News

Please be sure to check back to our website for updates as they become available, or subscribe to The Red Masque's email list. You can also join the band's facebook page here for the most up-to-date announcements.

Radio Interview May 6th
05.04.13: DJ Debbie Sears from the Prog Rock Diner has interviewed TRM's Lynnette Shelley and Brandon Ross. Interview will air this Monday, May 6th, along with music from the album. The program runs from 5 to 7 PM with the interview portion running sometime in the first hour. Info on how to listen in online: go to http://progrockdiner.com/about.html. UPDATE: The show has been archived online and you can listen to an MP3 of the interview here.

Mythalogue T-Shirts Now Available
05.01.13: Buy a Mythalogue T-shirt in a wide vareity of colors, sizes and styles (including women's styles, children's styles, hoodies, long sleeve, short sleeve and baseball tees. Go to our new merchandise page.

MYTHALOGUE NOW AVAILABLE:
05.01.013: The Red Masque's new album Mythalogue Is Now Available for both the regular and art editions. Click here to order or for more information. You may also stream songs off the album via the preceeding link. Physical album sales will be available May 1, 2013. CDs will be be made available on BLRR's website, TRM's Website, and worldwide through various distributors both digital and brick and mortar. Further details shortly....

Mythalogue Update
04.12.13: The New CD has just arrived in Seattle's port and is currently being unloaded and going into customs before shipping to the Beta-lactam Ring Records in Portland. BLRR will be posting the albums on the site this week to get pre orders going. Physical album should be available before the end of the month.

Press Release from BLRR: The Red Masque-Mythalogue
With the first studio outing in five years from Philly's native avant prog wunderkind, The Red Masque let loose a clarion call of avant prog gravitas to all comers here. Scions to a subterranean continuum of stormy entanglements, the tendrils that entwine on these tenebrous tunes snake out from some very auspicious pods. On Mythalogue, they take a page from Red-era King Crimson and another from those that rode the more riff-centric faultlines of the 90's avant prog revival (Present, Happy Family, Thinking Plague, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum) and fire the shredded results out of confetti cannons. Riffs crunch out fevered labyrinths, time signatures create airborne origami and vocalist Lynnette Shelley's supple, full-throated attack seals it with a kiss. This crew have been hoisted on the shoulders of some of Rock In Oppostion's most formidable figures, from their previous studio affair gaining release on Chris Cutler's ReR USA imprint to Mythalogue being mixed by 5uu's/Science Group member and avant prog magi Bob Drake. Little wonder, as the interzone of turbulent energies and high wire conniptions on hand here make plain The Red Masque's heir apparent status to this trajectory.

Site Update
03.25.13: New photos from the CD release shows at have been added to the gallery section on the website. Click here to view.

Update on Mythalogue
03.06.13: Well we have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that we were told by our label, Beta-lactam Ring Records (BlRR), that there were some production issues at the printing company with another printing job which has in turn delayed the production on The Red Masque's bookbound gatefold CD cover and booklet for the new album Mythalogue. E.T.A. is around mid to third week of this month to ship out from Hong Kong. BlRR is then going to be releasing the Mythalogue in mid to late April for worldwide purchase. So unfortunately, this delay cannot be avoided and is out of our control.

However, the good news is for those of you attending the CD release shows in March in Philadelphia and Baltimore (see schedule page for info), BlRR does have the actual CD discs ready to ship. So they've graciously ordered a limited supply of jewel cases with 2-panel inserts and traycards featuring the album front cover, credits and photo of the band on them for us to bring out to the shows. PLEASE NOTE: for those of you who purchase these cds at the show, we will be taking your name and address and we will be sending you the bookbound cover and booklet when they arrive in April. Just keep the actual disc itself to pop into its new case.

For those of you who contributed to our Kickstarter campaign and are due a physical CD, we will send the bookbound gatefold edition to you when we get them from BlRR in April.

Bookmark blrrecords.com for further information or keep checking the The Red Masque's website for updates on our Mythalogue information page. Please also friend us on facebook if you have not done so already as we post updates there regularly.

The Countdown to Mythalogue Begins...
02.20.13: The band has finished proofing the designs and text for their new album, Mythalogue. According to Beta-lactam Ring Records, the album will be up on the label's site in about two week's time. Pre-orders will also be starting in about a week's time. Bookmark blrrecords.com for further information or keep checking the band's website for updates on our Mythalogue information page. We will also be selling a limited number of copies directly off the band's website. Stay tuned for details. Please also check out the schedule page for CD release show information.

