Viva San Cipress...

Tonight Xtruppaw will release their much anticipated album, and predictably enough, it does not disappoint. In fact, I can say that it surpassed my expectations, particularly in the variety of styles that it covers. Now, I should declare my bias outright and say that not only am I one big Xtruppaw fan, but Jeff is my cousin and I think that these guys are some of the coolest and most friendly people that I know (and not only because of their generosity with the whisky in drunken days past). The Xtruppaw phenomenon has made an instant hit. About a year ago they were playing their first ever gig. Now they have just launched a full length CD. In all honesty, I think that their success is in part directly attributable to their satirical lyrics, entertaining performances and their general fun factor. In this regard, they are by no means pioneers, as others have done these things before. The main difference I think has to do with their solid song-writing backbone. Beneath the crude lyrics, their website and their live performances one finds a treasure of some incredibly infectious tunes, without which Xtruppaw would have never been the phenomenon that they are today. People should not let themselves be distracted by the lyrics at the expense of the music. They are both essential ingredients that make a formula like Xtruppaw work perfectly, the two sides of the Xtruppaw coin if you will. I wanted to make this point clear, as although I will be specifically writing about the lyrics, I don’t think that the lyrics can in actual fact be separated from the music.

Xtruppaw’s single greatest achievement, lyric-wise, is how effortless they manage to articulate the local social reality. Like a series of photos taken on a random day-trip around the island, most of the songs conjure mental images that are genuinely real. The humour is, in general, derived from this authenticity. There is, for example, nothing spectacularly funny about a statue of a lion, but its reference in ‘Rajt ma Rajtx’ is a detail that without much elaboration takes you directly to a Maltese front garden; it is the detail that makes the difference. ‘Nenannana’ should make those who have aesthetics at heart cry, rather than laugh. The smiles, however, come as a result of years of seeing ‘Nenannanas’ running around the island and knowing that you can completely relate to the singing. Similarly, it is not improbable that all listeners have a name and a face to attach to the anti-hero throwing up in a sink in ‘Glorja Tonna’. The satire is fed with observational humour which makes it all the more powerful. ‘Kont ser intajru x’hin gie jghannaq’ is another example. Who hasn’t been assaulted by a drunken friend who, with dark patches under his armpits, feels he needs to demonstrate his love and affection? This is why people relate to the band with particular ease. They bring to the world of music, a collective reality that we constantly share.

In their own way, Xtruppaw document the times we’re living in; which is why they are a milestone in the history of local youth culture. They speak the language of young people and voice their concerns and experiences. ‘Generazzjoni ta’ Meqrudin’, in fact, is something of a youth anthem, a musical middle finger creatively presented to the older generation who judge young people through yesteryear’s spectacles. Those interested in youth in general and youth culture in particular cannot afford to be unaware of this band. Those that do know about Xtruppaw, should listen. Like any good satire, Xtruppaw make a relevant point; tons of them actually. Throughout the album the character, folly and culture of the Maltese people is dissected with clinical precision, and although some references, like the hoffor in ‘Ghanja ta’ l-iXtruppaw’, are a bit of a cliché, they nonetheless reflect the priority they enjoy in the list of local grievances. ‘Is-CD ta’ l-iXtruppaw’ almost makes you grateful for all the annoying things that we must keep up with while living in Malta. So next time you are presented with such a situation, be thankful for it, it just might be the next ‘Xtruppaw’ hit.