Heads of Delegation from thirty-nine competing nations in this years' Eurovision Song Contest taking place in Malmo, Sweden officially presented their entries for the international competition thus bringing the curtain down on yet another season of national selections. The editorial board of escflashmalta.com has been in contact with several professionals from the local and the foreign music industries to help assess the entries in this years' competition. This is one of the features which our portal has coined in the past three years and which has amassed popularity with the readers. Our professional analysts have a look at the videos with a certain detail for the simple reason that they know what it means to create hit songs or nurture talent which has gone onto achieve success in the foreign market. 

They will pass on their comments on each of the respective tracks and give a mark out of ten, but then, the final ranking of qualifiers will be very dependent of their top ten ranking. Each of the direct qualifiers, six in total where given voting rights in each of the respective semi-finals and therefore the professionals as decided by the editorial team to cover which semi-final would listen to the competing entries along with the direct qualifiers who would be voting in that respective semi-final. One of the major revelations of this years' Malta Eurovision Song Contest has surely been Matthew Mercieca who is known in the local music industry as Muxu. His talents as a singer/songwriter have never graced the festival scene but surprisingly, people were stunned to listen to the lyrics he penned to the track Betrayed performed by Davinia to the music of Elton Zarb. It has an appealing feature which the jury adored and as a matter of fact, it managed to finish in third place to the surprise of many. The quality is becoming more of an issue in Malta hence why this track was not overlooked. Muxu on the other hand has released two singles in the past couple of months including So Good and Pour Down On Me, earning a couple of nominations at the Bay Music Awards and Malta Music Awards. 

Joining him in analysing the first semi-final will be none other than Lina Eriksson, based in Sweden and signed to EMI Music Publishing in Scandinavia. Her worked during the past couple of years surely speaks for itself noting that she has managed to make the Melodifestivalen competition on six out of the past eight years including with more than one entry in 2010 and 2012 respectively. In the latter year, Baby Doll performed by the group Top Cats made it to the final finishing in a respectacle sixth position. Away from the Melodifestivalen, Lina Eriksson alongside her husband Marten Eriksson, a songwriter and producer himself have worked on a number of renowned tunes including for example This Moment by Marie Picasso and Vill Da Dig Igen by Thomas Di Leva. She was also a co-writer for It's For You performed by Niamh Kavanagh for Ireland in 2010.

Czech Republic was a competing country in the Eurovision Song Contest but decided to stop competing altogether following successive disappointing results. One of the prime songwriters and music producers of the country is none other than Stano Simor, having done a lot of work with a variety of artists including Tereza Kerndlová, for whom he had written the song Have Some Fun alongside Gordon Pogoda. Stano Simor comes from an industry which is somewhat accustomed to different tastes to what Malta has become to enjoy over the years, but not in an exclusive manner especially considering that he is currently managing pop/rock artist, Mista who was quite close to being the Slovakian representative back in 2010. He has worked on several studio albums, all of which have gone at least 1x Platinium and that is definitely a statistic which should always be accounted.

For the second semi-final, the format is kept the same with a female and two males joining the proceedings and kicking off things is none other than Martin Isherwood whom escflashmalta.com is proud to present as one of the annual partners in this respective feature. Martin Isherwood is a leading figure at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, being the Head of Discipline and bringing to the table more than twenty years of experience within songwriting, producing, sound engineering and managing artists. As a matter of fact, he also won the Song for Europe competition with his song Cry Baby which despite being a pop song written for the times was not performed to the expected standard. Such a figure has been quite successful and currently is a Board Member of the Merseyside Music Development Agency in order to help support aspiring artists in their dream to reach out to the masses and be successful.

In the past couple of months, we have closely worked with Sharon Vaughn and indeed, she has become a regular contributor to our projects. Her success within the foreign music industry speaks volumes having targeted several markets, most notably the larger ones in the United States of America as well as Australia and also the United Kingdom. The repertoire of artists that she has worked with is phenomenal and not only that but she had been involved in some of the most intriguing hits throughout the years including Release Me by Agnes, The Guardian by Delta Goodrem and Fahrenheight by Joe McElderry whilst also having tracks included in albums by Malena Ernman, Brian Kennedy, The Wanted, September and Jedward, having written their Eurovision Song Contest entry last year. One note towards local artists is surely the fact that she correctly predicted Gianluca to win this years' Malta Eurovision Song Contest.

