15th July 2023

Review: “Nothing Will Change” by Masquerader

There was a time when a debut record of any kind from Reading trio Masquerader seemed a distant dream, the band seemingly pre-occupied with taking their material to demonstrations on and around the London commuter belt with the likes of Bob Vylan and Polymath and less concerned about committing it to tape. After all, it has been two years since the appearance of their first single “Pressure” on the Small Pond Records Emerging Project compilation. But it turns out… we were all wrong as drummer Tim Williamson, vocalist and electronics guru Danny Molyneux and bassist Chris Fry have instead been squirrelling away, taking their time to ensure that their version of events on tape matches the bedlam of their live show in true DIY or DIE style. Influenced by 90’s Post-Hardcore, Math Rock and Alt. Hip-Hop while listing artists like Nine Inch Nails, Deftones and Glassjaw as peers, the trio have always been hard to pin down and Pigeon hole, using synths and samples to flood the sonic void around an organic high energy drum and bass rhythm section and feral vocal performances…

…the band have called this record “a self produced document of their bands early days” which perhaps suggests that they have found a way to capture that aforementioned renowned live energy like lightning in a bottle and will have new material on the way in the not too distant future. Fired up on angst and imposter syndrome “i.am.masquerader” certainly lends itself to that theory as an anthemic mission statement style cut with a backbone of post-punk bass and a rap style flow of pure catharsis that threatens to burst into screaming at any point. Sonically the 90’s influences shine through with moments reminiscent of Pitchshifter, Prodigy and even The Streets lurking in the background, a melting pot of textures that sound familiar and yet out of place in the same breath. Next up is “Pressure (Holy Trinity Cut)“, a rendition of the aforementioned tune that is more than a minute shorter than the original version. It feels more like what the edge of the seat was made for having been distilled and refined. A crash course in experimental electronics creates a pulse while the band organically form a rhythm section where drums and bass provide a threat to your sanity. It’s raw, chaotic and powerful enough exhaust the power grid of an entire block, strangely reminiscent of cuts like “Darky” by (hed)p.e. In the same way that bands like Fever 333 have done so, the bass serves as more of a rhythm guitar minus two strings than anything else, a key part of the backbone upon which each sonic abrasion is created.

American accented vocals enhance the dark introspective lyrical narrative of “Paper Thin” as it flows between a melancholic meandering into a rage fuelled entity of pure rhythmic blood and thunder. Despite having all the core elements of the earlier tracks the change in direction and tone makes for a stark contrast to them, as if this is a new vision of what the future might be for the trio. Dialling down the electronics for something with much more spit, snarl and Hardcore about it in the heavier parts, this angular attack is just plain dirty, standing out with its violence, a fist in the air in the land of hypocrisy. Returning to something a little more eclectic, the spoken word of “Heirloom” accompanied by it’s twisting bassline acts as an eerie introduction piece to “Mellify” which continues the narrative with System Of A Down vibes. Reaching forth an conjuring something even more experimental and off the wall, Masquerader combine rap flow and bombastic bounce, as if looking to harness the true meaning of Alternative Music with warm synths and a clean sung chorus taking things to a new realm of existence.

So how do you rate something that doesn’t really fit into any pre-conceived notion of what a category might be? There are so many sub-genres merged together to create one pulsating homogeneous mixture that it’s impossible to tell what the the original constructs may have been, let alone how Masquerader have pieced it together. It’s like the concept of the Spawn soundtrack from 1997 on steroids, going against the grain of genre normality and raising a middle finger to the music industry in the process. Masquerader are a law unto themselves, they do something that is unique and has broad appeal, each tune offering something new, refreshing and different. On paper this should sound like a car crash but instead it sounds like the enticing purring of the engine of an American muscle car. The question really is how on earth they replicate this for new material without over thinking it? [7.5/10]

Track Listing