Seven Nation Army
Show notes for the 287th Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast featuring music by performers from or in Malta:
Brikkuni – L-Uffiċju
The much awaited second album from the darlings of Malta’s alternative folk/rock scene was released today (Saturday 11 February 2011) with a live concert at the City Theatre in Valletta. Among all the new tracks, Trabokk features a reworking of this song, with which they won the 2009 edition of L-Għanja tal-Poplu festival. To top it all, they’ve also produced a promotional music video for it, shot entirely at the Belt is-Sebħ Public Library and starring the enfant terrible of Maltese pop literature Ġużé Stagno. This will undoubtedly achieve cult status in years to come.
Fastidju – Il-Faħam Qisu Tafal
Nigel Baldacchino’s Sajda is an art exhibition which opened at St. James Cavalier in Valletta on Friday 20 January and remains open until Sunday 26 February 2012. Fastidju is an associated sound/music project in which Baldacchino collaborates with Istishhad Hheva and Mario Sammut (Cygna) to produce a number of unusual a/tonal poems (or at least that’s what I’d call them) such as the one you can hear here. I don’t know much else about this project but I believe the exhibition is worth visiting, even though I’m unable to be in Valletta during the weeks that it’s open.
South Central – Dance of The Skeletons
The Maltese hooded duo from Brighton released an EP entitled Pitfalls and Corridors a few weeks ago and I’ve been wanting to feature a track from it on my podcast ever since. Well, here it is. I’m sure their fans will be delighted with this, particularly because this track features their signature buildup towards a veritable mosh pit frenzy the likes of which I’ve had the pleasure to witness in person more than once.
Mathematikal – That Kind of Girl
Currently enjoying great popularity on some of the commercial radio stations in Malta, Jon & Jay have certainly produced a hit with great potential. The music video they’ve produced to go with it really captures what I see as the spirit of their live acts. I managed to catch them live about 4 or 5 years ago at Poxx Bar (remember that place?) and they rocked the house. This is just an even better version of that.
Frans il-Ħamallu – Online Frans
This guy is arguably the king of the Maltese hip hop scene…well if not that, he’s certainly the undisputed court jester. ACTA is something he released an awareness clip about a couple of weeks ago, in relation the protest that was held today in Valletta. But this week we get a fantastic song, built on the famous White Stripes riff for Seven Nation Army. To my mind, it really doesn’t get much better than this. Fifty years from now, this stuff will be considered the best of the best that’s being produced now. Thankfully, some of us are able to appreciated it like a fresh ġbejna, which is what Frans would have us believe it is.
Mikiel – Diska Vili
Since we’re onto political satire, I think it’s very fitting to end this week’s podcast with a delightful little ditty from Michael Camilleri Haber, who beautifully captured the political climate in Malta during the first few weeks. It’s not really the sort of thing I would normally include in my podcast but it’s quite appropriate to follow MC Frans with this, even though Mikiel doesn’t really hold a candle up to François B.B.
The RSS feed for the Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast is available here or you can simply click here to subscribe directly with iTunes. You can also follow each new episode through the MMI Podcast: Facebook Fan Page or on MySpace. If you have no idea what any of this means, just enjoy listening to the podcast on the player right below this text.
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Melancholy Sky
Show notes for the 286th Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast featuring music by performers from or in Malta:
Natalie Gauci – Ha Ha Ha
Former Australia Pop Idol Natalie Gauci has toured Europe last summer and has now relocated to Cologne, Germany where she has been recording, writing and producing new tunes set for release 2012. This is the first of those tracks for the album that’s going to be called U. I really like the new direction she has taken, and I’m a great sucker for anything with a tuba.
Kantilena – X’Ubidù?!
Several months ago I heard snippets from this new band on one of their social media pages (probably Reverbnation) and I really wanted to wrap my ears around full tracks and finally here we are with their debut release, which was launched on their Facebook page 31 January 2012. They are not only remarkable because their songs are in Maltese but they also have a refreshing approach to folk music, which I’d really like to hear more of in the coming months and years.
Jesper Ejrup – Holding On To You
This Danish singer-songwriter is slowly but surely becoming a permanent feature of the local music scene. The video for his new song was not only produced by Maltese production company No Sweat Productions with HeartBeat Productions, but it is also shot in Malta and features some very uniquely Maltese elements. I also like this song particularly because, to my mind, it echoes some of the traditional guitar licks at the heart of Maltese għana, without overdoing it.
