MusicDish
December 2005
Best Of The Batch: Mascara, Spell
Mr Fibulis Records
Spell
By: Matthew S. Robinson (Associate Writer)
Chris Mascara is one of the area's most dynamic performers. From Boston Rock Opera to his own variety shows at venues all over the Boston area, he is constantly exploring and flexing his creative capabilities. On his latest EP, Spell , Mascara combines flavors of The Beatles, David Bowie, Queen, and OhMyGod with his own musical and spiritual proclivities, sharp production sense, and plain and simple great rock.
Opening with the heavy sweeps of “Great Divide,” Mascara invites listeners to join him and his band mates (bassist Chris Girard and drummer Rikki Bates) in a leap of faith. Tumbling through the torqued fun house bounce of “Frostbite,” Mascara then hooks into the temporal bonds of existence in the plaintive ballad “Time is a Lie.”
After a brief “pressure conversion,” the band lets loose, thankfully secure in the driving knowledge that there is “No Afterlife.” Before signing off, Mascara signs his musical name on the heavily dotted lines of “Percy's Revenge,” a violent exploration of self that puts a poetic period on the album's multifaceted mystical message.
Mascara will release “Spell” at the Lizard Lounge (1667 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge) on January 20, 2006.