Screaming Maldini

Screaming Maldini are creating energetic infectious pop by skillfully blending catchy hooks and sing-a-long choruses with complex orchestral arrangements and five-part harmonies.

The overflowing energy in their music matches their work ethic as they've been busying away putting the final touches on their self-titled debut album. On top of that they've enjoyed performing with a 40-piece orchestra, staging a few a capella flashmobs and working with Matt Berry from the IT Crowd, who's remixed their latest single "Summer, Somewhere", which includes holiday footage from their fans.

Dream team

Their journey began in 2009 and after a few changes to their lineup they assembled their six-piece "dream team". Nick Cox, Gina Walters, Annie Rushworth, Tim Walker, Jonathan Cornish and Ben Hoblyn, are full of determination and "ready to hit the ground running."

Only coming across the band recently it's obvious their "dream team" formula is working and getting people's attention. They describe themselves as being "different" but in a good way and that's certainly true. Each track the band have released so far offers something new and unexpected to their sound. Their latest single "Summer, Somewhere" still has obvious pop elements throughout but Gina Walters' beautiful vocals glides you through this epic and ambitious piece of music.

The band is proud to be making massive pop tunes but they like to emphasis each song has a unique'Maldini' edge to it. Gina explains how they're more than just another pop group: "I always say we're under the board umbrella of indie pop but within that we've got an orchestral, complex sound. I don't want to sound pretentious when I say 'complex'… but I think we make that complexity accessible and fun." Annie, their bassist agrees, saying "there's a little bit for everyone" in each of their songs.

It really stands out that Screaming Maldini are meticulous when it comes to the writing and recording process. With five out of the six having studied music at university there's always a strict and methodical approach to making their music. I've often come across remarkable new bands who are self-taught and can't read music and thought about whether having a musical background really does help?

"Having a musical background does help us because it's the way we work," says Gina, but she also reckons that it can be restrictive having to think:

"Right, I'm in this key, these are the chords I'm allowed to use. It's completely boxed me in, so I think it can work both ways, definitely."


But for lead singer Nick Cox, who writes the majority of the lyrics, it's often a subconscious and natural process:

I feel like I don't write them at all and they're just kind of there.

The band draw influences from multiple genres and as a six-piece they each have their favourites. They hold classical music in high regard and pay homage to it by incorporating choirs, strings and trumpets in their songs. Nick confesses he has an obsession with ABBA and believes "Benny and Bjorn were the Lennon and McCartney of the 70s."


Natasha Khan, aka Bat For Lashes
Gina is besotted with Natasha Khan from Bat For Lashes admiring how "incredible" she is at performing and adapting the style she sings in. Gina also has no harm in expressing how ambitious and driven she is: "I really want this album to put us on the map". She enjoys being a daydreamer wishing that one day Jools Holland will say "and now it's time for Screaming Maldini."

Their latest video for "Summer, Somewhere" was filmed in the Peak District capturing the stunning landscapes and beautiful scenery, which helps to express the message of the song. It's all about wanting to break free from the boredom and frustration of daily life. There's a sense of sadness in the song at the beginning but by the end it's picked you up and got you singing along.


"Summer, Somewhere" video, shot in the wild and beautiful Peak District
Newest member Ben says the album is an antidote for the end of a relationship:

"If you were to break up with someone and you needed some loving afterwards that's what the album gives. It's something everyone needs."

With the album done and dusted the band are holding off from releasing it until February 2013. But before then they'll be releasing a Christmas song and a new single.

So with big promises of producing an album that's unique there are high expectations on Screaming Maldini's shoulders but I have a strong feeling we won't be disappointed. - The Guardian

The Harley is rammed for the main event of the evening, and a big cheer goes up as Screaming Maldini take to the stage. The party is in full flow as they play a selection of songs from their album, including the recent single ‘The Awakening’ and the highlight of the evening, the sumptuous ‘Life in Glorious Stereo’. Gina directs the crowd during ‘The Silver Mountains’ and it’s obvious that the band are having as much fun as all the smiling faces in the crowd. They end on a high with the ecstatically received ‘Summer Somewhere’, before coming back out and ending almost where they began, with ‘Secret Sounds’.