The final individual which we have included within the analysis of the second semi-final entries is a songwriter, producer, and a sound engineer who has been working with a number of local artists in the past two years of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest. Magnus Kaxe, born in Sweden but based in Germany has collaborated with various artists all across the world with success achieved in the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Sweden, Norway, and South Africa amongst others. The most notable successes surely are those which he has helped write and indeed, he has written two notable tracks, one entitled Higher Ground performed by Amy Diamond and the other being Falling by Clay Aiken, runner-up of American Idol. Nevertheless, he has met the likes of Britney Spears, Aqua, Celine Dion, Westlife and Will Young whilst working on their respective singles and studio albums. This year, he was competing in the national selection with Klinsmann, Dorothy Bezzina and Richard Edwards and hopes to return next year. The project will be launching in the first week of April, so stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all of the latest news.

Source: escflashmalta.com

The Team of Radio International is back and following the visit to the Mediterranean Island of Malta in the past couple of weeks, invites you to the weekly Ultimate Eurovision Experience. Apart from the means of FM Radio in the Netherlands on FM 106.8 and the audio stream from the studio via www.radiointernational.tv and on Digital Cable 781 & cable 88.1Mhz in the Netherlands, the show will also be web-televised via the Radio International TV Channel from the studio and linking up the many international Eurovision fans and friends and play your requests and read your messages out on air. The simulcast will be from 2000 – 2300 hours CET when Eurovision fans can join in and chat amongst each other via the Chat Room and request their favourite Eurovision entry.

The main focus of the past week was surely the Malta Eurovision Song Contest, and the Team of Radio International had the opportunity to speak to the winner, Gianluca Bezzina who will be flying the flag for Malta in the second semi-final of the esteemed competition with the song Tomorrow co-written by Dean Muscat and Boris Cezek. Whilst attention is already being diverted off the selection, it is important to denote that we also had the opportunity to speak to Kevin Borg, who is thought to be one of the most pivotal figures in the local music industry and he came second with the song Needing You co-written with Simon Gribbe, Thomas Thornholm, Michael Clauss and Dan Attlerud. 

The interviews continues thoug because, a newcomer by the name of Davinia Pace finished in third place during the Malta Eurovision Song Contest iwth her song Betrayed composed by Elton Zarb and penned by Matthew Mercieca (Muxu). She has taken in this experience as a brilliant kick start to bigger and better things and considering that she has released material such as Feel Good Song and Sail Away in recent months, one would surely expect more in the near future. The final interview that will be aired this evening is with Liene Candy who is hoping to represent Latvia in 2013 with the song Higher and Higher. She has already been a backing vocalist for the nation before, in 2008 with Wolves of the Sea but would like to come out as the lead vocalist.

Radio International is always keen to present songs during the show apart from the weekly features and therefore, collaborating the two ideas together will see the emergence of Eurovision UnverCover whereas tracks performed at the Eurovision Song Contest will be covered by other singers. The actual tracks will be played first followed by the cover and this will make things interesting. Apart from this feature which will officially commence as of tomorrow, there will be new material played on the show by a number of former representatives. All of the latest news is also covered during the weekly broadcast noting resources from escflashmalta.com and escXtra where Luke Fisher, the Editor makes a weekly round-up. The same applies with Dermot Manning who continues national finals and this week, he turns to Finland, Iceland and Norway. Follow the show through the official website and also send your requests through the contact link which is found on the aforementioned website.

Source: Emil Calleja Bayliss (image), Press Release

The 2013 edition of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest is less than a month away and the Public Broadcasting Services is promoting each of the respective competing entries on Television Malta, Radju Malta and Magic Malta whilst our web portal escflashmalta.com will officially start tackling each of the tracks as of today, noting that a number of high profile critics as introduced late last year have had the opportunity to listen to the full versions of the tracks and thus comment on an individual basis on each whilst their compiled score will also be listed as a percentage out of the total maximum points which could have been awarded, fifty. Kicking off the proceedings with our annual feature which will see someone winning the Critics Choice Award on Sas-Sitta on the 9th February will be none other than festival newcomer Davinia Pace who will be performing the song Betrayed composed by Elton Zarb and penned by Matthew Mercieca, more commonly known as Muxu as the final track in the semi-final slated to take place on the 1st February at the Malta Fairs and Conventions Centre.