Mythalogue Update
01. 09.13: All custom miniature artworks for the limited edition version of the album have been finalized. You can view some examples of these artist trading cards on the Mythalogue information page. Please also check the schedule page for current gig information.

New Album Mythalogue ETA late Feb. / Early March 2013
12. 03.12: Pre-orders for the album will start in Mid January. After the official release, copies will be made available for order through Beta-lactam Ring Records and The Red Masque's website. For those who contributed to the Red Masque's kickstarter campaign to help fund the album costs, downloads will be made available around Christmas. Stay tuned.

New Video for "The Minotaur"
08.11.12: A new video teaser / promo for The Red Masque's new album Mythalogue, featuring "The Minotaur" has been posted on youtube. We hope you enjoy this little taste of things to come! "The Minotaur" is the shortest of the main songs on the album, as well as the heaviest. For full detail on Mythalogue, please click here.

The band recently gave Glenn Goring (one of the guitarist / songwriters from the incredible band Comus) a sneak earful of the new album and he had this to say:

"Well, you couldn't class this as boring... I heard some accomplished playing and intriguing musical ideas. At one point I was reminded of Jefferson Airplane, then Stockhausen and here and there Velvet Underground with a bit of Alistair Crowley, XTC, Opeth etc, thrown into the crucible of boiling, fervent and sometimes a very scary sound. Given that I heard it through not the best speakers on the planet the production values sound dynamic and balanced. The guy who did the work most definitely has a feel for your stuff, good choice! I can also sense the connection through your art into this area of the virtually supernatural where your voice excels. Great stuff and well done. Good luck with it and thanks again for allowing me this sneak preview. I really hope it does well"

New Band Interview Posted
07.17.12: Writer Mike Reiss interviewed the band recently. In the interview you can read about the upcoming album, the band's thoughts on the progressive rock scene and more. Click here to read the interview.

Mythalogue to be released 2013 through Beta-lactam Ring Records
06.20.12: Portland-based experimental label Beta-lactam Ring Records is releasing the Red Masque's new album Mythalogue in early 2013. The new album features nine new studio tracks (recorded in spring 2012) as well as one live song (recorded at a show in Philadelphia in 2011). The album is currently being mixed by acclaimed musician and producer Bob Drake in France.

Mythalogue will be released in two formats: a standard issue CD and special limited art edition, all presented in a custom made book-bound gatefold sleeve with a fold-out mini poster featuring artwork by Lynnette Shelley. The custom art CD (edition of 50) will feature mini original artworks by Lynnette. These artworks will be presented in the format known as Artist Trading Cards (ATC), which are the size of a standard baseball card. Each card will be one-of-a-kind. Click here for further details.

New Album Update
05.2712: The Red Masque wrapped up their recording sessions at Orion Studios earlier this month. Tracks were mailed out this week to Bob Drake in France for mixing. The band will also be including some live tracks from a concert last year on a bonus disc on the album, Mythalogue. Stay tuned for more information on the album as it progresses.... For those of you who donated to the Kickstarter fundingraising campaign, the band is currently working on finishing up all the incentives so that they can be mailed out. Patrons who contributed to the campaign should expect to see thier rewards coming in the mail shortly.

Mythalogue Recording Sessions Photos and Studio Diary:
04.2012: The Red Masque started recording sessions for their new album Mythalogue at Orion Sound Studios in Baltimore on April 22, 2012. The band documented the session with some photos as well as a video showing behind-the-scenes footage. You can view the photos on the band's gallery page here. Vocalist Lynnette Shelley blogged about the experience on her blog. Read it here. The video will be posted later this week. Stay tuned for details. The band's kickstarter campaign to raise funds for the album recording ends this friday at 6 PM. Please click here to donate or for more information.

New Album Teaser:
04.2012: Drummer Steve Craig recently made some videos of the Red Masque during rehearsal to create a teaser for the new album Mythalogue. The band heads into the studio on April 22nd, and the video shows them reheasing / working on their new material. Below video is the song "The Minotaur", one of the heavier songs on the album. See the downloads page for more videos.

Help Fund the Band's New Album

Press play to see video above.

UPDATE (4.5.12): The Red Masque is very please to announce that we have reached our funding goal. We wish to thank everyone who has contributed! We are still accepting funds through the end of the campaign; to donate please click here. All monies will go toward recording costs.

