Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/963162
maltatoday SUNDAY 8 APRIL 2018 This Week 33 WHAT'S ON (Afghanistan), Adrian Paci (Al- bania), Wael Shawky (Egypt/ America), Antoine Cassar (Mal- ta), Aaron Bezzina (Malta), Cent- er for Political Beauty collec- tive (Germany), Embassy for the Displaced/Scan Lab/Stevanos (International), Kristina Borg (Malta), transparadiso (Austria), Tania El Khoury (Lebanon), Fleeting Territories (Austria/ Sweden) and Manaf Halbouni (Syria/Germany). More informa- tion: http://https//valletta2018. o r g /c u l t u r a l -p r o g r a m m e/d a l - bahar-madwarha/ MUSIC & ENTERTAINMENT UNTIL APRIL 14 12th International Spring Orchestra Festival The 12th edition of the Inter- national Spring Orchestra Festi- val will be held at various venues around Valletta. More informa- tion and bookings: http://www. t e at r u m a no el .com .mt /def au lt . asp?m=shows&id=732. APRIL 14 Jump The Fence – The PlaKard Project debut album launch Debut album launch by Con- temporary Jazz/Hip Hop and Ex- perimental music act The PlaKard Project at Giovanni Curmi High- er Secondary, Naxxar from 20:00. Supporting acts on the night will be Andrew Francica and Manuel Pulis. Tickets available from: Ke- faKafe, ĠUGAR - Hangout & Bar, Zeppi's Pub (Gozo). APRIL 14 Align The Tide / Killing Adrenaline / 215 Collective Night of live metal music at The Garage, Zebbug from 20:00. Acts include Align the Tide, Killing Adrenaline and 215 Collective. Entrance is at €6 by the door. APRIL 20-22 Rock the South – 7th edition Seventh edition of the indie mu- sic festival at Zion Reggae Bar, Marsaskala. Open from 18:30 on April 20 and 21; from 14:00 on April 22. Featured perform- ers include: RAGE Against Soci- ety (Feat: Patti Patteks), bark bark disco, BILA, Beesqueeze, Double Standard, Heart of Darkness, American Airlines & Shlamizard, Rock & Rave, GIUNGLA (IT), Soccer96 (UK), Danjeli (Live), BEANGROWERS, the areola treat, YEWS, Fuzzhoneys, KN- TRL, traskurat, Brodu, Cryptic Street, Cosmicomics, Lucy's Last, Eyes to Argus, Pyramid Suns, Ferret, The Ranch, The PlaKard Project, Krishna, Lady Lizard, Earthrocker, Depth & Volume A, Ra & Fatz and Hearts Beating In Time. Tickets: https://shop.track- agescheme.com/event/rock-the- south-2018/ THEATRE & DANCE APRIL 22-26; 29 AND 30; MAY 1-3 Much Ado About Nothing: Shakespeare at the Pub WhatsTheirNames Theatre production of William Shake- speare's romantic comedy Much Ado About Nothing at The Pub, Archbishop Street, Valletta at 20:00. Additional matinee per- formances on April 22 and 29 at 10:00. Joseph Zammit, Tina Rizzo, Nathan Brimmer, Gianni Selvaggi and Giulia Xuereb. Di- rected by Philip Leone-Ganado. Bookings: whatstheirnames.the- atre@gmail.com, 7734 5207 or 7905 2522. Seating is limited to 20 people per show. APRIL 26-29 Is-Serra Maltese-language adaptation of Harold Pinter's The Hothouse at the Mount Carmel Theatre, Attard at 20:00. Translated by Simone Spiteri and directed by Andre Agius. Cast includes: Vic- tor Debono, Mark Mifsud, Maria Buckle, Joe Depasquale, Anthony Ellul, Benjamin Abela and Kurt Castillo. Bookings: www.teatru- malta.org.mt, 21220255. PUBLIC TALK APRIL 18 Salvage and Salvation: Bookbindings as Agents Public talk on the art of book- binding by Professor Nicholas Pickwoad at Lecture Theatre 2, University of Malta, Tal-Qroqq. The making of books in the early modern period was a highly com- mercial activity and the need to cut costs is evidenced by the widespread use of recycled mate- rials, particularly pieces of parch- ment, paper and leather salvaged from a myriad of other uses in li- braries, archives and daily life. In this way, binders preserved mate- rial that had been thrown away or otherwise discarded, much of it of historical interest, some of it of great cultural importance. Professor Pickwoad trained in bookbinding and book conserva- tion with Roger Powell, and ran his own workshop from 1977 to 1989, and has been Adviser on book conservation to the Nation- al Trust since 1978. Jumping over the limits The PlaKard Project speak to TEODOR RELJIC ahead of the launch of their debut album, Jump the Fence Could you tell us a little bit about the evolution of the PlaKard Project, and how you've hit upon the sound that you're currently experimenting with? It was back in September 2016 when after jamming together, Matthew John Scicluna (bass) and Kyle Drakard (drums) kicked off on a musical experiment taking them on a journey to share music. In February 2017 Matthew Camill- eri (guitar) joined