The Band
Vinyl Paradise is a Maltese blues/blues-rock power-trio made up of Ben Bailey (guitar/vocals), Patrick Camilleri (drums) and Antoine Tonna (bass). Their collective love for the blues and knowledge of its conventions and techniques have resulted in the band delivering their own masterful take on the genre to audiences right across Malta, Canada, and the UK.
The three have had years of musical focus to develop their unique style, first meeting in the band The Creepers - another blues band focused on replicating the sound of ‘vintage American blues’ - and later forming the trio Vinyl Paradise in January 2017.
The band spent the next few years honing their skillset and playing countless festivals, clubs, and concerts to an ever-growing audience. In February 2023, the band wrote and recorded a five song live EP called “Live at Winehouse”, which they toured around London and Kent a few months later, with stops at venues including the Troubadour, the St Moritz Club Soho, and the Bourne Music Club.
In November 2024 they released their debut album “Vinyl Paradise”, written entirely by the band and recorded at David Vella’s outstanding Temple Studios, and toured throughout 2025 to promote it, playing festivals and venues such as Earth Garden and Farsons Beerfest locally, the Troubadour and Bourne Music Club in the UK, Gabby’s Patio in Toronto, and the Niagara Grape and Wine Festival in Niagara Falls, Ontario.
The band has just finished recording their 2nd full-length studio album, which is scheduled for release in late 2026, and is booked for another run of international shows in the lead-up to its release.
Ben Bailey
Ben Bailey (Guitars and Vocals): Born and raised in a household that always had Clapton, J.J.Cale, CCR, and other greats blasting out of the windows, Ben’s natural ear for blues and roots music was under development from day one. With that foundation, it’s clear why his guitar playing, singing, and songwriting developed and matured at the speed they did, gaining him his reputation as an outstanding musician, writer and performer.
His obsession with the blues led him to developing a style which is uniquely his own, but blues aficionados can appreciate a slew of influences in his playing and singing, such as SRV, Freddie King, B.B. King, Robben Ford, Jeff Beck, T-Bone Walker, Johnny Winter and J.J. Cale.
Apart from his speciality as a blues musician, his love for and dedication to performing music in all genres has made him a mainstay with Malta’s most prominent pop and rock acts, being selected as guitarist to Ira Losco, Emma Muscat, Matthew James and countless others, being sought after for his stylistic contributions to their work and unwavering professionalism.
Antoine Tonna
Antoine Tonna (Bass): Antoine grew up fully-immersed in the Maltese music scene. He studied at the Johann Strauss School of Music Malta and he has been playing in bands for the past 25 years. His deep passion for driving the rhythm section groove and ability to play perfectly “in-the-pocket” - on both the electric and double bass - have cemented him as the go-to bassist for anyone who wants an immediate injection of soul and bounce to their music.
Patrick Camilleri
Patrick Camilleri (Drums): Patrick is the first Maltese drummer to go to London to study at Drumtech, where he was tutored under the supervision of international artists the likes of Darryn Farrugia (one of Australia’s most accomplished drummers) and Brazilian percussionist Bosco De Oliviera, who has performed at major international jazz festivals (Nice, Vienna, Montreux, North Sea, Montreux-Detroit), as well as at Glastonbury, Reading, Womad and festivals and major venues around the world.
Patrick’s experience as a blues drummer in Malta has given him second-to-none feel and technique in all the grooves associated with blues and blues-rock; none more important than the shuffle. This ability has established him as Malta’s very own “King of the Shuffle”, and his involvement in Vinyl Paradise puts this talent on display in every performance.
Influences
Vinyl Paradise takes inspiration from the likes of the “3 Kings”, Cream, Gary Clark Jr, Stevie Ray Vaughan, John Mayer, Jimi Hendrix, Robben Ford, Jeff Beck, T-Bone Walker, Johnny Winter, J.J. Cale, amongst others. Their style blends blues, funk, rock n’ roll, and soul, with deep grooves on the bass and drums laying the foundation for deft guitar-work and 60s-soul-inspired vocals. These elements are immediately recognisable in their original work, as well as any covers in their set, which are always reworked to satisfy these criteria.