INTERVIEW: Luciana and Super Mal
- Posted on July 5, 2007 2:03 PM
- 1 comment
Just how big is 'Bigger Than Big'?
By Katie Spain
Dance fans and summer anthem boppers unite; there’s a tune on the horizon… and if rumours are correct, it’s going to be huge. The aptly named single (you guessed it) ‘Bigger Than Big’ is a collaboration between vocalist Luciana and Producers Super Mal and I’m off to meet the creative bods in the flesh.
As I rush towards the central London café I spot Luciana and Producers Super Mal immediately. This woman has a presence – it might be due to her attention grabbing hairstyle, her massive smile or the excitement of an upcoming single and album release... whatever it is, it's electric.
Beside her, the calm and collected Lyndon Coyne and Jay Crompton from Super Mal watch on. They’ve all just come out of a recording at Radio 1 and ahead of the July 9th release of ‘Bigger Than Big’, their schedule is packed. Lyndon is fresh back from Glastonbury and looks surprisingly perky.
“It was hard work… I’m still finding mud in unusual places. I loved it though – we played a set on the Saturday night”.
There will be no rest for the wicked (or the implicitly well-behaved) over the next few months; ‘Bigger Than Big’ just won’t allow it. Pete Tong, Galaxy and Kiss FM DJs are already on the bandwagon but who are these soon-to-be household names and what makes them tick?
Super Mal’s history goes back to the years of school books and pencil shavings. “We started writing together a few years ago… obviously we’d been involved in music for years – it’s taken twenty years to become an overnight success! We went to school together so we’ve known each other since we were about ten years old. It’s a good story! We just started writing together over the past few years and set up our record company in October.” The pair were joined by James Reynolds and worked towards getting a real street sounds type track together; early 80s Hip Hop-Electro was the aim.
“We wanted to be a bit different because there’s so much Funky House around. That’s great - there’s nothing wrong with that but it has been done so many times. We were really interested in Headbangers Records and some of the stuff the French were doing and were influenced by that sound. It’s really inspirational but we’re not trying to replicate it – we’re trying to make our own sound. We want to be a bit different to every other Funky House record.”
Luciana also started early – you know the type… the kid that bangs pots together and sings into a hairbrush. “I used to get on my mum’s nerves. She used to say to me “You can’t sing darling”. I wasn’t a great singer but I just wanted to do something! It’s just about being resilient – you’ve just got to stick with it”. These are words that obviously paid off.
These days, Luciana is a lady with little spare time. Hardly surprising really; the Ivor Novello nominated musician was up for the ‘Best Contemporary Song’ in this year’s prestigious song writing awards. If you’re a dance floor regular you’ll have thrown a shape or fifty to her collaboration with Bodyrox on UK No.2 hit single ‘Yeah Yeah’.
When I tell Luciana she’s been described by online as “A pop star for the 21st Century - head turning good looks, sexy and oozing with attitude” she laughs; “Oh my God… who wrote that?”
This woman is delightfully modest – but the guys add to the praise when asked what she’s like to work with. “Hilarious! It’s brilliant. She’s always bubbly and good to be around. We thought she was the coolest vocalist in dance”.
Luciana jumps in... “I thought you were going to say Darby!” The group laugh… although Darby is probably a fine place; their musical sights are obviously set higher. ‘Bigger Than Big’ looks set to take them there.
Luciana explains the collaboration: “I was sent the backing track in October. I’d had the lyrics playing around in my head for a few weeks (dancing around in the kitchen to them… on my own like a loser) and then the song came in and just seemed to fit perfectly”.
The ‘Bigger Than Big’ video was shot in LA and the treatment written specifically for Luciana by Mike Baldwin (also responsible for the ‘Yeah Yeah’ video). “It was so nice to get a treatment that wasn’t taken off the shelf… it was fantastic.” With a matter of days to sort out an outfit and jet set to LA, things were hectic but the result is impressive. The silver shoes alone are worth a look – as are the cubicle shots.
“Yes, there was a lot of toilet action… we love a bit of toilet action! We just used an old, disused bowling alley in LA. The shoot was a one-day shoot but I was there for five days… so I just walked around West Hollywood seeing Penelope Cruz getting her shopping. It was really funny!”
Surely travel is a perk of the job? Luciana looks thoughtful… “I think just not knowing what’s going to happen next. When things are happening it’s nice to just go with the moment. It’s interesting and exciting and at the end of the day, it’s just nice to be creative and to live a creative life. To be able to get up, be creative and go to sleep – well, you can’t complain about that.”
And there’s no shortage of creativity within this bubbly bombshell. In addition to her own music projects, Luciana and her songwriting-partner Nick Clow also write for other artists. “We’ve just written some tracks for Kylie and have given them to Jamie Nelson and we’re waiting to see what happens with those. Do you know what? The nicest thing is to just have opportunity to even be asked. That’s where we’re heading… to write for other people”.
Add photography, star-packed art exhibitions and record company artwork and poster design to her CV and you’ve pretty much got a complete package. Luciana started ‘Shooter’ a photo/styling partnership with David Burgoyne. So far they’ve been commissioned by the likes of Michael Gray, Shena and Bodyrox. ‘Flat out’ is an understatement. “We’re now doing greeting cards; all the work I’ve done is going onto cards and they’ll go out to independent shops”.
Busy? Honey… we’re on the verge of a coronary just thinking about it. If only we could all harness our creative energy like this. What better way than to celebrate with a 7th of July launch party at The Egg in London. Luciana agrees and gives us a sneak preview “I’ll sing three songs – we’ll get loads of people down, some press… and just have a good time really. So anybody who wants to come down – be there!”
Sounds like an official invitation. We’ll see you on the dance floor.
Bigger Than Big is available for download on Friday 6th July.
Check out the official site and video.
For more details on the launch party and upcoming gigs, check out Luciana's site or Super Mal's MySpace
Comments (1)
Bec
I love this song!! Crank it up while you're getting ready for a good night out. That's the plan tonight anyway - after make-up application (don't want dance move mishaps happening).
Well done guys - great to hear some of the story behind the grooves. Luciana - what shops can I find the postcards in??
Posted on July 6, 2007 4:37 PM
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