Trackage Scheme’s annual music event, now in its second year, is set to hit The Roof Top, with a theme that this year is inspired by a re-interpretation of German psychologist Kurt Koffka’s theory of gestalt, which refers to the belief that the whole is other than the sum of the parts.

Titled Gestalt, this year’s event turns the different schools of thought that surround this concept on their heads with a musical experience that illustrates just how different parts – in this case different genres of music – can get together to form a new reality.

“Last year’s theme was Metamorphosis, dealing with the idea of change given how the local landscape is continuously evolving. We figured that the whole idea of gestalt is an evolution of this concept.

“Now that we have brought together different musicians, DJs and audio-visual artists we are focusing on creating something that is greater than the sum of its parts,” Ben Vincenti, the founder of Trackage Scheme, says.

Trackage Scheme is an online community and music hub that brings together local alternative bands, DJs, producers and their followers.

Since its inception in 2013, it has offered a platform for artists to showcase their works both online and during events.

This summer, the scheme launched a series of weekly rooftop live concerts which feature a different band or artist every time and a fully-fledged online portal is set for launch on July 13.

This year’s event presents an eclectic mix of headliners, fusing styles and crowds that might, at other times, be presumed to clash.

Main acts include hip-hop outfit Sempliċiment tat-Triq, Sean Rickett, China, For Strings Inn, Brian James, U-jack, Jaunn, Klasterfijld (a Duo Blank side project) and Laavemaux. Artists are still being revealed.

“True to our core beliefs, this year’s main event goes beyond the individual people to present a melting pot of styles and music that reflect the core principles of gestalt.

A melting pot of styles

“The lyrics of Blink 182, from Baby Come On, come to mind: ‘the future is only the past with the lights on’. This describes the philo-sophy behind Trackage Scheme pretty well because we believe in a continuous evolution from our past to the future,” Vincenti says.

This annual event, however, is not the be-all and end-all for Trackage Scheme, Vincenti maintains. “Making the artists accessible across the board, particularly with an audience that they might not have otherwise reached, remains the priority.

“This is why we decided to make our weekly gig event completely free in order to attract those who remain unsure about what the scene has to offer.

“It’s a gamble of course, because the setup alone – which we offer for free too to participating bands – is expensive. But we feel that the scene deserves the effort and the commitment,” Vincenti says. This idea of giving something back both to audience and artist is also a major driving force behind the upcoming web portal, which will include the artist interviews that Trackage Scheme has become known for as well as a complete calendar of events and a web player. “We are particularly excited about the web player as I believe that this will be a first on a local level. The idea is to make the portal as interactive as possible. “There will be the usual static bios etc, of course, but there will also be podcasts and a database of over 9,000 playable tracks which can be filtered by genres, local or foreign and so forth.” Trackage Scheme will also be running the electronic music area at the Malta Street Art Festival between July 24 and 26. Trackage Scheme presents Gestalt takes place on July 4 from 1pm at The Rooftop, Gianpula Complex, Rabat. Tickets are available at the door.

www.facebook.com/TrackageScheme; www.trackagescheme.com

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