Tonight has been a glorious celebration of one of Sheffield’s best bands, and no one left without a broad smile spread across their face. - Counterfeit Magazine

SCREAMING MALDINI” – SCREAMING MALDINI (Ankama Music): The Sheffield sextet fronted by Nick Cox spent two years putting their debut album together – and they have done a cracking job. Tracks like Summer Somewhere and the Silver Mountain are finely written and produced. At times the influence of The Beatles shines through, but that’s no bad thing – 8/10. - This Is Scunthorpe

SCREAMING MALDINI” – SCREAMING MALDINI (Ankama Music): The Sheffield sextet fronted by Nick Cox spent two years putting their debut album together – and they have done a cracking job. Tracks like Summer Somewhere and the Silver Mountain are finely written and produced. At times the influence of The Beatles shines through, but that’s no bad thing – 8/10. - This Is Scunthorpe

This eponymous debut release from Sheffield’s Screaming Maldini is an explosion of sounds that shouldn’t work but it does. Their multi-instrumental sound creates a whirlwind of an album that intrigues and draws in the listener from the get go. Think cowbells; think a crescendo of rhythms, snares, harmonies, fanfares. This is a delicious trinket of leftfield indie, radiating self-identity without being pretentious.

This is one for all you indie pop fans out there. This is a band we're all going to be dancing to in a few months. Go forth and dance!
- Vanguard Online

Well, Toast is shattered after listening to that. Not that it was a hard listen, more that it’s very upbeat, and very pop.
‘The Awakening’ fizzed in fireworks, chart-friendly synths and high tempo duel vocals. ‘Summer Somewhere’ was skilfully arranged and highlighted the nimble dexterity of Cornish’s key work as well as Walter’s smile-laden voice. It’s clear Screaming Maldini take influence from a host of sources, with Carl Sagan even getting a hat tip in ‘The Dreamer’ which is great, ‘cos Toast admires him, too.
By ‘The Silver Mountains’, Toast wondered how many more punchy synth choruses it could take, so it was nice that relief came in the form of the stripped back ‘Stutter.’ ‘Four Hours From Now’ sounds like a parade coming round your street and into your ear canal. They drop pop like a careless shelf stacker and that’s why it works – this is different. This glistens. - Toast Magazine

I’ve been waiting for this. If there were ever a band bringing a dash of colour to the rather pastel shades that pop is painted in at the moment, its Screaming Maldini. The Sheffield six piece’s début album shows that though they might be from a provincial city, but they can mix it with the very best. and the reason for that is they are able to make songs with quirky rhythms and time signatures, and sugar-coat them with charming, catchy and summery hooks. It makes for a deliciously addictive set of songs.

The band have taken their time too, spending the last two years mining twelve little gems. Most of it (ten of the twelve) have appeared in one way or another before, but now, re-recorded with added sheen and confidence, the album fizzes with excitement and ambition.

This ambition is evident from the very start, opening track ‘The Awakening’ (how apt) powers through in 7/4, propelled by the drums of Tim Walker, a feature throughout, with Nick Cox and Gina Walters immediately trading verses, before the whole thing climaxes with trademark harmonies and kitchen sink arrangement. It’s breathless and brilliant. Elsewhere we have more seven time (life in glorious stereo, the silver mountain), more interesting instrumental arrangements, and more unexpected twists and turns, both melodically and harmonically, that give it an immediacy and freshness that I honestly can’t remember from a pop record for a long time.

There are many magical moments during the album, whether it be the harmony laden Life in Glorious stereo, through the beautifully captivating ‘I Know That You Know That I Would Wipe Away the Snowflake From Your Eye’, and ‘The Albatross’ right the way through to the joyful finisher ‘Four Hours from now’. But it’s the single that brought them to a wider attention ‘Summer Somewhere’ that shines, Gina Walters vocal seducing the listener over a perfect pop gem. Its thrilling stuff.

If this is Screaming Maldini’s creative output for a debut album, I can’t wait for the next one. And the one after that. And the one after….

