, became a minor success for the band in Australia as well as the UK.

Two of the band's early releases were on Glasgow's Chemikal Underground label, run by The Delgados, before they transferred to Wiiija where labelmates included Cornershop. In the United States, their records appeared on the underground label K Records, and on the Beastie Boys' Grand Royal label. They toured extensively both in the UK and abroad, their diverse influences reflected in the kinds of acts they appeared with; Foo Fighters, Garbage, Luscious Jackson, Gary Numan, and Pavement amongst them.