Crossword Genius

More malicious act affected band (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

cattier

'more malicious' is the definition.
('catty' can be similar in meaning to 'malicious')

'act affected band' is the wordplay.
'affected' is an anagram indicator.
'band' becomes 'tier' (I've seen this before).
'act' is an anagram of 'cat'.
'cat'+'tier'='CATTIER'

(Another definition for cattier that I've seen is " more spiteful".)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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