Masque

It is true that this album has some not so great filler tunes, mostly the ones written by Steve Walsh. Really they were just attempting to be somewhat commercial, due to record company pressure. The rest of the tunes are epic pieces of prog rock that can rival Yes and King Crimson. "Icarus", "Mysteries and Mayhem", "Child of Innocence" and "The Pinnacle" are among the best Kansas tunes ever written. "All the World" also is a good song, some people might find it sappy, but listen to the words, this is what the world really needs right now.The first four Kansas albums are the best in my opinion. After "Leftoverture" I kind of lost interest in the band, but I still listen to "Song for America" and "Masque". Kansas was in a league of their own, probably the best American prog rock band ever.

This transitional 1975 album was released virtually on the heels of their prog rock opus Song for America (also 1975). In contrast with Song for America, Masque featured a greater proportion of shorter pieces, and at least a few tracks that were apparently targeted towards a less prog-oriented audience - the "boogie" and hard rock influences are still present on this album. On the flip side of the coin however, is the brilliant Kerry Livgren penned prog rock track The Pinnacle; a masterwork that I would place alongside Apercu (Kansas, 1974); Song for America, Lamplight Symphony, and Incomudro-Hymn to the Atman (all from Song for America, 1975). Overall, Masque is a transitional work that finds the band sandwiched between the earlier prog epics and the mature sound they presented on Leftoverture (1976).The lineup on this album included multi-instrumentalist Kerry Livgren (lead and rhythm electric guitar; acoustic guitar; piano; clavinet; mini-moog synthesizer and ARP synthesizers); Phil Ehart (drums; "moog" drum; and percussion); Robby Steinhardt (violin and vocals); Steve Walsh (Hammond organ; clavinet; mini moog synthesizer; congas; and vocals); Rich Williams (lead and rhythm electric guitar) and Dave Hope (electric bass). These guys are all fantastic musicians and the ensemble work is of a very high quality. My understanding is that Phil Ehart was very much influenced by English progressive rock (along with Kerry) and really wanted to be part of that scene. I guess it is no surprise then that he turned up on former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett's solo album Please Don't Touch (1978).The eight tunes on this album range in length from 3'09" to 9'34" and consist of a mixture of rock/boogie pieces with tiny bits of prog (It's You; Child of Innocence; It takes a Woman's Love; and Two Cents Worth) and several tracks that would be of great interest to most prog fans (Icarus; Mysteries and Mayhem>The Pinnacle). All the World is one track that is right in the middle and is somewhat indicative of future trends. This is a seven minute piece that nicely blends the hard rock/pop and the proggier tendencies of the band - of course, the most seamless blending of rock/boogie and prog would be brought to perfection on Leftoverture (1976). As a hardcore prog fan, my favorite tracks include Icarus; All the World; and the Mysteries and Mayhem>The Pinnacle suite, which is simply a fantastic composition and my favorite track on Masque. All of the hallmarks of progressive rock are (especially) in place on The Pinnacle: dense ensemble work; fantastic melodies; sophisticated counterpoint etc. This is another one of my favorite Kerry Livgren/Kansas compositions.This remastered album by Epic/Legacy is very, very good and features excellent sound quality, loads of liner notes and pictures of the band. The bonus tracks are just OK and simply consist of demos and rehearsal recordings.All in all, this album is highly recommended to those folks that are interested in the heavier side of 1970's progressive rock. Although I might be a little biased, I feel that Kansas was one of the more significant and original American groups that ventured into progressive rock. While Masque might not be the best Kansas album to start with, it is recommended along with the eponymous debut - Kansas (1974); Song for America, Leftoverture; and Point of Know Return (1977). Of these albums, Song for America is very proggy and a personal favorite. Other American bands that practiced interesting strains of prog include Happy the Man - their Crafty Hands album is pretty good.

