The
Malibooz
Style: Surf / Pop
Spiritual (Living Water)
CDs: Living Water (The Surfer's Mass), A Malibu Kind of
Christmas, Malibooz
Rule!
Influences: The
Beach Boys, The Ventures
Go to site 
|
Insdiespace Artist
Interview...October 14, 1999
John Zambetti (The
Malibooz)
Formed in 1964 by John Zambetti and his high school friend,
Walter Egan, The Malibooz has a unique history as an "indie"
group -- beginning with their self-released EP, the single "Goin'
to Malibu," and a New York World's Fair performance while
Zambetti and Egan were still in high school. The team continued to
collaborate on projects over the years -- including the Walter Egan
Band (known for Egan's hit 1978 single, "Magnet and Steel"
-- recently heard on the Boogie Nights soundtrack) and the Johnny Z
Band (which released Bring Back the Night on Cypress Records in
1987). John Zambetti and Walter Egan co-produced The Malibooz's
first CD release, Malibooz Rule! in 1981, followed by A Malibu Kind
of Christmas (1992). [Scott Monahan, who continues to play keyboards
for the group, also played with the classic rock band Spirit
(another Kspace artist at http://kspace.com/spirit)].
The Malibooz's
1999 release, Living Water (The Surfer's Mass), combines two classic
forms -- the guitar-based, harmonically-rich genre of surf music and
the complicated structure of the traditional mass.
Living
Water: Origins .
. .
The idea for Living Water (The Surfer's Mass) came
to John
during a church service at Our Lady of Malibu. He got immediate
response from the first tune, "Lamb of God (Sanctus)" –
so he decided to do an entire album project in the same vein. The
project really took on a life of its own. John soon found out how
challenging it is to write in the traditional format of a mass. The
songs must be in a certain order and must have a certain lyrical
content. The songs are actually prayers. There's no meter, and no
rhyme. The challenge is to make it seamless for the listener. One of
the attractions to writing a mass is discipline.
Surfing
- A Biblical Link? . . .
"After I wrote a couple of the tunes, played it for someone
in clergy at Our Lady of Malibu [the church John attends] to make
sure they weren't ticked off. The response was overwhelming. One
interim pastor at the church was a theologian – an exorcist for
the County of Los Angeles. He flipped out over it. . . . He pointed
out passages in the Old Testament that are very
environmentally-based. There's actually a section stating that God
created dolphins to have man make spirit in waves. Another passage
dealt with aspects of dolphins and oceans. This became the opening
piece for Living Water. There are lots of references to the
"living water" term. It is recognized as the origin of
life, but also as something that gave life. 'Mary' is the Hebrew
word for "ocean." The literal translation is "bitter
water." [This is also the title of my favorite track from the
album. The MP3 download is available at http://mp3-space.com]
"The idea of bitter water was a very powerful image to me. Salt
water. Ocean is the origin of life, but it can't sustain human life.
Mary is the origin of Christian life, but it can't sustain his
life."
Another
Hand at the Mix?. . .
"We were mixing the album, and there was one tune
("Holy Holy") that wasn't coming out as nice. We mixed on
4 8-track ADATS (32 rack). We were going to move on to another
piece, but I decided to give it one more shot. Three of the machines
locked up, but the fourth one initially did not – but it locked up
8 bars later. It contained the rhythm and bass tracks. Very odd
chords were created by R&B tracks being off by 6 bars. It was as
if, metaphysically, 'if you guys can't figure this out, I'm going to
mix it for you.' We figured out an arrangement based on crazy
mix."
Surf
Music + Classical Mass = Radio-Friendly?
"I wanted to take surf music to a new level – make it more
contemporary. Often, surf music is not seen as contemporary, but
only associated with a particular era -- like the '60s. Labeling
music is ridiculous. You either enjoy music or you don't. Tunes are
tunes." This is the age-old problem with radio formats – and
what often plagues the independent artist community, especially
those who aren't trying to follow a formula and cater to the
industry. One advantage of having huge archives of music on the
Internet -- with all sorts of styles and genres represented -- is
that listeners can choose whatever they want, without worrying about
the format it fits into.
Malibu
Christmas TV Show . . .
The Malibooz has finished taping their television show, Malibu
Christmas, which will be shown this December. They have
secured deals with Discovery and BBC overseas. The show will be a
1-hour variety special hosted by Carmen Elektra, and John is the
executive producer. Four songs are performed by The Malibooz; they
include "It's Just Not Christmas" from A Malibu Kind of
Christmas and "Gloria" from Living Water. Other
bands on the program include the Sandals (performing the theme from Endless
Summer), the Chanteys (performing "Pipeline"), and the
Aquavelvets. There will be a total of 13 Malibooz tunes on the show.
Besides the musical performances, Malibu Christmas will
also include: a surfing santa, parade of woodies [traditional
surfers' cars], scenes from the boat parade at the Marina del Rey,
and a blessing of surfboards. "Christmas specials normally use
the same old 'schtick' -- snow, pine trees, traditional songs like
'Jingle Bells' and 'White Christmas.' We're doing something totally
different with songs that no one's heard before. The scene is in
sunny California. Why not? The first Christmas was in the desert --
not snow. Hey, if Baywatch can be the #1 TV show in the
world, Malibu Christmas should be a success!"
Also in December, watch for 32 Malibooz tracks showcased on The
Surf Channel, which is broadcast via satellite to 93 countries.
Advice
for Indie Artists . . .
"If you're always trying
to do what's in vogue, by the time you sound like [the next big
thing, they're] a has-been. Be true to yourself, play the music you
want to play, and be out there. You've got to really enjoy what
you're doing . . . the music."
more News & Views articles
Other Staff Reviews
|
