We’d like to introduce you to Marcello Valenti (voice), Maurizio Morsiani (guitar), Andrea Rossi (drums), and Alessandro Bozza (bass/synth), the members of the MoMa Band. Check out their story of how they got started and why they decided to get behind the Music Beats Cancer mission.
What was your original calling to music? How did you start?
It all started out 10 years ago (we’ve just celebrated our tenth anniversary as a band), when the guitar player and the singer met . They started to jam together and rehearse a few songs, which caught the interest of the drummer and of the bass player…and so the band formed. Coincidentally, the guitarist and the drummer had already played together many years ago, when they were in high school.
Who or what is your musical inspiration? Which artist(s) do you look up to? Did any of them inspire you to experiment with your music? Is there something new you’d like to try?
We grew up fully immersed into the music of 80s and the 90s, when musical styles were different and yet recognizable. Each member of the band came from a distinct musical background. We believe our sound is the result of a “contamination” of styles and sounds originating from the 80’s and 90’s.
When we started making new songs, we realized that how much our musical training and influences played a role in the outcome of our music. We could change the “atmosphere” of our songs by shifting styles to Bowie rather than Placebo, or the Beatles rather than an Italian singer-songwriter.
In our 3rd Album, when we decided to use synthesizers and electronic stuff. We’ve taken a very important step forward in the way we play and arrange songs between our first and current works. We like to call our new style “Unconventional Rock.”
For the next album we hope to experience something different, we don’t want to get stuck in one musical style, we want to move hand in hand with the historical moment we are living in.
Why did you become involved with Music Beats Cancer? Has cancer directly or indirectly affected you?
We found Music Beats Cancer on the ReverbNation platform and thought it was a splendid initiative to join. We submitted our music video, “LIZ & I,” for their fundraising challenge. In Italy, there are many non-profit organizations and initiatives to raise funds, but none of these groups enable emerging artists to get involved. Music Beats Cancer is different and accessible to bands like ours.
We know the tragedy of cancer, the scars remain forever for those who lose someone to this plague. In our previous album there is a song called “Over“, which was written in dedication of a very close friend who battled cancer.
Check out their page HERE.
What is happening next in your music career?
At the moment we are enjoying this wonderful experience of being able to share our song and our video with an audience as large as the American one. Other concerts are already planned, if Covid conditions allow. We have created a touring format called, “Musiconference,” in which our songs incorporate interventions of experts in climate change to raise awareness about the risks of global warming, pollution and its consequences.
Anything else you would like Music Beats Cancer readers to know about you?
We are really excited to be able to our story with your readers! If you want to get to know us better you can get in touch through Facebook or Instagram or through email (momaband@gmail.com). We are in Italy, but technology has eliminated distance and the music travels fast!