the band, evolv- ing the core of The PlaKard Project to a tripod. Last year we gigged and toured the island together with guest mu- sicians Angela Vella Zarb (vocals) and Mark Harrison (saxophone). We shared our song writing with the public in a number of differ- ent venues and events. Organising and being part of great events and festivals, exposed us to experience and learn great things that lead us to the next steps of the journey. Last December we released a live session playing one of our tunes 'Chili Love' featuring Mark Harri- son on Alto Saxophone. The video can be found on our Facebook page and Youtube. In January this year we recorded our debut album at Temple Stu- dios. It was a great experience for all of us and it surely helped us evolve our sound and made us get to know ourselves and our sound better. The band appears to have a diverse array of influences. How did you decide to incorporate all of these varied elements, and how do you strive to make it all cohere together? Coming from a different and di- verse music background made us just play and experiment with a mixture of genres. Our influences vary from contemporary jazz to hip hop and experimental music to- gether with other genres that hap- pen to pop out and flow through in a given moment. We don't really think about how to incorporate all these styles and varied elements. We listen to different music, prac- tise and then we just play. How would you chart the journey to your debut album, which you will be launching on April 14? It all started from an experi- ence that required Kyle and Matt to jump a real fence as they were locked inside a festival. This ex- perience inspired the duo to start working on a song and from there onwards it evolved into an album. 'Jump The Fence' which is the name of the album comes from a song title 'Jump The Fence'. It was this song that inspired the kick off The PlaKard Project back in Au- gust 2016. The album was then written throughout 2017. The songs in the album were inspired by past experiences that the mem- bers of the band had. There were songs that were written before and arranged for the album and a mix of other riffs, grooves and melodies that created the songs that we have today. How did you decide you were "ready" to put together your first recording? Well, we decided to put together our first recording as soon as we felt the chemistry between us and the confidence in playing together. After we booked the studio dates we started working hard to get the sound and energy we imagined. We also continued writing new material which led to our six-track album Jump the Fence. The Album also features Angela Vella Zarb on vocals, Mark Harri- son on Alto Saxophone and War- ren Galea on Keys. It is one of our intentions to collaborate with oth- er musicians and artists. Playing in a sextet setup is a wonderful expe- rience. We learn a lot from each other and the sound we imagined for the album was in such a setup. We've also known each other be- fore The PlaKard Project started and that made it smoother for us to collaborate together. What kind of feel do you hope people will get for the PlaKard Project once they listen to it? The album can be perceived in many ways. It is a story about ar- tistic, environmental, social and personal limits and fears that cre- ate fences and challenges. Once tackled and jumped creation will flow and bear fruit. What are some of the greatest challenges local musicians like yourselves face, and what would you change about the music scene in Malta if you could? The greatest challenge for us is called 'UPP': Understanding, Pa- tience and Perseverance. A local scene challenge could be that the music supply is greater than the demand. In other words, since we are a tiny island the per- centage of the population who actually support the local music scene is small when compared to the scene itself. To overcome this challenge we are seeing a number of bands and artists taking it to the next levels and also touring abroad. At the end of the day we believe it has to come from the musicians and bands themselves to lay a simple and easy way forward that works for them. What's next for you? Soon after our album launch, we'll continue to perform in events and festivals such as Rock The South and Earth Garden. We're also planning on touring abroad in the near future. The PlaKard Project will be launching their debut album 'Jump The Fence' at Giovanni Curmi Higher Secondary School, Naxxar on April 14. Doors open at 20:00 The PlaKard Project