Davinia Pace is not only a completely newcomer to the Malta Eurovision Song Contest but is relatively new in the local music scene noting that she moved to Hertfordshire at the tender age of thirteen in order to follow her craft and learn the art of performance. As a matter of fact, music started becoming one of the main elements in her life and as she grew, she decided that becoming a singer would be possible with the right training and indeed, she enrolled into the musical college known as Vocal Tech, where she learned how to control her voice better and ultimately showing that blues and jazz had a predominant role in her outlook. In recent months, she has been quite busy recording brand new material with her good friend, Muxu and as a matter of fact came about the duet Feel Good Song as well as her number #1 hit single Bottled My Teardrops. These two songs reflected well upon Davinia garnering a nomination for Best Newcomer at the Bay Music Awards. She decided to continue working on the genre itself and thus came about another track entitled Sail Away which was released onto 89.7 Bay Radio very recently.

Betrayed is the focus of this review of course, and the focus seems to be with regards to the fact that it is somewhat similar in genre to a bond tune and more specifically Skyfall which was released by singer/songwriter Adele in recent weeks. It is coming across well on screen and Davinia seems to be very camera friendly noting that she manages to get the attention of the viewer instantly. Songwriting credit in music goes to Elton Zarb who despite having solo projects in this manner has become renowned for his work on the hit musical drama series D.R.E.A.M.S. amongst others. This will not be his first time competing with his most recent tracks in the Malta Eurovision Song Contest  being Whoop It Up! for Annalise Ellul and While My Eyes Still Glow for Janice Mangion in 2012. On the other hand, the lyrics by Matthew Mercieca known as Muxu come as a surprise for this particular competition noting that the singer/songwriter has never been keen into entering himself despite a number of hits including his recent single Pour Down On Me but his work with Davinia Pace is consistent and she clearly let him shine through from a lyrical point of view.

The Critics Speak Out

Rating: 56%

Sharon Vaughn: I really believe in Davinia as a performer and on this particular song, there seems to be that something special.

Stano Simor: Tina Turner’s Golden Eye or the Belgian group Hooverphonic? Yes I love this style of music. Anyways, I don't think is the right way to reach fans or to get enough points. Second Lena will not return anymore. There is nothing to disapprove off, at least with the song but it does fit with the other tracks. Davinia has a specifically nasal voice that sits in this style of music.

Roberto Meloni: Davinia has a very special vocal “material”, she is like a raw jewel. I like her attitude, not sure about her dress. About the song: what about more improvisation in the last part? It’s not a winning song, but I like the way she delivers it. 

Lina Eriksson: For me, this does not work at all. I’m really sorry Davinia but this a sleeping-pill from beginning to end.

Source: Public Broadcasting Services, escflashmalta.com

2013 is officially just a couple of hours away and several people are already gearing up to pop the corks off their champagne bottles but nevertheless, there is still one more day to go through and hopefully, that will also be one to remember in a positive manner. It has been an endearing year, with several positive aspects. As a matter of fact, we have been through the major news items for both the general Eurovision Song Contest as well as the local music scene and one could easily denote the progress that has been made on both a national and a foreign level of vocal talent and songs in general. Kicking off things in January, one has to remember that the announcement of the semi-finalists of the 2012 Malta Eurovision Song Contest took place on the programme Xarabank preceding a number of promotional activities which took place across the national broadcasters' frequencies including Television Malta, Radju Malta and Maltin Biss.

