BELLY SCRATCHER bring good vibes, singer-songwriter rock, and a healthy dose of fun straight to the stage! Our catchy songs invite you to sing along and dance, while the heartbreaking ballads are perfect for pining away. The lyrics? They are as varied as life itself—sometimes funny, sometimes thought-provoking, but always straight to the heart.
RENE BAIKER
COMPOSES, SINGS – AND PLAYS GUITAR
René Baiker is something of a Swiss Army knife of the music scene: he composes, sings, plays guitar, produces, and when necessary, he also writes books. In the wild eighties and the even wilder nineties, he rocked the stage with the Thurgau rock band TRANSIT. With spectacular video clips and hits that stormed the charts, the band conquered not only Switzerland but also the hearts of fans as far away as Japan.
After his time with TRANSIT, René founded “Die Klangfabrik” in Arbon, where he worked as a sound engineer and producer on a wide variety of projects. But no half measures! He also played in various bands (including Dirty Bastards and 3GG) and released two albums with MOTORBAIKS: Caution – Don't Believe! and Sold Your Soul. And anyone who has ever heard the song Black & White knows that it sticks in your head like a little earworm – it's still played regularly on Swiss Pop, by the way. And in the spring of 2021, he released the single The Fat Cats Game along with an accompanying video clip – despite the pandemic. His latest coup? The Storytellers Music Night, where he weaves stories and music together with Peter Giger and, incidentally, presents his novel Keine Sonne wärmt das Land (No Sun Warms the Land).
PETER GIGER
ROCKS THE TELECASTER – AND HE SINGS TOO
Peter Giger not only rocks the Telecaster, he also gives it a voice! Starting in the nineties with “The Flying Koteletts” and since 2018 as front man of The Ribel Steaks, he sets the stage on fire and gets even the stiffest hips swinging. But that's not all: Peter is also the go-to guy for vocal refinement as a guest singer on various projects, such as Storytellers Music Night as René Baiker's sidekick.
Since graduating from SMPV vocal studies in 2002, Peter has been sharing his knowledge as a vocal teacher at various music schools and as a freelance vocal coach with his own company, gigermusic. In short: when Peter Giger sings, you don't just listen—you prick up your ears, dance along, and wonder if the guitar is singing along with joy!
TOBY SPIRIG
MR GROOVE GROOVES THE GROOVE—HE CAN SING TOO
Toby is not only the guy who sets the beat, but also the one who rocks the house — whether as a drum teacher, band workshop leader, or school musician. As if that weren't enough, he wrote the two-volume drum teaching aid “Kids wanna rock !!” so that the next generation can groove just like him. With his band Summarvoogil, he has released two albums and three singles, one of which, for which Toby did the songwriting, is told as an epic story – complete with a picture book!
And if you thought that was it, hold on tight: Toby also developed the WhisperHEADS and plays or has played in so many bands that it's hard to keep track – from Anexxe and Love4Sale to Motorbaiks, Mario Borrelli, rezept-frei and 3GG. In short, if there's a rhythmic beat somewhere, chances are Toby has his fingers (or rather drumsticks) in the mix!
IAN SPIRIG
MASTER OF THE LOW TONES – HE DOESN'T SING!
Ian began his musical journey in elementary school with the piano because his hands were still “mini-sized” at the time and the bass just didn't fit. But as soon as his fingers were long enough, he grabbed the bass and left the piano behind. Although he is the youngest member of the band, he has already had more stage experience than many of his older colleagues. Since 2020, he has been rocking with his brother Glenn in “Another One,” and for the past three years, he has been providing the right groove for Schirm together with his brother Gil. In between, he sprinkles musical glitter powder on acts such as Summarvoogil or the members of Love4Sale in their side projects. And now he plucks the strings at Belly Scratcher – a band that guarantees no belly scratching, but plenty of bass scratching!
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