Ħolma Qattusa – Eyalura
Martha Vassallo is a new performer to me, but somehow I feel like I’m already familiar with her work; it’s an eerie feeling. I’m delighted that she is now collaborating with Antoine Vella (of Particle Blue fame) on this new project, which has already yielded several tracks available on YouTube and Soundcloud. I’m sure I’ll be playing another track from them in an upcoming edition of the MMI podcast, especially if they keep producing new tracks too.
Stefanos – Rescue Me
Guitarist Stefanos is working on another album, called Still Waters Run Deep, which he plans to release around September 2012. It’s likely that he will release at least one other track from it between now and the official launch. I prefer his acoustic tracks, but I must say that this one is among the best electric tunes that he has ever produced.
The RSS feed for the Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast is available here or you can simply click here to subscribe directly with iTunes. You can also follow each new episode through the MMI Podcast: Facebook Fan Page or on MySpace. If you have no idea what any of this means, just enjoy listening to the podcast on the player right below this text.
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No One
Show notes for the 285th Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast featuring music by performers from or in Malta. This is a special edition dedicated to the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2012.
This are my picks from this year’s songs competing to be Malta’s entry to the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest in Baku, Azerbaijan. This selection is merely a reflection of my personal tastes and likes rather than any direct bearing to the contest itself. There are a couple of other songs I could have included, but I’ve gone with these. I’d also be incredibly pleased if any of these songs actually ended up in the top 3. If I had to pick just one it would be Francesca Borg singing Take Me Far; she has finally found the perfect song for her amazing voice. That song gives me goosebumps every time I hear it!
Here are the songs featured in this podcast, in order of appearance:
- Wayne Micallef – Time (Wayne Micallef)
- Corazon – Mystifying Eyes (Paul Giordimaina/Fleur Balzan)
- Francesca Borg – Take Me Far (Marco Debono/Doris Chetcuti)
- Klinsmann – No Way Back (Paul Abela/Klinsmann Coleiro/Jonathan Spiteri)
- Amber – Answer With Your Eyes (Ray Aguis/Alfred C. Sant)
- Annalise Ellul – Whoop It Up! (Elton Zarb/Deo Grech)
I’ll be giving some more comments to SBS Radio in Australia in the coming days, so I’ll update this post at that point to reflect some of that too, along with a link to their podcast.
The Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2012 will place at the MFCC in Ta’ Qali and broadcast live on TVM on Friday 3 & Saturday 4 February 2012.
The RSS feed for the Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast is available here or you can simply click here to subscribe directly with iTunes. You can also follow each new episode through the MMI Podcast: Facebook Fan Page or on MySpace. If you have no idea what any of this means, just enjoy listening to the podcast on the player right below this text.
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Live It Up
Show notes for the 284th Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast featuring music by performers from or in Malta:
Jane Doe – Shivery
Introducing the first of new female-fronted band for 2012 in the guise of Margherita Bonello, I’m sure this band will be on high rotation on some of the local radio stations, but only time will tell whether they’re here to stay. I like their softer moments and the singer has hints of great potential. It’s definitely a watch-this-space scenario as far as I’m concerned.
Athelstone – Jaaz
Another new band features Funk Initiative guitarist Daniel Cassar (yes, there’s another one by that name on the local scene) who has released an impressive album called The Quiet Before the Storm, which is available as a digital download here. This particular track (from this 3-track album) features the vocal presence of Dana McKeon. It’s quite lovely and I dare say very good too.
Mimi Paris – Bittersweet Goodbye
Michelle Paris is well-known in certain musical circles as a harp player, but she has also been performing less traditional music in recent months as this recording demonstrates. Mimi Paris was brought to my attention by a fan of hers late last year and I had hoped to include her music on a 2011 MMI podcast, but as it happens I’ve finally managed to get a copy of this demo recording, which is hopefully a mere harbinger of things to come.
Martina Borg feat. William Thorne – Dear Mother
I had never heard of William Thorne until a few days ago, but Martin Borg is one of the few Maltese pop singers who stands out as much more than a Eurovision wannabe, which she isn’t. Music is in her (paternal) genes and it would seem that with this song she’s giving a reverential nod to her mother. Not sure about the full provenance of this song, but I’d be surprised if it didn’t receive some serious radio airplay in Malta…and hopefully elsewhere too.
The RSS feed for the Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast is available here or you can simply click here to subscribe directly with iTunes. You can also follow each new episode through the MMI Podcast: Facebook Fan Page or on MySpace. If you have no idea what any of this means, just enjoy listening to the podcast on the player right below this text.