Rating: 9/10 - Backseat Mafia

When we sit around and think about what the inside of Screaming Maldini fronter Nick Cox's head must look like -- something one does after listening to great quantities of his brilliant, Sheffield, England-based sextet's euphoric, exuberant pop -- we imagine something like those bizarre animations Terry Gilliam contributed to "Monty Python's Flying Circus." Indeed, Mr. Cox and his cohort's music is filled with wonder, whimsy, and a feeling that the possibilities are limitless ("but sometimes it's glorious / and sometimes this city shines on us," so goes a verse to the single "Summer Somewhere"). And so it was with no small relief that finally, some four years after first popping onto our radar at Clicky Clicky, Screaming Maldini finally delivered unto us this week a full-length debut, simply titled Screaming Maldini. The arresting collection bursts with the band's singular brand of maximalist, kaleidoscopic pop and features a dozen prog- and vintage exotica-tinged tunes that are deftly composed and meticulously arranged, from the five-part vocal harmonies to the bright, detailed arrangements of guitars, keys, horns and percussion. The record proves definitively and twelve times over that, for Screaming Maldini, no detail is too small, no melodic idea too big: there are more ideas in one of its songs than most bands generate over the course of a career.

The well-sequenced collection touts an inexorable rush and push that draws listeners in and speeds them along, even across a sea of odd time signatures and some charming but more downtempo ballads. With considerable pomp (but never pompous), Screaming Maldini opens with the latest single, the euphoric, exuberant "The Awakening." It is one of four tunes that will be new to ardent fans, as the balance of the songs were previously issued as singles, b-sides or EP tracks. That said, there is a cohesiveness to the full-length; we wouldn't go so far as to say the collection is greater than the sum of its parts, but we will say that its parts do make for a brilliant whole. The order is front-loaded with the singles "The Awakening," "Life In Glorious Stereo," and the aforementioned "Summer Somewhere," then jumps to new recordings of two tunes from the band's triumphant And The Kookaburra EP [preview], "Secret Sounds" and "I Know That You Know That I Would Wipe The Snowflake From Your Eye." This latter track, somehow never a single, is one of the most sublime in the band's catalog, and features some incredible lyrical pay-offs including the drawn-out, titular declaration. Top it off with the gentle chorus, quietly urging "slow down, slow down" amid muted horn and staccato guitar, and you've got classic Maldini brilliance.

After a pair of stirring ballads -- including the amazing, Gina Walters-sung "Minor Alterations" -- the album closes with the electric, Latin-tinged hand-clapper "Four Hours From Now," which is seemingly equal parts disco, salsa and football anthem. The wide-eyed number emphasizes once more the band's almost unparalleled chops and vim. Screaming Maldini was released Monday by the sextet's French label HipHipHip in a limited edition of white vinyl LPs, as well as on CD and download; the art on the LP and CD packs are rendered in 3D and ship with 3D glasses. Screaming Maldini launch tomorrow night its biggest UK tour yet to support the album release, and for the first time will be bringing along their own sound man -- so look out UK! The tour wraps in a few weeks with a homecoming show at The Harley March 2. Hopefully fans won't have to wait four years for the next one!
- Clicky Clicky Music

Screaming Maldini are a bit different to other bands.

But, this is 2013: we’re so post-modern, so able to express ourselves as individuals that surely the term ‘different’ has been transformed into some mainstream fad – a way of drawing attention to just how oh-so controversial you are. Well... perhaps. But, if exhausting cynicism can be put aside for a moment then please, just accept the joy it gives me to say that Screaming Maldini really are rather unique.

For example, the first twinkling yearnings of ‘The Awakening’ usher in a record which often exudes a bounding enthusiasm which is disappointingly absent from so many musical offerings nowadays. Lead vocalists Nick Cox and Gina Walters proceed to trade lines effortlessly in a joyous manner reminiscent of an early Los Campesinos: this is their ace in the pack. So often on their eponymously titled debut do the Sheffield sextet give the impression that they are quite simply making music for sheer enjoyment – none of this staring at the floor waiting for the crowd to ‘get’ them malarkey. Rather, they package their enthusiasm into several wondrous nuggets of pop-genius.

‘Life in Glorious Stereo’ features finely honed harmonies aplenty, as well as displaying the band’s penchant for a surprise or two with an unexpected interlude allowing pause for breath part-way through the song; ‘Secret Sounds’ offers up more surprises, as sudden key changes frequently snatch the attention from a relentless rhythm. Recent single ‘Summer Somewhere’ is a rapturously uplifting highlight and, along with ‘Minor Alterations’, sees Gina present herself as a vocalist of enviable talent, but fortunate enough to be part of a band capable of making her far more interesting than the plethora of solo-balladeers attempting to tug your heartstrings from behind a piano time and again (and again and again…).