KANSAS - Masque (1975) (****½) 10 tracks - (48:34)Kansas's third album, hot on the heels of Song For America, also released in 1975, was almost a "make it or brake it" album. The band's music had sold reasonably well, but KANSAS had failed to produce a hit single. Don Kirshner was definitely putting some pressure on the band. That's the reason this album opens up with two very "pop" oriented short singles, It Takes A Woman's Love (to make a man) and Two Cent's Worth. The first one is sprinkled with pop lyrics, catchy harmonies, even some 70's era saxophone playing! Lucky for us, the short sighted plan didn't result in a hit single, and KANSAS was able to keep moving straight ahead with what it did best, creating and playing some of the most "progressive" American rock music ever. Don Kirshner would just have to keep waiting for KANSAS's big success, which was just on the horizon. If Kirshner's attempt to make "hit makers" out of KANSAS had been successful, I'm afraid the band would not have survived, as we know them today.OK, back to the album...where was I? Oh yeah, then we jump right into classic KANSAS with Icarus (born on wings of steel) a perennial fan favorite based on the adventures of a World War II Bomber squadron. All The World is a typical classically arranged song with many mood and time changes, while Child Of Innocence is a much more straight-ahead hard rock song, one of my favorites. It becomes obvious very quickly that Steve Walsh's contributions to this album lean much more to the lighter side of things while Kerry Livgren's tend (again) to the more epic-length, classical works. Such as The Pinnacle, the album's 9 minute 34 second stunning opus.This 2001 EPIC/Legacy remaster contains two bonus tracks, a rehearsal recording of Child Of Innocence and the original Demo of It's You (previously unreleased). These two bonus tracks contribute nothing to the over-all package. As other reviewers have noted, the rehearsal recording of Child Of Innocence sounds like it was secretly recorded by a fan with a hand-held cassette recorder inside their pocket! It's so bad I'm astonished it was even included. As far as the Demo version of It's You compared to the original, the two are so similar; it's hard to tell them apart. The good part is you get a 10-page booklet with expanded liner notes and all song lyrics.Best Track: The Pinnacle

My favorite Kansas album. I got into Kansas thx to their radio hits. Glad I bought their albums Song For America, Masque, Leftoverture, Point of Know Return, and their new one, The Prelude Implicit rather than just going for their Greatest Hits. Hearing the songs in the context of their album is an immersive experience, like living a story.

This is not good prog-rock! Slightly booring and only in the third or fourth league.

It is briiliant; an amazing band

ok

Kansas created a wonder with this their third disc..."Masque" was a great disc for its time and really managed to tip the scales of Progressive rock back in the 1980's. At this time they were still working with the original crew and it shows. I remember seeing them for the first time and it was during the time when they were promoting the album that came after this "SONG FOR AMERICA" I was amazed at the guitar and violin playing and how they reminded me of another band of a slightly earlier time called "THE FLOCK".