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All Bets Are Off
Show notes for the 283rd Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast featuring music by performers from or in Malta:
Brikkuni – Tiddi x-Xemx Fuq Din L-Għodwa Moħlija
The long awaited second album from Malta’s foremost alternative Maltese-language band will be released in Valletta on 11 February, so ahead of the release we’re given a preview with this track and an accompanying brief promo video (voiced by Kevin Drake) to promote the launch gig.
Errormantics – Finale
Sven Bonnici and Mauro D’Amato return in full force on the local scene with this new duo and a debut song with an attention grabbing promotional video. People who have seen them live over the past couple of months say that they’re an interesting act and one, I’d add, we’ll certainly be hearing more from this year.
Cable 35 – Saturated
Taken from last year’s album Louder, this track not Cable 35 not only comes with another music video, but also accompanies them on their UK tour which spreads well over these first two months of this new year. Their next (and only announced) gig in Malta will be at V-Gen on 24 February 2012.
The Violent Violets – Fantasy 3
The opening act during that Cable 35 gig at V-Gen I just mentioned, will be this new band. The Violent Violets released an eponymous 5-track EP just a few days before Christmas, so, just like the rest of the stuff of this week’s podcast didn’t manage to make it to the MMI 2011 Listeners’ Picks poll. Rest assured that it’ll be included in the 2012 list of nominations. The EP is also available as a free download.
The RSS feed for the Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast is available here or you can simply click here to subscribe directly with iTunes. You can also follow each new episode through the MMI Podcast: Facebook Fan Page or on MySpace. If you have no idea what any of this means, just enjoy listening to the podcast on the player right below this text.
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Until the End of the World
Show notes for the 282nd Mużika Mod Ieħor series of podcasts featuring music by performers in or from Malta.
This is a special edition featuring the results from the 2011 MMI Listeners’ Picks Poll:
Top Single:
- Big Band Brothers – Rain or Shine
Top Online Release:
- Danjeli – Ġurnata Famuża
Top Video:
- Adie – Reaction
Top Album:
- Danjeli – KontroNatura
Top Overseas-based Release:
- Joseph Calleja – The Maltese Tenor
The RSS feed for the Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast is available here or you can simply click here to subscribe directly with iTunes. You can also follow each new episode through the MMI Podcast: Facebook Fan Page or on MySpace. If you have no idea what any of this means, just enjoy listening to the podcast on the player right below this text.
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Happy This Christmas
* Vote for the Top 2011 Music Releases in Malta – poll open until 1 January 2012.
Show notes for the 281st Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast featuring Christmas music by performers from or in Malta:
Andrew Zammit – Paci fl-Art
This song was actually released last year but it reached me before I started producing the final podcast for 2010, aside from the fact that I didn’t really do a Christmas special last year. Anyway, this sees Andrew at the peak of his creative powers with an adult oriented rock song from the festive season complete with non-cheesy Maltese lyrics. He is fast becoming the most prolific non-household-name musician in Malta.
Ludwig Galea & Chiara – Ħelu Bambin
Andrew Zammit has written the music for this new Maltese Christmas song with lyrics by Fr George Ocar Buttigieg. The video, produced by Angie Laus from shots by Charles Ahar, makes it a very special release this yuletide, particularly as it features two of the most widely loved Maltese pop singers, Chiara and Ludwig Galea. Members of the Maltese community club in Melbourne are certainly looking forward to the upcoming show they’re planning to deliver in Australia along with John Gee’s country stylings. I’m sure this will be one of the songs they sing on that occasion.
Divine Sinners – Another Lonely Christmas
No everyone has the same perspective on Christmas, of course. The rest of this podcast presents alternative viewpoints rather than the conventional religious or celebratory songs. The first of these comes from the wry Gozitan duo that has captured the public imagination of the cognoscenti this year. This song was actually recorded/released a couple of years ago but only really came to my attention this year. The accompanying video explains where it comes from and what it’s really all about.
Kyle Pace – Ninġabru il-Bus Stop
Few Maltese songs ever really capture the zeitgeist of the country. Norm Rejection’s Malta Not For Sale and Marmalja’s Uniformi Blu are obvious exceptions. So I was quite thrilled to hear this little ditty based on Adeste Fideles from someone who is virtually unknown except to his friends. The Arriva fiasco in Malta is undoubtedly one of the most omnipresent 2011 topics of discussion, along with divorce, across the Maltese islands.
