Max Maffia

Restlessness and an overwhelming urge to communicate are the only spurs that incite certain artists to take action. Max Maffia is without doubt one of these artists. While many artists, before acting, think about their sales potential and the chances of meeting with general approval, Maffia, like few others, acts because he has no choice. His lifestyle and artistic production are living proof. Born in Salerno, a fiery electric guitarist with a strong Hendrix stamp and influenced by the sound of 4AD, Max has also demonstrated with the acoustic guitar his ability to reach extraordinary states of grace. His first release was the cd “Sky and Misery”, produced by Paul Chain in 1995, with the rock group the “Peanuts”. For a year or two he was a member of the ska group “Appesi Aun Filo” and also played with “Il Pozzo di San Patrizio”, recording with them the album “Altri Tempi” (Other Times) – a mix of Irish folk, dub and space rock – and taking part in their international tour. In the meantime Max moved ahead with his own self-produced projects such as “Stagioni” (Seasons) and “Anywhere in the World”, the soundtrack to a video entitled “Picasso, sulle impronte del mito” (Picasso, on the artist’s trail). From 2005-2006 he collaborated with Nicodemo, a group of electronica songsters, on the albums “Boulevard Du Sud” (Southern Boulevard) and “Il Treno per Bologna” (The train for Bologna) while dedicating himself at the same time to the cultural association “Anima Mundi” of which he is both founder and president. In the spring of 2007 he successfully completed the difficult musical and hunanitarian project “The Right Compilation” supported by the FAO for the Telefood programme. The album is the result of a meeting of artists from various cultural and stylistic backgrounds such as the Scambio, the Israelian singer Talya G. A. Solan, the Argentinian singer Florencia Ruiz and the Neapolitan sitar player Guido Schiraldi. At the moment Max Maffia has finishe recording a new cd with "the Peanuts" and is touring with his new band "Max Maffia & the Empty Daybox".