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Aug 19 - The Inspiration Behind Local Musicians…Check Out David’s Podcasts

For the past three months, David J. Díaz has been tracking down and interviewing local musicians. The interviews have been posted as a series of podcasts on: http://inspriedby.podomatic.com

The series of frank and in depth interviews is titled “Inspired By…” and during his encounters with musical personalities, David has attempted to uncover the varied backgrounds of the performers who contribute to Gibraltar’s vibrant music scene.

So far David has conducted 13 extensive interviews ranging from chats with established names like Giles Ramirez and Adrian Pisarello to newer artists like Megan Dallas.

We caught up with David and asked him why he came up with the concept.

“I started these podcasts because of my love for music and the local scene in particular. The thing is, I am very fortunate to know some of my guests personally and sometimes a quick 'Hi, how are you?' before they perform at a gig isn’t enough so I thought it would be interesting to learn how they got started in music,” he says.

The format, explains David, is simple: he starts by asking the artists how they were first introduced to the world of music and then encourages them to discuss their earliest performing experiences. Although he’s covered some well-known musicians, David feels there’s still a long way to go as his project develops.

“I feel that I'm still in the shallow end and still a long way away from interviewing most of Gibraltar's musicians,” he says.

David, as it happens, carries local music “in his blood” as many relatives on his father’s side of the family are musicians.

“My dad Derek was in the Music Centre growing up and, with the guidance of the great Hector Cortes, he continued playing the drums and joined the band of the Royal Gibraltar Regiment retiring just four years ago,” David reminisces.

Continuing the family tradition, his uncle Louis Díaz wrote the music for 'La Virgencita De Europa', his dad's cousins are Robert Perez and Tito Chipolina and his cousin is local crooner Jeremy Perez. Music and musicians, in other words, are all around him!

His own love of music, which grew while he was a teenage fan of Melon Diesel and Reach, has been fuelled by many nights at the Rock on the Rock Club.

“By 2005 when I started going to Rock on the Rock and with the launch of MySpace, I would share the posters of those weekend gigs online as much as I could. And as far as Rock on the Rock goes, I would really like to send a big thanks to Allan and Gina Alman for always providing a friendly atmosphere at the club and for always catering and caring for the local scene during their own spare time,” he says.

After speaking to guitarists, singers and drummers, David’s overall impression of the current state of the local music scene is hugely positive.

“Right now I personally think the local scene is great!” he says.

“There’s plenty of great talent out there. From Headwires, Megan Dallas, Mark Eliot, The Trio, Midriff, This Side Up and the list goes on and on. It’s pretty nice to see very young musicians take the plunge and release their own material as opposed to covers. The music scene is bright right now and I can't wait to see where it takes us.”

Pic: Warren Gomez