When the pace lets up, fortunately the quality doesn’t, with ‘The Dreamer’ and ‘The Albatross’ an absorbing combination which could soundtrack a hazy scene from black and white era Hollywood – the way the former, in particular, bursts into life means that it manages to sound timeless, yet intriguingly asymmetrical, all at once.

So, whilst some may be sceptical about describing them as ‘different’, or ‘unique’ or whatever else, what this album makes plain is that Screaming Maldini are certainly something special. On a record full of highlights, ‘…Snowflake…’ stands out in particular: a captivating few minutes during which the listener is gently urged to “slow down, slow down,” before the melody takes them on an enchanting, breath-taking journey. It is a snapshot of the heights this band are capable of hitting, and reaffirms that they are a delightful set of talents worth screaming about.

9/10 - Exposed Magazine

Screaming Maldini are a bit different to other bands.

But, this is 2013: we’re so post-modern, so able to express ourselves as individuals that surely the term ‘different’ has been transformed into some mainstream fad – a way of drawing attention to just how oh-so controversial you are. Well... perhaps. But, if exhausting cynicism can be put aside for a moment then please, just accept the joy it gives me to say that Screaming Maldini really are rather unique.

For example, the first twinkling yearnings of ‘The Awakening’ usher in a record which often exudes a bounding enthusiasm which is disappointingly absent from so many musical offerings nowadays. Lead vocalists Nick Cox and Gina Walters proceed to trade lines effortlessly in a joyous manner reminiscent of an early Los Campesinos: this is their ace in the pack. So often on their eponymously titled debut do the Sheffield sextet give the impression that they are quite simply making music for sheer enjoyment – none of this staring at the floor waiting for the crowd to ‘get’ them malarkey. Rather, they package their enthusiasm into several wondrous nuggets of pop-genius.

‘Life in Glorious Stereo’ features finely honed harmonies aplenty, as well as displaying the band’s penchant for a surprise or two with an unexpected interlude allowing pause for breath part-way through the song; ‘Secret Sounds’ offers up more surprises, as sudden key changes frequently snatch the attention from a relentless rhythm. Recent single ‘Summer Somewhere’ is a rapturously uplifting highlight and, along with ‘Minor Alterations’, sees Gina present herself as a vocalist of enviable talent, but fortunate enough to be part of a band capable of making her far more interesting than the plethora of solo-balladeers attempting to tug your heartstrings from behind a piano time and again (and again and again…).



When the pace lets up, fortunately the quality doesn’t, with ‘The Dreamer’ and ‘The Albatross’ an absorbing combination which could soundtrack a hazy scene from black and white era Hollywood – the way the former, in particular, bursts into life means that it manages to sound timeless, yet intriguingly asymmetrical, all at once.

So, whilst some may be sceptical about describing them as ‘different’, or ‘unique’ or whatever else, what this album makes plain is that Screaming Maldini are certainly something special. On a record full of highlights, ‘…Snowflake…’ stands out in particular: a captivating few minutes during which the listener is gently urged to “slow down, slow down,” before the melody takes them on an enchanting, breath-taking journey. It is a snapshot of the heights this band are capable of hitting, and reaffirms that they are a delightful set of talents worth screaming about.

9/10 - Exposed Magazine

OK, before I get going on this review, I need to own up to two things...

First - I broke my own ‘get there early’ rule and for unavoidable reasons I didn’t catch the support acts. Sorry guys, I tried.

Secondly, I have to own up to being totally obsessed with Screaming Maldini. They are nothing less than sensational. To my jaded ears they are by far the best ‘undiscovered’ band in Sheffield, and deserve to be massive. Their recorded music is phenomenal, and their live performances are nothing short of astonishing. Their debut album came out two weeks ago, and there was no way this was going to be anything other than a triumphant return to Sheffield after their short promotional tour.