That is just the beginning noting that when the showcase actually came about as held in the Malta Fairs and Conventions Centre at the end of February, several people were shocked to see that Eleanor Cassar with the song I Want to Runaway and Annalise Ellul with Whoop It Up! were eliminated at the first hurdle. The final also opened up a number of questions due to the fact that Kurt Calleja with the track This Is The Night managed to beat the favourite Claudia Faniello with Pure despite not managing to win the full approval of the jury. According to unconfirmed statistics, he won the tele-voting by a large margin which secured his representation of the country. At this same time that the event was being staged, organisers of the Għanja tal-Poplu were gearing up for the return of the competition and indeed, they managed to garner forty two (42) entries in total, including from Malta Eurovision Song Contest semi-finalist; Janice Mangion, Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza finalist; Grecia Bezzina and escflashmalta.com contributor; Clive Muscat. February was proving to be a month of competitions and in fact, our portal covered the Sanremo showcase extensively through Elaine Camilleri, seeing to the victory of Emma Marrone with favourite Arisa languishing in second place. In the meantime, Kurt Calleja had begun his promotional tour in the same month heading to the artist selection in Azerbaijan, strengthening the bond created between the two countries in the previous year. 

In just a couple of weeks, the fever of the Eurovision Song Contest was sweeping the continent and it was revealed that the British Broadcasting Corporation had chosen a legend in the form of Engelbert Humperdinck to represent the United Kingdom. The announcement was met with mixed criticism noting that ultimately his entry Love Will Set You Free did not really achieve the expected result but nevertheless in Malta, there were other elements at hand noting that the original backing vocalist with the track This Is The Night being Ylenia Vella was sacked by the Public Broadcasting Services and replaced by Amber who had in February obviously finished in third place with her entry Answers With Your Eyes without any public support. Kurt Calleja did not answer any questions about the change and continued his promotion in Bulgaria and Lithuania whilst also filming the promotional video of the track on his return to the country. In Malta, on a private television station known as NET Television, preparations for the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza had begun and Simone Gauci was announced as the first finalist following her victory on Passport 2 Indifest having beaten former finalist; Marie Claire Attard Bason in the process. Her entry bearing the name Id F'Id was specifically written for her by Renato Briffa and Keith Zammit.

In April, it was all about Kurt Calleja and Malta's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest noting that he had managed to top the local iTunes chart with his entry whilst also visiting another set of countries; Turkey, Georgia and The Netherlands bringing his promotional tour to an end in a major party which included several major interviews. One of the male stars of the local music industry, Fabrizio Faniello continued to rebuild his image and the release of his album Kasmaran in Indonesia proved to be a massive success denoting the artist as a star in the Asian country. escflashmalta.com continued to work extremely close with a number of sources and uncovered that Elaine Saliba was set to be the commentator for Malta at the international competition, although it was then revealed at a later stage that Ronald Briffa would be aiding her analysis providing some comic relief.  The impressive younger generation of musical prodigies never cease to amaze and Gaia Cauchi won the right to represent the country in Sanremo Junior 2012, ultimately becoming the winner a couple of months later. The month came to an end with one of the artists of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest, being Wayne releasing the official video clip for his self penned track entitled Time with which he had competed a couple of months earlier.

The month of the Eurovision Song Contest quickly came about and May seemed to be quite intriguing in the local music market with the return of Christabelle with the track Say as well as Brooke with Fairytale but the media was somewhat enthralled at the single release of Miss You with main vocals by Wintermoods featuring the renowned international tenor; Joseph Calleja. It was also a month in which the finalists for the 2012 edition of the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza were revealed, quickly noting that this had to be one of the fields which was missing a lot of the more predominant names yet nevertheless featuring the upcoming generation of artists such as Domenique, and Danica Muscat amongst others. Performing at the Eurovision Song Contest, Kurt Calleja made the country proud on the night of the semi-final achieving seventh place but it seems that nerves got the best of him on a Saturday night with his performance dropping in quality although this did not hurt his success charting on the iTunes top 100 in Austria, Greece, Norway, Sweden and of course, Malta. escflashmalta.com kept their annual coverage with guest commentators including Simon Casey, Raquela, Claudia Faniello, Sophie, Magnus Kaxe and Christabelle. Thousands of people viewed the respective reports and with the aid of the team of Radio International and Eurovision Ireland, the competition was analysed and covered in the most profound and detailed way possible. 

