In 1994 Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna, a voluntary, non-profit organisation, dedicated to promote awareness, safeguard and restore Malta’s historical patrimony, launched the Fort Rinella Rehabilitation Project. The restoration of the fort was estimated to cost Lm150,000 and a number of fund raising initiatives were organised for this aim.
Fort Rinella
Situated at Kalkara, the Victorian battery was constructed between 1878 and 1886 and covers an area of 6,300 square meters. Though it is commonly referred to as Fort Rinella, it was officially a battery and was never classified as a fort. The main attraction is an Armstrong 100-ton gun, which survives and still fires. The battery was in use between 1886 and 1965. The Rinella Battery was taken over by Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna in 1991, and after exhaustive restoration works opened its doors to the public as an open-air museum in 1996.
Rock for the Fort
Bands from across the local rock and metal spectrum gathered together for a three day event to raise funds for the restoration of the fort. Rock for the Fort took place inside the battery between Friday, 26 and Sunday, 28 August 1994. Doors opened at 7p.m. and tickets, for the price of Lm1.50 (€3.49) per show or Lm3 (€6.99) for the three evenings, where sold from the Rock Shop in Old Theatre Street, Valletta and at the door. Special public transport arrangements, to and from Kalkara, were made for the event.
The groups entertaining the well attended event included: Myth, Realida, Fatal Aggression, Beaheded, Granny, Forsaken, Trial by Fate, No Name Yet, Norm Rejection, Lithomancy, Oblique Visions, Sanity, Electric Blues, Disinterred, Manix, Masada, Jaipur, Eric il-Punk and the crowds were delighted by a guest appearance by the Gozitan Hard Rock Party Leader, Patrick Girma (Ħanfusa).
References:
The Sunday Times, August 21, 1994
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Note from the editor
It appears that most, if not all, of the performances were recorded, yet only one has been made available for purchase over the past 30 years. Oblique Visions’ Live at Fort Rinella was released exclusively on cassette sometime after the festival and includes the following tracks: "Deranged," "Burning the Heretic," "Feeding Death," "Eternal" (a Paradise Lost cover), and "Oblique Visions" on side A. Side B features "Destroying Angels," "Dethroned," "Cathedral of Dreams," and "A Fallen World." The cassette has long been a sought-after collector's item.
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