Opening with ‘Extraordinary’, that’s just what they are. Their eponymous album is brimming with close harmonies and complex rhythmic patterns, and you’d be forgiven for thinking that they’d struggle to reproduce that level of complexity live. But it doesn’t take long to realise that what Screaming Maldini can do in the studio they are more than capable of delivering on stage. The musicianship is exemplary, and the vocal performance of Nick Cox and Gina Walters are near perfect. I’ve seen Gina sing with a variety of Sheffield bands and never been less than impressed, but with Screaming Maldidi she has found her true home. ‘Summer Somewhere’ was the song everyone had been waiting for, and tonight it became an anthem, with the crowd making most of the band redundant by singing along louder than they did. You must at the very least hear this band, and if you get the chance you need to experience them live. You have been warned, I’ll be checking up on you.
- Exposed Magazine

By the time Screaming Maldini hit the stage it's proper packed in the venue. Everyone all night (including the other bands) has been talking up the headliners, and when all you can see as they set up is a dude in a hoodie and a glockenspiel on stage, your average writer would be starting to doubt they could live up to the hype. Honestly though, they do as soon as the first song starts. Immediately you realise you are dealing with something very different and quite special. It's kinda like they are a good but typical dancey indie-rock band from the crowd reaction and active onstage manner – everyone is moving, and dancing and clapping and singing along – but it's strange because you get that they aren't. It's like they are getting away with not being normal in any way, and that's such a good thing. There's some wicked keyboards and far-out vocal FX creating a sort of 70's prog-rock tone, the vocalist/multi-instrumentalist has some serious Kate Bush/Florence Welch vibes in her voice and style, that dude in the hoodie is rocking out with some pretty heavy guitar, and the rhythm section is well skillful at holding all of that together. And there's a guy with a trumpet. The line-up for the night makes sense now, because they fuse the oddity of The Rats with the mainstream appeal of Clip Stamp Fold and Shout Timber into some wicked fusion. The crowd tries and totally fails to clap along at some points because the timing is way more complex than what you're used to, but that doesn't stop anyone enjoying an incredible show. Plus they seem like cool people as well and have notably good between-song presence. All in all, Screaming Maldini are one of the best up-and-coming bands I've seen in ages, and deserve to get massive. You should definitely check them out before this happens and they get all famous and normal. - A3 Music

Now, album news. Screaming Maldini have made one, it’s called Screaming Maldini and it’s just about the most uplifting thing you’ll ever hear coming from this grey ol’ city of ours. We’ve been big fans of the band's last couple of singles – ‘Summer, Somewhere’ and ‘Life In Glorious Stereo – thanks to their ambitious instrumentation, ludicrous levels of catchiness and their ability to be a little bit twee without making us want to vomit out our own pancreas. You can hear the album on Bandcamp and Screaming Maldini will finish their current UK tour with a show at The Harley on March 2nd. Their new video, for album opener ‘The Awakening’, is bloody lovely too, by the way. - Drowned in Sound

Screaming Mal-mania. With all the clambering, I’m light and get bashed about so I give up taking notes. Probably for the best. The set is pummelling glitteriness. Starring, Ex-Horn Players! Choreographed diva-ing! ‘Ohs’ To Joy! They do an encore for Christ’s sake. No no, I liked the bit where percussion (maracas, cabasa, etc) were given to the audience, but ‘pass them back because we’ve only got four’! In Gina Walters, Screaming Maldini have a Donna Summer/Marina Diamonds in waiting. Plus, the show’s overwhelming power comes courtesy of live orchestration. New single ‘Summer, Sometimes’ and ‘Life In Glorious Stereo’ are cut from the same exuberant cloth and play on the most meta of all pop themes, how bloody marvellous it sounds to hear hundreds of people singing in time. All this screams for a punning title, something like ‘Horn Of Plenty’. Oh well, it’s not needed. I need to sit down… - Counterfeit Magazine

Fireworks greet us as ‘The Awakening’ sparks into life at the outset of Screaming Maldini’s self-titled debut album. It’s an appropriate was to open a record that is characterised by its energy and optimism; feeling like a celebration of the culmination of what the band have been toiling to achieve since they first stated making music together.

It’s fair to say that Screaming Maldini are a band who don’t like to rush things. Produced by lead singer and guitarist Nick Cox, The album itself has been a work in progress for a while now, and it feels like a true labour of love. If you wanted to level a criticism at the band it would be that most of the songs are already available. However the Sheffield group seem to have been constantly evolving and revising these tracks. This in encapsulated by ‘Secret Sounds’, a song that seems to have been in existence almost as long as the band themselves. It is fair to say that there is more than a touch of the perfectionist about Nick Cox, and he has managed to somehow make the album version sound even more euphoric and exuberant than before; completely awash with colour and vibrant sounds.

