Filipino indie band Masha got their name from top ranked tennis player Maria Sharapova.
Russian-born Sharapova has an arsenal of moves to conquer Grand Slam
tournaments around the world while the six-man Masha displays an
eclectic range in music that can reach a wide audience beyond the
margins of the indie domain.
Masha are vocalist Alvin Aleria,
guitarist Paulo Rodriguez, second guitarist Weak Domines, bassist Chris
Mercado, drummer Tobs Tobio and Howie Manalaysay on synths and
programming.
The debut albumInfluences Vocalist Alvin Aleria counts among his influences such powerful rock frontmen as Queen’s Freddie Mercury, Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell and Brandon Boyd of Incubus.
The other band members have their own individual favorites that range from new-fangled genres like post-rock and post-hardcore to classic rock and glam poster boys Bon Jovi and Guns & Roses.
The band came together in May 2013 from the remnants of an earlier outfit called Finishing Move.
The full package
Bassist Chris says, “When we started playing together as Masha, medyo gigil kami. We wanted to do a lot of things. We were heavy on electronic effects but when we began recording our first album, we worked to refine our sound.”
Tobs adds, “In the end, we came out with an album that can be pegged as alternative rock. Yung nga lang, iba-ibang genre ng alt rock. Since this album will be the first time most people will get to hear us, we decided to release a full package of where we’re really coming from.”
Masha’s debut recording entitled "Stalemate Guards for Defiant Hearts" flirts with as many genres as any music fan can handle. There’s reggae (“Your Shame”), 70s hard rock (“Satellites”), an acoustic elegy (“Ang Naghihintay sa Akin”), ballad with a Duane Eddy twang (the title track) and a wah wah pedal scraped punky lament (Hello Cyanide”) that bewails “Fuck*ng give it to me/all the things you took from me.”
By Tony Maghirang | Yahoo Southeast Asia Newsroom