3.19.12: A Kickstarter campaign has been launched to raise funds for the new album, Mythalogue.
Philadelphia avant rock band The Red Masque are heading back into the studio in April 2012 to create their fifth full-length album, Mythalogue. The group will be recording at Orion Sound Studios in Baltimore with Mike Potter as an engineer. Acclaimed musician and producer Bob Drake is mixing the album. The album will include such tracks as "The Dark Salt Sea", "The Wendigo", "The Song for Icarus", "The Minotaur" and "The Labyrinth" (an improvisation), as well as some audio surprises. Mythalogue is a thematic album using world mythology as inspiration. Lyrical content can be found on the band's discography page on their website at www.theredmasque.com/music.html.

The money that the band is asking for will help fund the recording / mixing costs associated with the recording. The Red Masque are asking for $1,500 in donations to help fund Mythalogue. The total recording costs will actually be more than 1,500 dollars, but this amount would greatly help the band fund the project without having to rob their collective savings accounts :). If the band receives funding over this goal, it will be put toward associated costs (like mixing costs, rehearsal room rental etc.).

Please click on this link to contribute to our campaign fund:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/368221863/fund-the-red-masques-new-album-mythalogue
We need to reach our goal in by Friday Apr 27, 6:00pm EDT or we will not receive any funding through Kickstarter. We've included lots of very exciting and unique incentives to those who choose to donate (from private concerts from the band to original artwork to free music). We hope you will help us reach our goal!

Video Updates:
We will also be taking the video camera into the recording studio with us and posting updates as we go along. We'll be posting these updates on our kickstarter page as well as on our facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/The.Red.Masque

THANK YOU!
The Band wishes to thank every person that donates to this fund drive. We love you! (Even if Cthulhu does not!).

BONUS Pay-What-You-Want Download Now Available: As an added bonus / thank you present, we've made our second album, "Feathers for Flesh" (2004), available as a pay-what-you-want download off of our site. Enjoy! http://www.theredmasque.com/feathers-for-flesh.html

Thank you,

The Red Masque
Brandon Lord Ross, Lynnette Shelley, Nicholas Giannetti, Steve Craig

FUND MYTHALOGUE THROUGH KICKSTARTER:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/368221863/fund-the-red-masques-new-album-mythalogue

The Red Masque head into the studio
03.07.12: The Red Masque will be heading into the studio in late April to begin recording their new album, tentatively titled "Mythalogue". Initial tracks will include: "The Dark Salt Sea", "The Wendigo", "The Song for Icarus", "The Minotaur", and "The Labyrinth" (an improv). The new album will be mixed by acclaimed producer and musician Bob Drake. The album will be engineered and recorded by Mike Potter at Orion Sound Studios in Baltimore.

A Kickstarter campaign will be launched shortly to help fund the campaign. Details TBA... As an added thank you to our fans, the band is also now offering pay-what-you-want downloads of our 2004 album, Feathers for Flesh. Go to our discography page for details.

New Album
12.21.11: The Red Masque are currently working on material in order to start recording a new album in 2012. The band hopes to record an initial four songs in the spring, wtih more songs to be worked on and recorded on an on-going basis. The new album will be a thematic album inspired by various world mythologies and legends.

Update
11.21.11: The Red Masque have uploaded photos of their recent PhilaMOCA show. You can view the pictures here. In addition, a video of the performance will soon be posted on youtube. Please check the multimedia and downloads page for updates.

New "Dark Salt Sea" Video Now Available
9.26.11: TRM's drummer Steve Craig has edited together a new video of the song "Dark Salt Sea " from the band's May 2011 gig at Pyramid Atlantic in Washington DC. Video footage provided by Debi Byrd and Brandon Ross. Steve will be editing together more videos from this show soon. In the meantime, you can see the video here.

Just announced!
11.20.2011: Thinking Plague, Hamster Theater, The Red Masque and Syrrah at the Philadelphia Mausoleum Of Contemporary Art (PhilaMOCA), 531 North 12th St., Philadelphia, PA 19123; 7 PM sharp. $12 in advance, $15 at the door. All Ages. BYOB. Facebook Event Page link.

New Red Masque Performance Video Now Available
8.15.11: TRM have just uploaded a new video from the band's July show at the Telemark Clubhouse in Rockaway, NJ. Please click here to view the video on youtube. The band is also at work on organizing a professionally recorded live show / performance webcast at a studio in Pennsylvania for the Fall. Full details will be provided as soon as they are fleshed out. In the meantime, please enjoy the above video.