With the months leading up to the competition behind everyone, the summer was set to kick in and in fact, June was a relatively quiet month with the Public Broadcasting Services confirming their intentions to not return to the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. On the other hand, Sophie was representing the country in the United Kingdom during the celebrations of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, undergoing a cross-country tour which saw her perform with the likes of X Factor runner-up, Marcus Collins whilst Kevin Borg was being wooed by the local public who wanted to see him represent the country in Sweden, the winning nation of the Eurovision Song Contest. The annual award for the worst dressed artist at the Eurovision Song Contest was decided with Rona Nishliu on behalf of Albania finishing on top. July proved to be less quiet and somewhat more eventful with Sweden deciding on Malmo as host city of the Eurovision Song Contest with the winner also coming to Malta to give a concert. In fact, on the Islands, things were becoming quite interesting with the Joseph Calleja concert featuring Ronan Keating, Gigi D'Alessio and Amber taking place on the Floriana Granaries, days before the official single release of What I'd Give by Ira Losco, her first track taken off the 2013 yet untitled album.

August came about but was quiet uneventful once more with Ira Losco releasing the official video for her new single and Kurt Calleja working on new material off a yet untitled album slated for release in 2013. In fact, Boomerang was picked up on 89.7 Bay and also made the charts by virtue of the amount of airplay received. As autumn and September drew in, the Public Broadcasting Services released the regulations for the 2013 Malta Eurovision Song Contest whilst other sectors of the scene were showing their strengths as new singles were also released by Janvil entitled Make My Day, Muxu bearing the name Pour Down on Me and last but not least a young girl brand coined as Cryptic Street with Indecisive. The second major music competition in Malta known as the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza was won by Deborah C with the track Jekk Nużaw Moħħna written by Mark Spiteri Lucas and Joe Chircop. Success was a thing of the month noting that the popular pop/rock band known as Airport Impressions went on tour in Sweden, headlining three major events and garnering international recognition. escflashmalta.com continued to air the local music scene by virtue of releasing a number of videos exclusively including the one of Muxu which you could also view just below.

It seemed like winter would not be setting foot on the country this year with October coming in full swing and the music scene bringing things up to speed in an excruciatingly busy ratio with exclusive video releases by Cryptic Street and Fabrizio Faniello along with new singles released by the group Cruz; Good On You, Chiara; Forget Forgetting Me, Dimal & Lyndsay; Let's Make It Happen. During this time, one of the singles was also picked up by a record label and as a matter of fact, Chiara is now a true recording artist with the backing of an Icelandic record label which also takes care of former Eurovision Song Contest representative; Hera Bjork. Whilst pop and rock are seemingly the two most popular genre in the country, the duo known as Tenishia received an accolade of which the whole country should be proud of with the official DJ Mag putting them as the fiftieth best in the world ahead of renowned musicians like Benny Benassi. The Public Broadcasting Services revealed that they received a total of 182 submissions for the 2013 Malta Eurovision Song Contest from a variety of countries and a matter of fact, submissions were sent in from four former representatives including; Fabrizio Faniello, Miriam Christine, William Mangion and Ludwig Galea but none of them would make the cut in the long run. The collaboration between this portal and the series D.R.E.A.M.S continued as a second season written by the talent Vella Haber and Saliba La Rosa returned featuring two main new actresses being Michela Dalli and Kristen Camilleri.

The month of November, was finally starting to show signs that the weather would be cooling down and in fact, the revelation of the twenty-four semi-finalists of the 2013 Malta Eurovision Song Contest seemed to be the only heated moment with a host of newcomers revealed in the list especially artists who have garnered attention through radio such as the likes of Gianluca Bezzina, and Davinia with others coming from notable national showcases including Chris Grech. December was relatively quiet noting that in the beginning, the Junior Eurovision Song Contest took place with Ukraine finishing on top with the track Nebo but the focus of the local music scene was surely on the Bay Music Awards which saw Red Electrick walk away with a total of two awards in total, the most of the night which also saw success going in the way of JJoy, Kelly Stellfox, Ira Losco, Carlo Gerada, Jan Cortez, Christabelle, and Cryptic Street. The Malta Eurovision Song Contest also hit a bump on the head with the withdrawal of Saska Hunt and the track Dress Rehearsal who was replaced by the first alternate on the list; Marilena Gauci with the track Overrated. We indeed hope that this year in fact wasn't just that and that it was ideal for each and every one of you. We look forward to serving you for another eventful year, as 2013 dawns in a couple of hours.

