“Pairs equal parts upbeat energy and probing introspection to explore themes of identity and love in young life.” That’s how we described the music of Brooklyn-based Filipino-American Ciao Malz (AKA Malia DelaCruz) in a preview of debut EP Safe Then Sorry last month, detailing how single ‘Two Feet Tall‘ embodied “the release’s unguarded nature with lush textures and a binding sense of forward motion.” And now the EP is out via Audio Antihero, it is clear how eclectic and impassioned the Ciao Malz sound proves to be. “Safe Then Sorry is a rest stop on the path most traveled,” DelaCruz explains:
I wrote the bulk of the EP after work, these stories and characters came to me subconsciously and asked to be spoken into existence. These songs are about the unlikely connections we make, how they’re simultaneously inexplicable and meaningful. I work through these contradictions with unpredictable melodies, explosive choruses, and with the recording process itself. We did everything on the fly to capture as much raw emotion as could fit in the four walls of the basement studio. I wanted the project to feel how it did when I was messing around on GarageBand on my first computer—unrestrained.
This sense of immediacy and exploration is clear on listening to Safe Then Sorry, with Ciao Malz covering significant territory across the four songs. ‘Bad For The Bad Guy’ represents a change of pace after the charged frustration of ‘Two Feet Tall’, progressing with a real alt country spirit that unfolds with all the languid rhythm of a lazy summer afternoon, while ‘Take Me Out of Here’ switches things up further, the tempo remaining downbeat but the country sensibilities switched out for a dose of woozy longing. But it is closer ‘Gold Rush’ that is perhaps the stand-out track. An embodiment of the introspective style that makes up the release, delivered with equal parts confidence and feeling.
Safe Then Sorry is out now via Audio Antihero and you can get it from the Ciao Malz Bandcamp page.
