Joey Maltese

Album remastered 

Ssaucer ...it came from New York City in the early '90s…

REVIEW 

Ssaucer Ssalvage (Diamond Sutra) 

Guitarist/songwriter Joey Maltese wandered all over the musical map since his days in NYC's Toyz. Originally released in 1993, Ssaucer's debut Ssalvage focuses his vision(s). Working with singer/lyricist Sara Hechtman and drummer Patrick Giles, Maltese blends hard rock, psychedelia and pop into an alt.rock aesthetic that sounds both of its time and apart. "Colorless" boasts an ethereal melody and a mix of lush acoustic and spiky electric guitars, while "LOVE-sex-TOUCH-thing" adds a sexy vibe without pandering to the LCD. "Be Still" blends shimmering folk rock and rhythmic new wave, while "Swarm (Just Another Crisis)" ranges from quirk pop to industrial to acid rock to everything in between. Strong tunes and performances make it a marvel that Ssaucer never became better known than they were.

- THE BIG TAKEOVER magazine - 2015 

Lyrics 

All Ssaucer songs written by Sara Hechtman and Joey Maltese

The year was 1992. The place was New York's Greenwich Village. In October of that year, Sara Hechtman and Joey Maltese began writing songs for a band that would become known as Ssaucer. Right from the start, the boring old Pop/Rock rule book went out the window. It was decided that the priority would be honest expression through quickly recorded songs. 

Guitar sounds became abrasive, with tunings made up on the spur of the moment. Common household objects were often employed to attack the guitar strings as well as the more usual picks, fingers, drum brushes, cello and bass fiddle bows. Squalls of feedback were set loose at random intervals, regardless of quietly murmured verses. A whistling teakettle was used to provide harmony on guitar leads. 

Any unusual idea was entertained during the recording sessions, no matter how strange. The album was recorded in low lighting or dim gloom, without a hint of daylight. This to lend a subliminal edge to the darkness of the lyrics. 

Words were reversed at random and written into the lyric sheets as "inaudible". Instruments were treated with effects that would make them sound distant or submerged. 

As the recordings progressed, Patrick Giles joined in provide the drums for LOVE-sex-TOUCH-thing, Destroyer (Creator Has Changed) and Colorless. By 1993 the album was complete. --- Now, many years later, here it is once again. Restored and remastered.

Ssaucer Ssalvaged.

Ssaucer - The Band in 1993

Band photo by Oded Zeldin.

Cover painting, photos and photo composites by Joey Maltese.