Good music being shared for a great cause! That's always been the aim of Simon's Pub Music Festival, and not only is the popular festival back, but it's also turning 20! To celebrating this milestone, the team behind Simon’s Pub Music Festival has been working hard to put on a bigger and better edition. Perhaps one of the most special aspects about this festival is that the line-up on offer doesn't just present established acts but also allows space for upcoming artists; a su

The Wedding Present made themselves known from the get-go with a debut album named after the notorious Northern Irish football legend George Best. In truth however, The Wedding Present could have called their album anything, as their star was firmly in the ascendant at the time thanks to their self-styled jangly pop tunes from up North. Their sound has evolved since the heady days of 1987, and despite a seven-year break in 1997, the Leeds band has lost none of its verve or ed

Local psychedelic/post punk band The Velts have just released a new track titled Season Of The Prey. The new single, which follows the band's 2016 release She's Like The Sun, which continues to be a radio favorite till this date, and is accompanied by a music video that was launched earlier this week. The band's latest release was recorded together with several other tracks last September. The Velts will be supporting local indie titans Beangrowers on Sunday, June 25 at a gi

Adopting a curious name like The Shh was in itself already a masterstroke by marketing standards on Alison Galea and Ian Schranz's part, so the simple fact that they write wonderful songs with infectious pop hooks that sink in so quickly is a bonus, really. They established themselves on the local scene and attracted a foreign fanbase as far away as Japan seemingly without too much effort, which says a lot about how powerful their songs' reach and appeal is. The result of a s

According to US hiphop act De La Soul, three is the magic number. Not so in the case of Maltese indie act nosnow/noalps, who will readily declare 10 to be the special number that truly sums up their story (for the time being at least)! This well-rounded double digit of course, represents the number of years that the band has been active on the music scene; an anniversary the band will be celebrating in full when they stage the Moving Mountains concert at the awesome Palace Th

It was a chilly November night, Friday the 15th to be exact, in 2013 that The Water Rats in London's King's Cross opened its doors to what effectively would become the first edition of Malta Takes London (MTL). Born out of the idea of a two-band London gig that grew into a six-band line-up, MTL has not only continued to grow even further, but also become a regular showcase for Maltese talent; an annual fixture that brings Maltese bands - locally or elsewhere-based - together

Emperor X, aka Chad Matheny (or should that be the other way round?), swung by Radio 101 on Monday, September 19 for an interview by Michael Bugeja for last Monday night's edition of Fuzzbox. Here is the full interview, including a few live and unplugged (bar one!) numbers that made this particular edition not just special, but extraordinary! Chad Matheny will be performing at the Bocci Club, Pieta on Wednesday, September 21. The Suburbanite and Television Suicide will be sup

Their latest single, Kaleidoscopes, is just 3 months short of being a year old yet, despite the absence of any new releases since, rock band nosnow/noalps has been far from idle. With the band having just returned from playing festivals in Denmark and Italy, MikeBugeja.com catches up with them to find out what they've been up to. Kaleidoscopes was clearly a pivotal release for the band, wasn't it? Sarah: Yes, that single was the start of a new chapter for us really, being our

Four years on (give or take a month or three) from the release of their much-lauded debut album Grandiloquence, Stalko are back with their sophomore offering, a magnificent musical excursion by the name of A Long Wave Goodbye. Apart from much praise from those who have had the privilege of an advance preview, this album unveils a different side to the band's organic folky accent; no longer in a hurry, this is an album that is best experienced in an intimate setting, a 'headph

Last year's Rock The South flaunted all the fours with its '44 acts over four days' fourth edition. This year's fifth anniversary edition, which is endorsed by the Valletta 2018 Foundation, will see the festival go back to a three-day format, but it will still, however, offer a line-up of more than 40 acts. Kicking off on Friday April 15, once again at ZION Restaurant & Reggae Bar in Marsacala, the festival's three days will be jam-packed with with live music from an explosi

