Vernon Reid & Masque
Other True Self

Vernon Reid & Masque 'Other True Self' Cinema Kursaal, Thursday, February 9, 2006, 9pm Porretta Terme (BO)

Vernon Reid - guitars, Hank Schroy - bass, Leon Gruenbaum - samchillian tip tip tip cheeepeeeee, keyboards, Don Mckenzie - drums

The 'Masque' is one of the various personas of the great New York guitarist Vernon Reid, who was already a guest at Porretta Terme with the 'Yohimbe Brothers' in a memorable concert held last July in Parco Roma. The band was born during a difficult and significant period for Reid, after the breakup of Living Colour in 1995, the band that brought him worldwide fame and drew more attention from the general public than any other. In 1996, 'Mistaken Identity', the first album by Masque, was released; it was extraordinarily innovative and original, featuring contributions from Don Byron on clarinet and reeds alongside rapper Beans and DJ Logic, as well as Hank Schroy, Leon Gruenbaum, and Don Mckenzie. It showcased an eclectic language, full of unusual sonic and stylistic combinations; it can be said that if Don Byron earned the reputation of having 'resurrected' the clarinet, it is also due to his contribution to this music where, in an apparently impossible synthesis, rock, jazz, rap, free, hip hop resonate.

Times have changed, and tensions within Living Colour have dissolved; the great black rock pioneering quartet, boasting over 4 million albums sold and two Grammy Awards, has reunited and gifted us with the splendid 'Colleidoscope', laden with references and reflections on 9/11 and the horrendous American reaction, while Masque, reduced to the quartet we'll see at Porretta, recorded 'Known Unknown' in 2004 and 'Other True Self' between late 2005 and early 2006, for Steve Vai's Favored Nations.

Already the title speaks volumes about the continuous exploration Vernon Reid pursues on a path as solitary as it is original; in his own words, the Masque is 'the place where rock, jazz, hip-hop, and technology meet', and what's profoundly striking is the improvisational spontaneity of one of the greatest living guitarists today, the free and chaotic eclecticism that breathes from his unusual phrases and an impressive technique, to say the least, in addition to the sonic exploration. The 'reduced' quartet formation has allowed Hank Schroy, Don Mckenzie, and Leon Gruenbaum to express more deeply the true musicians they are. The Reid of this latest album is one from New York's avant-garde music scene, for whom nothing is more satisfying than disrupting musical preconceptions and conventions; he is the one who's collaborated with Public Enemy, Mick Jagger, Carlos Santana, The Roots, Tracy Chapman, who's produced Grammy-nominated albums for Salif Keita and James Blood Ulmer, and composed soundtracks for films (e.g., 'Johnny Mnemonic', 'Five Fingers'), theater, dance (remember 'Time Zones', for the Harlem school of Bill T. Jones). 'Other true Self' does not stem from Reid's solipsism but is a more 'choreographic' album; the beautiful compositions are alternately authored by all the band members, as well as Vernon, and include original reinterpretations of covers ("Wild Life" by Tony William's Lifetime, "Enjoy the Silence" by Depeche Mode, and "National Anthem" by Radiohead). It ranges from hard rock dissolved in blues in 'Game is Rigged' to reggae in 'Flatbush and Church Revisited'; Reid and Gruenbaum converse with solos over the funk rhythm of 'Wild Life', and, in general, there seems to be a greater melody search than in previous recordings.

One can bet, 'Other True Self' will be just another track, a sign of a transitional point for this New York quartet. If there's one trait that distinguishes the Masque concerts, and so much great music, it's the freedom and the desire to play with sounds, the desire to venture joyfully and laboriously into territories unknown even to the protagonists themselves, the hard pursuit of spontaneity and self-discovery despite what's already been said and heard.