Masque Signs With Suncity Records To Release ‘Face First’ CD

MASQUE SIGNS WITH SUNCITY RECORDS TO RELEASE ‘FACE FIRST’ CD:

March 4, 2008

After more than 20 years in the vault, Hollywood band MASQUE has signed with SunCity Records to distribute their album Face First, originally recorded in the 80s and never released. “We are pleased to have obtained the rights to the MASQUE Face First album, which represents some of the best un-released material from an 80’s Hollywood band,” states David Moors, SunCity Records president.

MASQUE burst onto the Hollywood scene in early 1985 quickly attracting a loyal following playing at legendary hot spots including The Troubadour, Whisky, The Roxy Theatre, Gazzarri’s and other L.A. venues. MASQUE was formed by lead-vocalist Tony Kelly and lead-guitarist Dale Fine shortly after Kelly departed the Hollywood band Network formed by original Quiet Riot drummer Drew Forsyth. Kelly and Fine originally met in their hometown of Las Vegas and joined forces a few years later in Hollywood to form MASQUE along with Network bassist Bruff Brigham and completing their lineup with drummer Ross Cristao, originally with Chicago based metal band Thrust.

MASQUE debuted at the Troubadour to a sold out crowd and the buzz quickly spread throughout Hollywood that the band was destined for success. MASQUE shared the bill with various unsigned bands at the time including Poison, Warrant, Stryper, Bulletboys and Guns N’ Roses, who at the time were an opening act. MASQUE was unable to move to national fame due to internal group conflicts coupled with record label issues. The band’s lineup subsequently changed to include guitarist Kevin James and drummers Mark Goodin and John Haro.

“I’m thrilled that our MASQUE Face First album will finally come to market,” states lead vocalist and co-founder Tony Kelly. “It’s truly amazing, and encouraging, that a whole new generation of rock fans are embracing our music genre and image.”

Based on requests from long-time friends of the band, Kelly posted a MASQUE tribute page on MySpace.com as an historical retrospective. Within three weeks the tribute page had received over 1,600 friend and fan requests.

“We were overwhelmed by the amount of positive comments and feedback from people all over the world,” states Kelly. “Our music was part of an exciting and historical time in Hollywood music and we’re thrilled that it will be made available to the public.”

SunCity Records specializes in the release of material from the 80’s and 90’s and have had success with other artists including Johnny Crash, Pretty Vacant, Blackboard Jungle and others. SunCity will release the MASQUE Face First CD in April for sale through worldwide distribution channels as well as through the labels website www.suncityrecords.com.

MASQUE “No Pain” Live at the Whisky 1988

Courtesy of www.myspace.com/hollywoodmasque