Ci sono voluti circa un anno e mezzo di tempo per produrre "Masque", terzo album dei Kansas, nonché il loro meno preferito (come annunceranno in seguito). Il precedente "Songs For America" aveva portato buoni propositi (la title-track ne era un esempio), ma anche qualche intoppo. Nonostante ciò, l’album era riuscito a scalare lentamente le classifiche; Masque, no.Sarà forse per la copertina (una signora fatta di crostacei e pesci non è certo il massimo, perlopiù su uno sfondo nero) o forse perché i Kansas fanno un passo indietro per approfondire meglio il progressive che stava lentamente defluendo (di qualità) nell’album precedente.E la differenza si sente subito: "It Takes A Woman’s Love (To Make A Man)" ha un sound più maturo e deciso, caratterizzato da una lieve struttura progressive sulla quale partecipano fiati e chitarre in primo piano, strizzando l’occhio ad un gradevole (ma lontano) accento jazz. La rapida corsa finale tra batteria e pianoforte lascia subito spazio a Two Cents Worth, dove una trascinante batteria accompagnata dal pianoforte marcia tra percussioni, tastiere spumeggianti e (finalmente) violino, che appare anch’esso “maturato”. Supera tranquillamente la traccia precedente."Icarus (Borne On Wings Of Steel)" è più dilatata, con una intro capitanata da un’esplosione tastiere-chitarre che porta subito al cantato, guidato da tastiere e chitarre ben accentuate. Continui crescendo lasciano spazio a continui intrecci tra chitarre e numerose tastiere, per poi accelerare introducendo quindi un rapido violino, nel mentre che subito sotto tastiere e corde lottano per avere il primo piano. Il cantato ricompone ordinatamente la struttura, seguendo un continuo crescendo, lasciando spazio ad un sensazionale finale dove chitarre acustiche ed elettriche si intrecciano per creare un complesso tessuto musicale, avvalorato dal basso (che ha fatto la sua parte per tutto il brano) e dal coro."All The World" è introdotto dal violino, che molto tranquillamente dà il testimone ad un buon pianoforte che accompagna il cantato. Dopo l’arrivo della batteria e degli altri strumenti, il ritmo diventa sempre più marcato, fino a mutare con un crescendo di voci che dà spazio ad un altro favoloso intreccio di tastiere. La struttura progressive viene evidenziata con il disgregarsi del tessuto musicale, ripreso da un violino stavolta più aggressivo, introdotto da caldissime chitarre e percussioni. Il tutto viene serrato improvvisamente, ritornando alle calme atmosfere iniziali, che riprendono il ciclo con continui crescendo che sfocia nel ritornello finale: uno dei migliori lavori dei Kansas in assoluto.La qualità delle canzoni si mantiene alta con un’intro governata da chitarre e tastiere scompigliate che introducono "Child Of Innocence". Utilizzando intelligentemente tutte le voci del gruppo, il brano scorre su un tessuto musicale apparentemente monotono, che cambia continuamente atmosfere. Lo scatenato assolo di chitarra precede continui giri di tastiere che riprendono l’intro, tornando a capo (ma dov’è il violino?). Anziché riprendere un terzo ciclo, stavolta sono le tastiere a cercare di guadagnarsi il primo piano, con una prepotente chitarra che non dispiace. La breve "It’s You" è una veloce marcia tastiere-batteria-basso (con un violino molto attaccato alle tastiere) che introduce a Mysteries And Mayhem in un modo non tanto travolgente come le tracce precedenti (il povero violino è al primo piano solo alla fine del brano)."Mysteries And Mayhem" si fa strada con un’altra buona intro dove partecipano rapidamente tutti gli strumenti. Il tutto si ferma di fronte a dei giri di chitarra ipnotizzanti che guidano il cantato. Gli altri strumenti decorano il tutto, portando ad un ritornello cantato dagli strumenti: violino e corde sono i primi a farsi avanti, sciogliendo nuovamente il tessuto musicale, ricomponendolo sempre con i medesimi strumenti a ritmo di una frenetica e rapida batteria. Due assoli di chitarra inglobano per pochi attimi l’ascoltatore, per poi riportarlo ad un breve cantato. L’ottimo finale viene rivisitato dall’intro di "The Pinnacle", la vera suite di "Masque" introdotta dal violino.Riprendendo le tastiere che ricordano "Apercu", il tessuto musicale va integrandosi tra tastiere, corde e batteria. Il pianoforte cambia nuovamente l’atmosfera, rendendola più calma. Un lento violino vola tra tastiere ipnotizzanti, riassumendo la lunga intro per poi preparare un tessuto musicale dominato da tastiere e pianoforte per accogliere il cantato. Un delicato crescendo porta ad un cambio della melodia non molto netto ma gradevole, governato dalle tastiere in primis e poi dal travolgente coro. La chitarra e colpi di tastiere cambiano direzione di ritmo, proponendo un delicato ma cupo assolo di tastiere che si movimentano all’arrivo di basso e batteria, quindi un assolo di chitarra rimette tutto a posto, facendo spazio al cantato che siede su ipnotizzanti ritmi di violino. Un assolo di chitarra dà inizio alla chiusura della suite; segue quindi il violino che accompagna il coro finale che chiude, con un fantastico ondeggiare di violini, uno dei capitoli più suggestivi della carriera dei Kansas. (Voto: 8,5)