New Polphemus Video Now Available
7.04.11: TRM's drummer Steve Craig has edited together a new video of the song "Polyphemus" from the band's recent gig at Pyramid Atlantic in Washington DC. Video footage provided by Debi Byrd and Brandon Ross. Steve will be editing together more videos from this show soon. In the meantime, you can see the video here.

New Shows Added
6.19.11: New shows added to the schedule page. Check it out.

New Live Video from The Red Masque
5.29.11: "Polyphemus" by The Red Masque (live at Pyramid Atlantic on May 21 2011) is now up on Youtube. We still have to edit apart and upload the videos for the rest of the show for youtube so enjoy this song in the meantime! 

Click to view:
"Polyphemus" by The Red Masque

Subscribe to Lynnette’s youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/LynnetteShelley
Link to show photo gallery: http://www.theredmasque.com/gallery05.html<

Art Interview in The Journal Of Unlikely Entomology
The first issue of The Journal of Unlikely Entomology is now online and TRM's Lynnette Shelley is the featured artist for its inaugural issue. This new online magazine is devoted to all things creepy and crawly. Her artwork "The Mosquito" (used on the cover of “Fossil Eyes”) is used to illustrate the short story, "Love in the Absence of Mosquitoes" by Mari Ness. In addition, editor Bernie Mojzes and Art Director Linda Saboe conducted an interview with Lynnette, which you can read here. The interview is mostly about Lynnette’s artwork but also delves a bit into the music of The Red Masque as well.

New Interview
4.28.11: Journalist A.D. Amorosi interviews TRM's Lynnette Shelley about the recent fire, new music and upcoming adventures. See the article here or check out more archived interviews in our new Press section on this website.

Burning Down the House!
04.07.11: Ironically, after our last gig was cancelled due to a fire, our next gig is at The Fire in Philadelphia, along with Moraine and K2. Details:

Sunday, May 1 at 8:00pm
The Fire , 412 W. Girard Ave, Philadelphia, PA
$10. Tickets: http://www.ticketweb.com/fb/3583865
Link to the Facebook Event Page

MORAINE with THE RED MASQUE and K2

MORAINE
Moraine is an omnivorous Seattle-based instrumental quintet made up of guitarist Dennis Rea, violinist Alicia DeJoie, woodwind player James DeJoie, bassist Kevin Millard, and drummer Stephen Cavit. With its several writers and full complement of ace instrumentalists arrayed in striking combination, Moraine achieves a unique sound while drawing on forms ranging from art rock to Chinese folk music to plugged-in power jazz and more. Moraine has been enthusiastically received by audiences ranging from jazz aficionados to progressive rock devotees to metalheads. The band's 2009 release on NYC-based MoonJune Records, manifest deNsity, has received more than 100 glowing reviews in 30 countries, and its set at NEARfest 2010 was considered by many to be a highlight of the festival.

http://www.moraineband.com/about.cfm

THE RED MASQUE
Founded in February 2001 by bassist/keyboardist Brandon Ross and vocalist Lynnette Shelley, the Red Masque went through several lineup changes over the years, but its intent and integrity has always remained the same. The band's goal was, and is, to create original music that pushes the envelope of the listener's expectations. With such influences as Magma, King Crimson, Hawkwind, Gong, Pink Floyd, Bauhaus, Art Bears, and Van Der Graaf Generator, The Red Masque's compositions are as intense as they are unique.

One of the group's first concerts was at the Prelude to the North East Art Rock Festival (NEARFest) in 2001. Other notable shows include the 2005 Rogue Independent Music Festival in Atlanta, the 2001 World Con Science Fiction Convention, the New Jersey proghouse series, Orion Studios in Baltimore; the Philadelphia Landing Pad Space Rock Festival; and The Gate to Moonbase Alpha concert series at the Rotunda in Philadelphia. The Red Masque also organized and performed in the 2002 and 2003 Philadelphia Underground Music and Culture Festival. The Red Masque have also opened up for notable performers and musicians such as Chris Cutler (Henry Cow, Art Bears), The Muffins, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, and Present. They have also performed on stage with such well-regarded drummers and percussionists as David Kerman (5UUs, Present, Thinking Plague) and Paul Sears (The Muffins, Thee Maximalists).