Source: escflashmalta.com, Kris Micallef (image)

89.7 Bay embarked on a mission a couple of years back to promote the local music scene and considering the astonishing amount of tracks that have been played on the radio station throughout this particular year, it seems that their efforts are paying off noting that success has become their trademark. The ninth edition of the Bay Music Awards which took place last night at the Bay Arena in St Julians were running under the theme Party Like It's The End of the World and there was a buzzing feeling in the crowd featuring people of all generations, representing the various artists who were nominated or performed. The build up was intense and several people were left on edge until the first performance, even preceding the introduction of the hosts took place. A lot was riding on the evening which included live performances for the very first time and apart from some mixing issues in the beginning of two performances, one could say it was a huge success.

89.7 Bay well represents the upcoming generation of artists and it seems that the fans that they are bringing with them are becoming more vocal when considering that the new guard was well promoted and ultimately ended up winning the most awards amongst seasoned veterans whose music is still very strong with the right to garner airplay and even nominations. Nevertheless, when tele-voting is the source of the actual vote, it is to be noted that the fan base becomes notorious and the younger generation have become accustomed to this element. Without a doubt, the live performances went down well with the crowd noting that Scar, Brooke, Christabelle, Dimal ft Lyndsay and Red Electrick gave the show the much needed boost to make it stand out. The audience was in full support to the act pictures above though as announced at the latter stage of the evening by Benjamin Glover, one of the three hosts of the evening which also included Dorian Cassar of Bay Breakfast and Nathan D from Malta's Top Ten and the Drive-time Show.

• Best Newcomers: Cryptic Street
• Best Band: Red Electrick
• Best Dance Tune / Remix: Love Hangover (JJoy ft. Kelly Stelfox)
• DJ's Choice: Ira Losco
• Best Solo Artist: Christabelle
• Best Song: My World (Carlo Gerada ft. Jan Cortez)
• Screamer Award: Red Electrick

89.7 Bay has been the leading radio station to promote the local Music scene and in fact, has helped artists develop their talent through the medium of broadcasting. In the past couple of years, there have been some distinct improvements in quality when it comes to the respective industry and therefore it is imperative that artists are rewarded for their talent through the annual Bay Music Awards which were officially launched this morning at the Intercontinental Hotel in Paceville. This will be the ninth year of the radio stations' music awards and it will be the biggest yet according to Kevin DeCesare, director of the Eden Leisure Group.

This years' edition of the Bay Music Awards will be taking place on the 12th December, the eve of a Public Holiday and will run under the theme Party Like it's the End highlighting the element that several people have been talking about this year. escflashmalta.com has been a stalwart in promoting both aspects of the local music scene although, one would have to note that there is a merge between the two due to the growing element of professionalism. In fact, there are several artists who have a connection with the Eurovision Song Contest, both on a local level as well as an international level. We are proud to be collaborating with 89.7 Bay on this years' ceremonies. In the meantime, please check out the nominees below.

Best Newcomer (50615301)

Cryptic Street

Dimal

Lost Emotion

Planet Seed

Best Dance Tune or Remix (50615302)

'My World' - Carlo Gerada ft. Jan Cortez 

'Battle of Wills' - Corinna

'Love Hangover' - JJoy ft. Kelly Stelfox

'Defenceless' - Ruby ft. Laura Jae

'Louder' - Stevy Vee & Ross Paterson ft. Glen Vella

Best Band (50615303)

Dolls for Idols

Red Electrick

Scar

Saving Alexis

Three Stops to China

Best Solo Artist (50615304)

Brooke

Chrisabelle

Ira Losco

Kurt Calleja

Muxu

Best Song (50615305)

'My World' - Carlo Gerada ft. Jan Cortez 

'What I'd Give' - Ira Losco

'Paul' - Red Electrick

'White Lie' - Scar

This years' edition of the Bay Music Awards will be hosted by Nathan D, Ben Glover and Dorian Cassar who hold the most noted shows on the broadcaster. It also has to be noted that all of the performances of the evening will be live except those from the best newcomer category in order to get into their respective element. One of the awards to be given out during the evening will be based on the amount of screams for each respective performance so one has to make sure that the fans will be present during the evening. Regular tickets will be going on sale at €10 with the front section tickets being sold at €15 and the VIP tickets with an open bar and canapés will be going for €30. Tickets will be sold online through the official website.

