Bigger Thomas
We Wear The Mask

I was more than ecstatic when I read that Bigger Thomas, a Megalith Records group, was releasing a brand new disc entitled We Wear The Mask. I promptly contacted the band, and they sent me their disc an entire month before their CD release party on January 6, 2005 at the Bowery Poetry Club with the Hub City Stompers. The contents of this release had been “written, rehearsed, forgotten, and rediscovered” over the past 15 years, and were compiled with several guest artists to create an extremely professional final product. The band consists of 5 members, but seems to have permanent guests in their two member horn section and keyboard player. This 12 track compilation of members, styles, and accented instrumentations has one common thread – professionalism. This is apparent in both the recordings and professional presentation of We Wear the Mask, and really sums up this long anticipated release.

The first track, “Panic!,” starts off with the audio representation of a dive in New York City, complete with laidback swing, chatter, and the clinking of pint glasses. When the tune kicked into some high-paced ska with talented toasting over the top, I was both surprised and elated. The track features the lyrical talents of Roy Radic of The Rudie Crew, Rev. T.D. Sinister of Hub City Stompers, and Tommi Infamous of Bomb Town, contributing several different flavors to the driven and danceable track. I definitely prefer some styles to others, but the amalgamation creates the sense of a Megalith family, as all of these artists are on the same record label. The song winds down at the end with some talented percussion, which blends very nicely into the dub introduction of “Say It Again.” The intro features some awesome echoed horn parts and more guest vocals by Roy Radic; but soon enough the track takes a turn to faster ska. Here, the actual lead singer of Bigger Thomas, Roger Apollon, Jr., starts a vocal trend that stays consistent throughout the disc. The vocals are highly energetic and feature some cool harmonies, but the melodies are a little repetitive. The track transitions back and forth from dub to ska, trading vocal melodies from Apollon to Radics, which has a really awesome effect. “Not Right Now” is up next, which features infectious horn melodies and tight drumming to make the listener really get into the tune. I’m not a huge fan of the vocals, which get a little too articulate for the style, and sometimes miss the intended notes. Extremely professional trombone and trumpet solos and a harmonica interlude by King Django, also of the Megalith family, really put personality into this track and make it musically exceptional. “How It Has To Be” is kicked off by a smooth introduction by the rhythm section and dives into an exceptional ska groove. The vocal melodies in the verse get repetitive and a little tedious, but the contrasting horn parts and the chorus lyrics really solidify the track. During “How It Has To Be,” I started to pick up on how Bigger Thomas uses two percussionists to make the backgrounds to their melodies more interesting than an average ska band. I absolutely love the next track, “Less and Less,” where Apollon uses excellent dub-style lyrics to keep an awesome laidback track from getting too repetitive or complicated. The ambience of the track differs from the solidity of the first 5 tracks to give a much welcomed interlude.

“We Need To Talk” features expert drumming and horn melodies to get the listener interested in the track, and the rhythm section really holds the tune together. The verse lyrics are a little strained and atonal, but the chorus lyrics sing of a form of unity through talking and dancing, which I really dig. This song also features a smooth guitar solo, the likes of which are apparent all over the disc. “Trouble,” another up-tempo ska track, has even more awesome horn melodies and a smooth verse accompaniment, which I’m assuming is a melodica, a wind instrument played by Apollon. Radics and Sinister are featured on this track as well, adding even more diversity to the sound of Bigger Thomas. The namesake of the disc, “We Wear The Mask,” is up next, which is an ambient dub tune featuring the words of turn-of-the-century poet Laurence Dunbar. This is another favorite of mine as the percussion, horn parts, and lyricism of Apollon really give an urgent and modern application to Dunbar’s words. This 6:16 long jam doesn’t get boring or repetitive, providing another example of how professional this release is. “King For A Day” and “It’s Been Done” combine some other styles, including waltz and swing, with the band’s usual ska to create effects heard nowhere else on the disc. You can really tell that these songs are the products of long-term critique and perfection as they’re multi-faceted and professionally presented. “You Know Seh Mr. Radics” is another track featuring the lead vocalist of The Rudie Crew, filling the entire 3:58 with smooth toasting. The disc concludes with “Dub The Mask,” an even more nebulous and laidback version of the namesake of the release. After a disc chockfull of intense music, this track ends it with a nice ambient lull.

I definitely recommend picking up Bigger Thomas’ new release, We Wear The Mask, an extremely professional and fluid compilation of the entire Megalith community. We Wear The Mask can be picked up from Megalith’s store for only $8.99, and it is definitely money well spent. From NYC, Bigger Thomas is often in the CT area, so check um out.

Reviewed By:  Todd Springer

Date:  Sat 2 Sep 06

Score:  8.0

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