Sadly, the very entertaining YouTube video that accompanied this song on its release a few days ago has been removed from public view, but hopefully we’ll be able to archive it in the M3P repository in good time.
Joe Demicoli – Santa Klaws Mhux Riesaq Lil Hawn
The undisputed king of humorous and satirical songs in Maltese released no fewer than five Christmas songs on his 2008/09 CD album Assedju3. He performed this on the Christmas edition of Xarabank when the CD was issued and you can see that performance on this YouTube video clip right here. It hasn’t dated much, as yet, but I’m sure it will in good time…and that will make it even more delicious than a generous slice of Christmas log covered in dark chocolate and dripping in seasonal spirits.
The next MMI podcast will appear on Saturday 7th January 2012 and it will feature the top picks by my listeners and others voting on Facebook for the favourite 2011 Maltese music releases. Until then, over the coming days we will once again be releasing Ġorġ Mifsud-Chircop’s special christmas editions of his Tisqifa għall-Għana Tagħna featuring Karmnu Debono l-Pikipakk (from Birkirkara) and Frans Mifsud ta’ Żaren ta’ Vestru (from Żejtun).
The RSS feed for the Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast is available here or you can simply click here to subscribe directly with iTunes. You can also follow each new episode through the MMI Podcast: Facebook Fan Page or on MySpace. If you have no idea what any of this means, just enjoy listening to the podcast on the player right below this text.
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I’ve Got A Feeling
Show notes for the 280th Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast featuring music by performers from or in Malta:
Talitha with Jesper Ejrup – Why
Jesper Ejrup returns to the local music scene in this collaboration with Talitha. I must say straight up that I like the sound they make together and I honestly hope there’s more of this in the pipeline. It’s refreshing to get some new blood into the local pop rock sound. Unfortunately this didn’t make it in time for my nominations on the MMI 2011 Mużika Mod Ieħor, and certainly not because it doesn’t deserve to be there. There’s always at least one good track that gets away.
Mama Kin – To My Table
I’ve been wanting to play something from the Australian trio for a while; well, at least since my good friend Marlene Galea pointed me to them. I must say that the Maltese connection here is quite strong given that both Danielle Caruana and Michael Caruana are members of this band. Regular followers of the Maltese music scene will more likely know brother Nicky Caruana, better known as Nicky Bomba. In any case, this is good stuff that deserves repeat listening. I’ll be watching out for new material next year, and you can rest assured that I’ll be bringing Mama Kin back to the MMI podcast in 2012.
The Areola Treat
One of the perennial favourites on the local alternative scene has recently started plugging this song from the Pleasure Machine collection. They’re among the Maltese bands you can vote for on the MMI 2011 Mużika Mod Ieħor, which is currently headed by fellow alternative rockers nosnow/noalps. Still, there’s more than two weeks of voting to go, so anything could happen.
Tony Grimaud – Shine On Me
My good friend Tony Grimaud has made this recording from a couple of years ago available online earlier this week. I thought it too good to pass up the opportunity to play you anything by the man who remains one of Malta’s iconic singer-songwriters from the past 30 years. This is quite a downer of a song, but it’s done in such a way that unless you pay close attention to the lyrics being sung, you don’t really get the sense of doom and gloom that can only be rivaled by sixth form poetry.
Dry_Connections – Right From the Start
Fresh from their triumphant Best Upcoming Act award at the 2011 Malta Music Awards, this new band has now released a new recording of the song they performed on the awards night. Incidentally, they were featured on a previous edition of the MMI podcast and they’re also nominated in the Top Online Releases category of the MMI 2011 Mużika Mod Ieħor. Feel free to vote for them and/or whoever else strikes your fancy.
Davinia & Muxu – Feel Good Song
To be quite honest I’ve heard better stuff from both Davinia and Muxu this year and I doubt I would have included this song on the MMI podcast at all if it wasn’t for the video that accompanies it, which raises it above the ordinary output that seems to be flooding the local scene aimlessly from time to time. Anyway, perhaps it’s just a matter of taste…so please feel free to vote for this video on the MMI 2011 Mużika Mod Ieħor if you disagree.
The RSS feed for the Mużika Mod Ieħor podcast is available here or you can simply click here to subscribe directly with iTunes. You can also follow each new episode through the MMI Podcast: Facebook Fan Page or on MySpace. If you have no idea what any of this means, just enjoy listening to the podcast on the player right below this text.
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