Source: 89.7 Bay

Summer is coming to an end somewhat abruptly this year noting the weird weather patterns that have come to affect the Maltese Islands in the past couple of days but nevertheless, the music releases are still sizzling and it seems that one artist who keeps getting it right at the moment is none other than Muxu who following his striking track So Good earlier this month returns with a completely different sound whilst keeping in line with the rhythm and blues genre which many have become accustomed to listening to from his repertoire. The brand new single entitled Pour Down On Me has been explained by the artists himself as 'a song for all the people that are in love with love, not just with a direct partner, but family , friends, sometimes as human beings we like to protect our hearts, by not letting people in, and there's no point, we live, we learn, so let love pour down on me'. 

Muxu goes onto explain that he finds himself in an extremely 'good place' in his life at the moment finding himself true happiness and going onto share the he 'just wanted the world to feel a little bit' of what he does indeed feel because there is a lot of 'negativity in the world, when truth is we all just want to be happy'. The track was sent to him in fragments so to speak noting that the music was instrumental at first and it gave him a sense of freedom and happiness that have somewhat been elements of his life in the past couple of months. When it came to writing the lyrics, it came effortless and he indeed gave it his all and made sure that everything was poured out into the track hence the title so to speak. The official music video which has been once more given to escflashmalta.com in terms of exclusivity has been filmed and directed by Mike Mercieca, the sixteen year old nephew of Muxu himself. Once more speaking to escflashmalta.com, he went onto say 'I am 100% that Mike is going to have an amazing future ahead of him' and goes onto send a shout out to the people who have aided him in making this video a reality; 'As always help from my mum, and my cousin Julia, and my sister Nadine for letting us stay at hers hearing the song over and over, while making the video, shout out to J, thank you for the inspiration'.

Source: escflashmalta.com

Summer months are pretty pleasant when one realizes, how much input there is from a music standpoint and with our latest collaboration with 89.7 Bay, one will see a lot more potential and the possibility of emergence between the two distinct parts of the local music scene. One of the tracks that has been getting a lot of airplay since released a couple of days back is entitled So Good which is written and sung by Muxu. The mere mention of the name will surely bring about memories of two duets being Still Missing You alongside the vocals of Talitha as well as the Feel Good Song by Davinia but then again, he is also known for his solo work such as Broken, Beat My Drum, Broken and Electronic. 

Life is quite stressful yet intriguing at the same time and therefore, music is one of the many elements that helps bring one to a point of relaxation especially in summer when the releases from local artists hit the top gear. It is quite early into the season having just begun but our colleagues at 89.7 Bay are currently accepting a number of tracks from local artists into their playlist such as those of Brooke and Christabelle who have been featured on escflashmalta.com earlier this week. One of the tracks which caught my ear instantly was So Good sung by Muxu with backing vocals by Amber. The song in itself is quite enjoyable because it gives one a very good feeling whilst keeping things mellow somewhat easing into the periods of time spent by the sea.

Muxu does not need a lot of introduction nowadays having amassed a number of years in terms of experience noting his previous successful releases such as Broken, Beat My Drum, Broken, Electronic as a soloist and also two popular duets, the first being Still Missing You alongside Talitha and the second being Feel Good Song with Davinia. Throughout the medium of time, he has become known for his extravagant performances and avant-garde kind of fashion in a Jake Shears kind of manner noting that the Scissor Sisters front man gained quite the reputation for his uncanny presentations on stage including the one during the Isle of MTV just a couple of years back. Amber who is the backing vocalists on this track has also just returned from the Eurovision Song Contest where she was backing Kurt Calleja and his performance of This Is The Night which reached the final and finished in twenty-first place. A music video for this song is expected in the next couple of days actually so stay tuned to all of the latest with escflashmalta.com as we keep you up to date with all the latest news.

Source: 89.7 Bay, Facebook, Valentina Varrazzo