As funk-band Relikc release their first album, The Code of Antics, all five members sit down with Iggy Fenech to discuss friendship, sound and future plans.
Over the past couple of years, Relikc has been gigging around the island, releasing singles and pretty much getting people jumping and thumping to their tunes. Now, after nine years of working on their sound and amalgamating 1970s funk with contemporary pop, the band has finally released its full-length album.
Below is their story in their own words.
Bassist Ivan Giordano talks foundations.
“Luke [guitarist], Joe [keyboardist] and myself have been playing together in different bands since secondary school. Even so, we had struggled with finding a singer for a while until one day in Sixth Form, Luke overheard Keith [frontman] singing.
I remember him running up to me and saying: “I think we found a singer!” That was the beginning of Relikc, which later saw Joe returning to the group. Lesnich, meanwhile, replaced the previous drummer after the latter moved on to other projects in 2012.
“As individuals, we grew up together so we get along very well. Of course, there’s a lot of bickering too – it’s just like having four brothers, I guess. Everyone in the band has different abilities and attributes, so many times we split tasks between us. We constantly update and consult each other. In fact, our phones never stop buzzing!
“As a band, however, Relikc is mostly driven by our joint love for live performance. In fact, you could say that we are happiest when the crowd is singing along and dancing away to our music!”
Keyboardist Joseph Axiak talks sound.
“Initially, Relikc was more rock-oriented but, as the band matured, we delved deeper into the roots of funk music. We are all very fond of the 1970s-funk scene but we’re also influenced by more contemporary acts, such as Jamiroquai, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Bruno Mars. The common factor between these acts is the energy they convey through their songs and live performances: the music is up-beat and inspires the listener to dance. That is what Relikc aspires to achieve with its current sound and song-writing style.
“Most of our songs are written collaboratively and we all try our hand at writing lyrics. Of course, we bounce ideas off each other during rehearsals or in between shows, particularly as we have different styles, with some members preferring to come to the studio with a song which is almost ready, while others prefer to test a simple melody or groove with the others and develop the song progressively.
You could say that we are happiest when the crowd is singing along and dancing away to our music
“Over the years, we have also started writing songs which include additional musicians as inspired by the great funk bands of the 1970s. In fact, though typically a five-piece band, Relikc’s act culminates as a 13-piece power house of funk.”
Guitarist Luke Grech talks Relikc’s new album, The Code of Antics.
“We started working on the 10-track The Code of Antics album in late 2016. Each of the 10 tracks was selected out of a lengthy list of songs we had written over four months and all of them have evident funk/pop sound to them, which is where we wanted to steer ourselves musically.
“That was followed by Kenny [the producer] challenging us to re-evaluate the songs and develop them further for another couple of months. We then spent six weeks recording at Jubox Recording House, while Kenny spent the next month editing and mixing at Beehive Productions, an intimidating task given the number of musicians recorded.
Finally, just last April, we headed to the world-renowned Abbey Road Studios in London, where the songs were mastered by Geoff Pesche concluding the process.
“The development in genre is evident in the album, I think, as it reflects our band’s development toward a funkier and more refined sound. It also features more electronic elements, cleaner guitar tones, intricate horn arrangement and, most of all, heart-felt lyrics.
“Additionally, the album features an extended line-up of musicians… So, while our previous releases consisted only of the core five members, The Code of Antics features a total of 12 musicians, including a quartet of horns, a percussionist and additional singers.”
Singer & Frontman Keith Zammit talks Strut (Papa’s Got The Cash), the first single off the album.
“This song started off as a simple organ pattern, which can now be heard at the beginning of the song. In between sound checks, we developed the pattern into a groove and we felt it was catchy enough to merit a whole song. The lyrics, meanwhile, speak about someone who’s heartbroken over being dumped for someone who’s richer, and whose ‘papa’s got the cash.’
“The song is one of the two songs from The Code of Antics which we had already performed live before the album launch, so we’ve been eager to release it as a single. It’s also a track which, I believe, epitomises what the album is all about: funky and fun music, but with some lyrical depth, so it was the perfect way to give the public their first taste of the album.
“The idea for an animated video was not actually our own, though! Originally, we wanted something in the style of a flash mob, having people from all walks of life ‘strutting’ along. Nevertheless, Maka Visuals, who produced the video, commented that, while the music felt happy and upbeat, the lyrics were rather sad as they spoke of breakups and heartache…
“They immediately likened this dissonance with the nature of dogs, who are immensely loving and forgiving and they came up with this corgi as a protagonist who remains positive and hopeful despite his unrequited love. Seconds after showing us their initial designs for the adorable corgi, we were sold!”
Drummer Lesnich Vassallo talks plans in the pipeline.
“We’re thoroughly enjoying the whole process of promoting The Code of Antics, and we’ll be releasing more singles from this album in the near future, so there’s still a solid amount of work that needs to be done. Nevertheless, it won’t take long till we start itching for some new songs…
“Our next single? Well, we’re still discussing which song we should release, as we have a couple of tracks that we’d like to release as the second single. Nevertheless, we’re positive that the chosen song will be released by the end of the summer…
“Even so, following our album launch last Friday at Madliena Lodge, we shall be playing at Farson’s Great Beer Festival on August 5. This will be our first time on the Main Stage, and we’re excited to play there, especially with our current extended musician line-up.
“Then, two weeks after, we’ll be playing at The Rooftop Sessions, on Wednesday, August 23. That’s it for now, but we will definitely have more performances to look forward to!”
www.relikc.com