Throughout the album, their music seems to be in a constant state of flux, brimming with kinetic fervour and innocent joy. Their music is forever shifting shape, tempo and focus, creating an aural jamboree of melody. It is a Pandora’s Box of musical styles and influences; you never quite know what’s round the corner; fluctuating from the ebullient highs of ‘Life in Glorious Stereo’ to the delicate fragile beauty of ‘Stutter’.

They have managed to recreate the buoyant unadulterated enthusiasm of their live shows: overflowing with elaborate instrumentation; sparkling with infectious melodies and incorporating complex musical arrangements. Singing duties are shared with Gina Walters, and the balance and interplay between two rich and powerful vocalists breathes an air of happiness and life into every song. Each song is delicately crafted and intricately composed, containing subtle and deft lyricism; it’s almost as though you can see the smiles on their faces as you listen.

Whilst primarily this may be a pop album, to leave the description there would be doing Screaming Maldini a great disservice. Every time you peel a layer away from this record you’ll find something new, unexpected and exciting below. This is a record about having fun, which is exemplified on the final track ‘Four Hours From Now’, which pitches itself somewhere between a Club Tropicana party and a Fiesta. It’s refreshing to hear a band clearly having a whale of a time and enjoying making music so much.

There are very few bands that can create a record that is guaranteed to make you smile. Screaming Maldini are one of them. - Counterfeit Magazine

If a word could sum up Screaming Maldini, that word would be 'striking'. They've been known to wear eye-catching pink-and-white outfits in the past; their album artwork depicts something resembling a deconstructed fan; but perhaps the most head-turning thing of all is the band's ability to think outside the box and bring colour back into the world of pop. It's hard to believe that the sextet hail from Sheffield, more famous in a musical context for Arctic Monkeys than anything else in recent years, as their flamboyant songs are definitely at odds with the image of the Steel City. They combine musical ambition with pop nous, in a manner that has seen them tagged as 'prog-pop'. It's exactly what they are, though - far more progressive in their ways than most indie-pop bands, and a hell of a lot catchier, too.

In fact, I'm going to stick my head above the parapet and declare that this is one of the catchiest albums you will hear all year. Right from the (figurative and literal) introductory fireworks of upcoming single 'The Awakening', Screaming Maldini show that they mean business, Nick Cox and Gina Walters' call-and-response vocals driving the song as the band's meticulous production style immediately becomes clear. The song is then followed by a pair of smashing singles: 'Life In Glorious Stereo' is one of the songs on the album that features multi-part harmonies and an infectious vocal hook (they're particular fans of the latter; they're scattered throughout the album in a jubilant manner), while 'Summer, Somewhere' features Walters taking lead vocal and delivering arguably the most powerful performance on the album.

By this point in the album, the listener will have realised that the band like writing songs in odd time signatures. Indeed, only one song here, 'The Stutter' is written in 4/4. In other places, we get 7/8 ('The Silver Mountain'), 5/4 (the celebratory closing track 'Four Hours From Now'), and even 9/8 (on an astonishing new version of EP track 'The Albatross'); the band's penchant for unconventionality makes their debut album compelling listening. While fans who have stuck with the band since their formation will find little genuinely 'new' on the album - there are only two songs here which make their first appearance in their catalogue in some form - most of it has been re-recorded, and the intricacies of the band's sound have been allowed to flourish, especially on particularly expansive tracks like 'The Dreamer' and 'Minor Alterations'. The album version of long-time fan favourite 'I Know That You Know That I Would Wipe Away the Snowflake From Your Eye' captures the band at arguably their most thrilling.

There's no denying that Screaming Maldini is a wonderfully ambitious record, full of joyous songs that have been given all the room they need to breathe. There was talk of it arriving as early as Spring 2012, but I, for one, am glad that the band took their time with this. It's clearly a labour of love, and one of the most colourful albums I've heard in quite some time. It's refreshing to hear an album that sounds as original as this. The band have freed themselves from the shackles of convention and delivered a dazzling debut that deserves to put them on the map. Sure, it may have taken it a while to arrive, but it's finally here, and the best thing about it is that it delivers on the promise of their early EPs ten times over. Here's one band who have the potential to develop into something truly special.

Rating: 8/10 - The405