German
hard rock band Mass, whose star shined bright for just ten years after
formation in 1976, before drug addiction and alcoholism took their heavy
toll and forced the group's implosion in 1986, are set to re-release
two of their classic albums on April 12th.
'Angel Power' and 'Swiss Connection', originally released
(only on vinyl) in 1980 and 1982 respectively, have both been re-mastered,
enriched with bonus tracks, liner notes, plus rare photos, and will
be issued in CD digipak versions on April 12th, the first releases under
the new banner "SPV 'Rare Classics'".
Mass, from Regensburg, not only built a sizeable following in Germany,
but also in Spain, France, Switzerland, Austria, Benelux, Greece, and
the UK, where they were championed by Tommy Vance on the Radio One Rock
Show and Tony Jasper on BFBS (who played 'Time Runs Out' numerous times)
in the early 80's. During their heyday Mass played up to 180 concerts
a year, and toured with the likes of Rose Tattoo, Thin Lizzy, UFO, Pretty
Things, Golden Earing, Krokus, Loudness, Wild Turkey, Spencer Davis
Group and The Edgar Broughton Band.
Mass sold over 200,000 albums before imploding in 1986,
but could have achieved much, much more; "We were too young and took
too many noxious substances" reflects bassist Gunter V Radny, founder
member, and the only musician still fully fit today. He regrets that
"A reunion of the classic line-up would not be possible anymore, not
even for a million Euros", noting the high price his former band members
paid for ten years of plentiful alcohol and drug consumption; "Johannes
Eder has been half paralysed by a stroke, Jack Burnside also lives in
a care home, while Dave Schreiber has psychologically spaced out and
lives on another planet."
At the time 'Angel Power' was recorded in the Union
Studio in Munich in 1980, Mass were playing at a lot of biker gigs,
inspiring the title track and album name but "No small number of people
believed that 'Angel Power' was an indication of drugs, however this
was not the case" states Radny.
Particular highlights on 'Swiss Connection', recorded
in 1982 in New Sound Studio in Pfeaffikon, Switzerland, with producer
Martin Pearson, are 'Red Lights And Whiskey' ("which describes our former
lives") as well as 'Fade Out', dedicated to Bon Scott of AC/DC. "I have
chosen 'Firebird' which is almost ten minutes long, as bonus track.
This was the highlight of our concerts in the starting days and we recorded
it together with Josef (Beppo) Hartl as a singer (deceased in 1998)
and our former English guitarist Mick Thackeray in the Studio 70 in
Munich in 1975. Unfortunately, the original tapes are missing, and this
track has been restored best possible from an old music cassette. In
my view the zeitgeist is exactly reflected by this song." (Radny). |