Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/788859
14 MEETING Mario Vella at the Brikkuni rehearsal garage really is a little like entering an 'inner sanctum'. If music leaves an au- ra, it can almost be felt echoing around the soundproofed walls. This is, presumably where all three of Brikkuni's studio album first came into being. If so, how? Do songs materially arise from jamming sessions... or are they brought here complete, only to be rehearsed by the band? Mario Vella: Generally, here is where we practise and put what we write together. But we tend to write songs at home or at each other's places... at song-writing stage, I don't like having all the band together. I think it's more focused if you keep it to two, maximum three people. [Note: the main song-writing partner- ship is Mario Vella and keyboard- ist Alan Vella, with the others all chipping in.] On this particular release, I stuck to a very rigid mu- sical vision. Perhaps it's the clos- est, in the way it turned out to be, in terms of being faithful to the original idea. At a first hearing, the original idea for 'Rub Al Khali' seems to have been considerably different from the other two releases (Kuntrabandu and Trabokk). There is a noticeably more contemplative mood. And the lyrics strike me as more personal than the socially and politically charged predecessors... Being honest has always been at the forefront of our music: wheth- er we engage in social/political themes, or more personal stuff. There's no two ways about it: 'Rub al Khali' is definitely the token breakup album. Aside from that, it delves into other existential matters that we previously per- haps only hinted at. So although many of our fans or listeners are stating that it's a major departure for us, I don't think it's such a ma- jor departure. Perhaps aestheti- cally I would say it is quite differ- ent from previous releases. But as far as content is concerned there were always hints. This is perhaps the fulfilment of what we tried to achieve, on a less broad scale, in previous tracks on Kuntrabandu and Trabokk... Musically, however, it does seem to be slower and more... orchestral, perhaps. Is it a case of mellowing out? I don't know whether mellow- ing out would be the ideal way to express it. There are songs like 'Ghaxar Snin' which I consider to be extremely raw on an emotional level. I wouldn't consider that mellowing out: far from it. [...] The other releases were more 'in your face'. That's how we wanted them. On this particular release I tried to go for a more contempla- tive mood... Nostalgic, would you say? There is a dash of nostalgia. A track like 'Cpar' does evoke that sensation. But more than nostal- gia, I would say the album is con- cerned with the mythical nature of love... loss... and death. There's sort of a – how can I put it? – an attempt to come to terms with the inevitable aftermath of a breakup. But if you read in between the lines, there is a profound faith in romanticism... One area where all three are comparable concerns the arrangements, which involve more than just your standard three-piece rock band. Brikkuni is in fact a large operation: its live concerts, for instance, feature an impressive array and musicians and instruments. How much of the organisational side of things is also down to Mario Vella? It's quite a headache and I swear to you, I always try to keep things simple: I start with a simple idea, but then I keep complicating stuff. I hope I'll manage to down- scale things in future, because it can be quite a handful managing all those elements... Traditionally it is also a source of tension within musical groups. I recently watched a documentary about James Brown, who turned out to be quite a military style disciplinarian as both manager and frontman... I think he also used to fine his musicians for every mistake they made... Yes, and he had a system of signals to inform them on stage. Is there anything comparable in Brikkuni? Does Mario Vella crack the whip like James Brown? [Laughing] If I had to do that I would probably end up paying most of the fines myself... At the same time the musical scene in general tends to come across as something of an ego arena. It's not a coincidence that the term 'primadonna' comes from music. Does a band like Brikkuni ever reach the stage where tensions arise over who's calling the shots? I've experienced it on a very sub- tle scale in the past. But not with the current line-up. They seem very happy to sit back and let me hog the limelight. It's not a case that... I don't know, maybe I'm a primadonna in denial, but I don't think I am... But I think the best situation for a band is to have no more than two outgoing person- alities, balanced by three or four musicians willing to be more dis- creet. If you have five strong, out- going personalities it's a recipe for disaster. This is why not too many 'supergroups' have come up with brilliant material, I guess... Applying the same question to the entire Maltese scene: local bands sometimes give the impression that they have a larger-than-life impression of themselves. You hear of ego-clashes all the time. Do Malta's musical cultures and subcultures take themselves too seriously? I think there is a slight ob- session with celebrity culture in certain areas of local mu- sic. Mainly in the pop scene, I would say... which I just cannot identify with. I've never un- derstood this urge of recreat- ing celebrity culture in a local context. Even logisti- cally, it's laugha- ble... it doesn't make sense. One difference is that there's a lot more money to be made out of being a celebrity in other countries... Some celebrities can afford to pull it off. But it's idiotic in Malta: what are you going to do? Play God on stage, and what? I'll meet you at the supermarket the next day carrying a trolley? But doesn't that also make for a vibrant musical scene? There are acts which make parodying that culture part of their identity. The one that springs to mind is Xtruppaw: I was present for one concert where they parodied Freddie Mercury by running on stage with a huge Maltese flag... An element of irony, you mean? Yes, Self-deprecating irony. And it's not just in pop or rock, either. If you look at traditional folk music – Ghana – much of it is intensely ironic. Spirtu pront is mischievously humorous. Wouldn't you say self- deprecation is part of the motif of traditional Maltese music? [Pause] I'd really have to think long and hard about this ques- tion. There are a lot of artists, even in that particular area, that maybe deliver self-deprecating music... but try to criticise them, and another element comes out. And it won't be self-deprecating, that's for sure. There are a lot of paradoxes in Malta. Even Gha- na: it primarily owes its roots to the working class. It's bona fide blue-collar music. Yet there are a number of Ghana singers who are quite flamboyant: turning up to their gig in a BMW or Mercedes. But these are great paradoxes which personally I love... Sticking to your views about the rest of the scene: I met you at a recent concert and we talked about the band playing on stage. You commented that they were all very good musicians... but complained about the quality of the songs they were producing. Does that reflect a general view about local music? I think it's a prevalent problem – if I'm allowed to say so – with Maltese artists, or individuals who nurture the ambition of becoming artists. We have good technicians that are perhaps not well-versed in the history of the art they are attempting to master. From an educational point of view, I find a lot of local artists lacking in that department. They're all over the place. They're great technicians, but they lack vision and scope in their approach. And there is a tendency to stick to what they love, too. I don't want to generalise, but even if you read biographies of fore- most pop artists, most of them are all-round- Interview By Raphael Vassallo maltatoday, SUNDAY, 19 FEBRUARY 2017 Ask any songwriter, and if he had to be 100% honest with you, he'll say: we make music because we want women to love us HONESTY It's idiotic in Malta: what are you going to do? Play God on stage, and what? I'll meet you at the supermarket the next day pushing a trolley? CELEBRITY CULTURE Let's be honest: we m