These Scenes From Malta In The 90s Are The Ultimate Throwback Thursday
Fresh off the heels of our musical memories from Malta’s scene in the 80s, we bring you a selection from another decade thanks to people like DJ and presenter Alfie Fabri’s incredible collection of sights and sounds, this time the naughty 90s:
1. Baby Jason Micallef at the post-Eurosong 96
What’s not to love about a younger Louise Tedesco and a younger (and cuter?) Jason Micallef, side-by-side. Oh man, times really do change.
2. Flying Alligators on TVM in ’93
Perfectly reflecting the tone of the decade, here’s Flying Alligators performing a slightly grungier version of their song ‘For A Day’ on Alfie Fabri’s TVM show Gen TV. Anyone out there want to bring back something like this on television? Please…
3. Winter Moods playing at Tattingers in 1998
Malta in the 90s was a pretty strange time, with half the country embracing the new decade and the new styles and genres it brought with it, and the other half still going strong with the 80s vibe. Feel free to decide to which crowd the suit-jacket-mullet-sporting Winter Moods went with in this video from 98.
4. Seventeen-year-old Beangrowers
Beangrowers are one of the most successful bands to emerge from our islands, and their success abroad is really just the cherry on the cake. Way back in 1994, though, they were just another trio of teenagers with a dream, and here they are working very hard at making that dream a reality.
5. The Paceville Pjazza in the early 90s
Despite Paceville seeing an insane amount of new buildings cropping up between the 80s and 90s, this photo highlights just how much quieter the whole area still was.
The iconic corner (across the street from today’s Burger King) went from Paul’s Punch Bowl to Rock Cafe’ in the 90s, another reflection of the generation’s shift. We’re just sad that the iconic place is now a huge gentlemen’s club covered with Ancient Greek columns and neon lights.
6. The Characters’ 1996 music video
Wildly regarded as one of the best Maltese rock ballad in Malta, The Characters’ Down By The Water gets even better when coupled with this super 90s music video, featuring footage from the 1995 Music Malta Awards, where they won the award for the ‘best CD’.
Speaking of which, the whole introduction for that award by Peppi Azzopardi and Lou Bondi is probably the best example of retro bromance we’ve ever seen:
7. Passion Blade’s eye-opening TV interview in 1993
A quick snapshot of what it was like to be in the rock scene in Malta in the 90s, and a stark reminder of a problem some local artists might have to this very day. In this 30 second clip from nearly two and a half decades ago, Passion Blade express their disappoint that some of the audience at gigs don’t really care about the bands’ original songs and focus more on easily-recognisable cover versions. Clearly, some things never change.
8. Almost Human’s Gżira garage recordings
The 90s had their fair share of power-band-side-projects, and here’s a short-lived one from members of Tribali and The Characters, rocking in their Msida rehearsal studios in 1999.
During one of their most productive periods, Almost Human had recorded about 15 songs in just two separate demos, but never released them. There should still be some of those recordings roaming around though, so we can only hope that those songs see the light of day sometime in the near future.
9. A compilation of footage from the Malta Song for Europe 1996
This video, spanning nearly 15 minutes, has pretty much everything you might ever need from a nostalgic video. But if you haven’t got enough time to sit through all of it, here are three standout moments:
Claudette Pace placing second for the second consecutive year:
Most of the people interviewed before the results were announced seemed to think that this would be Claudette’s year to represent Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest, but it was destined to be another second place. Four years later though, the new decade brought us Claudette’s inevitable win and, of course, Desire.
(A very young) Miriam Christine winning the contest:
Miriam Christine Borg was only seventeen years old when she won with In A Woman’s Heart, and the teenager went on to represent Malta in Oslo, placing a respectable tenth place.
John Bundy, back with a brand new style
No longer sporting his 80s yellow-and-black striped sleeveless shirt, John Bundy presented the 1996 Eurosong with what looks like an entire animal on the top of his head.
What’s your favourite Maltese music moment from the 90s? Tell us in the comments and share any memories you might have with us!
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