Batteries Not Included have been around since 1993 or so. The band started off after Miguel and Malcolm came across a live version of Sham 69’s ‘If the Kids are United’, and decided to cover it, being impressed by the rawness and energy of the song’s style.

From then on, driven solely by a strong drive for creating fun, fast and loud music that could be said to be closer to a crossbreed between old-school and more recent Punk Rock than anything else, the band has been going steady, playing countless gigs while also fitting in some D.I.Y. tours in the U.K. and Germany, and a couple of shows in France and Luxembourg.

B.N.I.’s music reflects a certain angst that is peculiarly Maltese, and has a lyrical content that is not too serious, nor politically oriented. On the other hand, the band has tried to tackle (in its own way) the reality of everyday situations.

The well-organised but wild gigs at ‘Dempsey’s Bar’, and the opening of ‘The Edge’ rock bar in Buġibba helped them (and a large number of other bands) gain further energy, which they let loose in the recording of their first album titled ‘Native Tongue / Ilsien Pajjiżi’ (1999). Apart from the release of that album, and the release of a demo cassette titled ‘Unsolved’ (1994), the band’s main achievement was one small innovation which is still gaining ground in the musical interests of today’s Maltese Punk bands: Punk Rock with Maltese lyrics.

Apart from the re-release of the ‘Native Tongue / Ilsien Pajjiżi’ album on Malta-based Reciprocal Records, B.N.I. released a second album by the title of ‘Force Majeur’, in which they still put a strong emphasis on their crossover style Punk while fusing it with various Ska and Reggae elements. Recorded during April ’04 at Temple Studios and released 4 months later, this album gives off something of a more centred and honed style of Punk.

B.N.I.’s tireless efforts in the Maltese scene resulted in their third album, aptly named ‘On and On…’, which sports the rawness and energy of their first album mixed with the more polished songwriting style of ‘Force Majeur’. Recorded during June ‘06 at Temple Studios, ‘On and On…’ is as loud as it gets, with Reggae and Ska still plainly leaving their influence on the band. This third album was released on 1st December 2006. Since its release, Steve ‘Lombardo’ Attard is the band’s new, hard-hitting drummer. 

In late 2022, B.N.I. released their 4th album: titled ‘Exponential Self-Destruction’, this latest release is nothing less than a statement confirming that the band doesn't intend to slow down nor calm down any time soon. Recorded at Hell Next Door studio by Steve ‘Lombardo’, this is a damn loud and fast one. 

30 years on, still gigging often in Malta and, occasionally, abroad, B.N.I. aim at being around and playing loud shows until their fingers fall off, or, more realistically, until they lose their minds to old age. 

We'll see which comes first...