Steadily growing an audience within the underground progressive and psychedelic music communities for their uncompromising and intense style of music, The Red Masque have released to date one EP ("Death of the Red Masque" in 2001), and three albums ("Victoria and the Haruspex" in 2002, "Feathers for Flesh" in 2004, and "Fossil Eyes" in 2008), as well as one single (2003). "Feathers for Flesh" was released through the Big Balloon Music label out of Washington state and garnered critical reviews in the press, including Wire Magazine, Harmonie Magazine, Progresiste Magazine, iO Pages, Colussus Magazine, Tarkus Magazine, Progression Magazine, Expose Magazine, the Philadelphia City Paper, Metro Philadelphia, and various online newsletters, blogs, and review sites. Interviews in various progressive music media also followed, including Progression Magazine and Expose Magazine.

http://www.theredmasque.com/

K2
K2 began quite by accident in May of 2001 when bassist Ken Jaquess asked drummer Doug Sanborn to play on some new music he was working on. Having no idea if anything would come of these sessions, they set out to record a bold and daring project that would soon take on a life all its own. After only 4 rehearsals and 5 hours of recording, Ken and Doug had laid the foundation for an incredible epic album of high musicianship, complex compositions and haunting themes. What happened next was completely unexpected. Over the next 4 years,fellow musicians Allan Holdsworth, Ryo Okumoto, Shaun Guerin, Yvette Devereaux & John Miner added layer upon layer of unique, signature sounds that resulted in K2's first album "Book of the Dead". Critically acclaimed around the world, K2 went on to perform BOTD live with a new line-up consisting of Ken and Doug, Ryo Okumoto (keyboards), Karl Johnson (guitar), and Josh Gleason (vocals). In 2006, K2 filmed their first gig, which was released on their 2008 concert DVD, "K2 Live in Hollywood". In 2007, this lineup went back to the drawing board to create what would become their long overdue 2nd release, "Black Garden". The new K2 album to be released September 21st, 2010 on Magna Carta Records, showcases this modern rock quintet in an entirely new setting. With a central theme of Oceania, K2 explores the hidden depths of this mysterious region and take the listener on a dark, sonic journey to places rarely visited, and offers a glimpse of a people unlike any other on earth.

http://www.reverbnation.com/k2band

Upcoming Shows
03.2011: Hello from The Red Masque! We have several upcoming shows that we would like to share with you. We hope to see you at some of them. (and more are in the works).

THIS SATURDAY!
03.26.2011: The Red Masque & Radio Eris plus David S. Aponte DJing from his eclectic, and exotic collection of music between sets. At Hoi Polloi Studios, (in the Amber Street Studios Building), 3240 Collins Street, Philadelphia, PA. $8 door donation. 8 PM. See the facebook event page here

Come early as this will be a very intimate space with limited capacity to see the Red Masque. We will be performing for over an hour in this BYOB arts space.

05.01.2011: Moraine, The Red Masque and K2 at The Fire, 412 W Girard Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19123; 267-671-9298. $10. More details to come.

05.21.2011: Sonic Circuits Experimental Music Series at Pyramid Atlantic Art Center, 8230 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring, MD. $8. 8 PM. With Mary Kavalauskas. Link to show Details

08.06.2011: Elephant Talk Music Festival, Atlantic City, NJ. Details

For the latest details, please visit our schedule page or join our fan page on facebook:

Check out a youtube clip from our last show that a fan took:

Happy Anniversary
02.2011: It's the Red Masque's ten year anniversary. Although it's been a long strange trip, we have had a lot of fun along the way. We have revamped the band website, as the old one was getting a bit long in the tooth and out-of-shape. We hope you enjoy our new website and find it easier to use and navigate. If you have any technical issues, please email Lynnette at lynnette@theredmasque.com.

Please check out our concert schedule page as we are busy booking shows and have some exciting ones coming up. We also have new band promo photos to be posted soon on our gallery page, taken by the talented David Pym (who played guitar on our live album, Stars Fall On Me). You may also want to check out this new interview, recently posted online at The Rocktologist.

We are also hard at work working on new material, and hope to record a new album in the future. In the meantime, we will continue to offer live recordings via our multimedia and downloads page. We hope to offer even more selection of video and audio recordings in the future. If anybody has taken any bootleg video or audio recordings at any of our shows, please contact the band at theredmasque@theredmasque.com

The Red Masque at Orion Studios, March 23, 2013. Photo by Dana McAdams.

Connect

The Red Masque at PhilaMOCA, November 2011. Click on image to enlarge.