Even before they decided to move to Berlin, Maltese musicians Alexandra Aquilina and Daniel Borg had already been distancing themselves somewhat from the indie pop/rock they had successfully traded in as Skimmed. Venturing into darker waters, the duo tapped new sounds and absorbed fresh influences which, coupled with their own creative musings have surfaced in the music they are now making under the name of BlackFawn. Describing its music as experimental, psych-noise Goth, th

Trackage Scheme's Rooftop Sessions last summer proved to be more than just another series of live gigs. So much so, that the organization has followed it up with a new series of live events - held indoor of course given it is wintertime - with the marked difference that instead of a midweek slot, the Sacred Noise gigs, as the new series is called, are being held on Sunday evenings, showcasing Malta’s finest musical talent both on stage as well as behind the decks, where each

It's been a busy year for Maltese music, busier than 2014 if we have to go by the number of releases as a whole. There were certainly several standout offerings, and with at least 49 albums and 22 EPs released, not to mention a multitude of radio singles and/or music videos that was way too much for me to keep precise track of, everything points to a growing general interest and, dare I say it, belief in the local music scene. I still yearn to see this translate into more co

A regular presence on the local airwaves for over 10 years, Steve Meli is the host of XFM 100.2's The Rock Hour, in which he gets to mix and match tunes from some of the most respected alternative and indie acts as well as up-and-coming local and foreign talent. Here's a taste of the local tunes that stood out for Steve during 2015. "2015 has been a defining year for local music. From great EP and album releases to amazing festivals (Rock The South, Trackage Scheme and Bewi

A familiar face on the local alternative scene even before he grew his bushy beard, Robert Pisani is known not only for his extensive knowledge, music collection and reviews, but also his Vindictive Jukebox radio show (bring it back Bob!) and of course his own music project The Suburbanite. Counting up, here are Robert Pisani's Top 5 songs from the local music scene for 2015: Dolls for Idols – Berlin Wow!! what happened? Honestly, Dolls For Idols were always great but this is

Like many others before them, Life Long War started out as a small school project to provide an evening's entertainment for a scholastic activity, but evolved into a bonafide band. Thanks to that one event, they landed several other school-related gigs until, two summers ago, they finally made the big step into the local live circuit proper. "We've played a good number of gigs so far, among them performances at Notte Bianca, various fund-raising events and even a TV performan

There's something about nosnow/noalps that sets them apart from all the other Maltese bands, and it's not just their awesome name, so tactfully chosen to succinctly represent their geographical origin without resorting to any patriotic fervour. What I'm talking about it is an incessant energy that has essentially fused every formation, fuelled every step the band has taken in the eight or so years of its existence to date. And it has been a busy time throughout; one that kick

Christmas is coming, and that’s as good an excuse as any to have another Sofar gig. The Sofar Xmas Edition will be taking place on Friday, December 18, and as regular Sofarians will already be aware, the venue will be announced at a later date and the line-up of course, will remain a secret until the first act walks on stage. If you’re interested in attending, send an email to sofarmalta@gmail.com, letting Sofar know if you’ll be attending alone or with a friend. The venue on

The latest single (and music video) from nosnow/noalps was officially launched today via Italian music portal Ondarock.it. The latest offering from the band is called Kaleidoscopes and with good reason too, for it is possibly their most accomplished by way of portraying the many colours that one finds in their eclectic musical palette. A simple love song addressing a communication breakdown of sorts, the single is breezy, contemplative, brittle and irresistibly catchy all at

London-based Maltese singer-songwriter Berne recently released the official music video for her emotive new single In The Woods. The slightly-creepy yet dramatic video sees Berne exploring personal demons as a narrative to the track. In a comment about the single, which was produced by Niki Gravino, Berne said In The Woods “is about being in a dark place so often and for so long that it becomes the only place you know. You begin to appreciate the beauty of this place because