Matt Maltese talks ETEP and festival season

2017 is slowly starting to draw to a close, so it seems like a perfect time for artists to begin reflecting upon the past twelve months. That’s something we spoke to Matt Maltese about back when he played at Reeperbahn Festival in late September.

Having first been booked to play at Eurosonic Nooderslag in January this year, Maltese has since become part of the European Talent Exchange Programme - or ETEP, for short - which aims to encourage bookers to recruit new acts for their line-ups across festival season.

As Reeperbahn is one of the festivals that work as part of ETEP, we sat down with Matt before his show there to discuss his 2017, and how festival season treated him this summer.

You’ve got a lovely big red heart on stage now, Matt…
My tour manager seconds as a pretty impressive builder, a DIY jack of all trades. He made this massive heart with red lightbulbs in it, just in case people don’t get that I sing about love. Just really shoving it down their throats.

What’s your ideal kind of setting for a show?
My ideal place to play is in this kind of set up I guess. I like a theatre-esque feel. But I also like people standing up, just for the 1 in 10,000 chance there might be a mosh pit.

How have your festivals been this summer in general?
The festival season’s been great. I’ve played Germany three times, which is really nice. The ones in England were great, obviously Glastonbury was amazing – something for the grandkids. I didn’t get to play Reading which is my local festival, so if the promoters are reading then I’m free next August 29th.

What do you want people to get from your set?
If anyone’s able to laugh, I think that’s a good part because I try to crack a lot of jokes. Sometimes unsuccessfully, sometimes not. It’s a hoot.

And talk us through the rest of your 2017.
It’s going to be mostly recording, hopefully for an album next year – a few songs with Alex Burey and some with Jonathan Rado from Foxygen, I met him a few months back so that’ll be a boyhood dream.