Exposé print issues (1993-2011)
The Red Masque — All the Wolves Are Fed...
(Bandcamp no#, 2026, DL)
by Jon Davis, Published 2026-03-14
Yes, it’s true: The Red Masque is back with a new album, their first since Fathomless (2019). For the tl;dr crowd, I’ll just say it’s really good, right up there with Fathomless as their best work. All the Wolves Are Fed… kicks off with “Tear the Sky Down,” a great track that exemplifies their style, dark, moody, and full of edgy playing. Bass and drums (Brandon Lord Ross and Severyn Clarke, respectively) lay down a busy bed of rhythm, with guitar (Scott Weingarten) subtly present at first, then splitting out for some distorted chords. Vocalist Lynnette Shelley brings a Gothic gravitas to the song which is further emphasized by a pipe-organ-like keyboard that enters near halfway through. “Howl” is surely one of the album’s highlights, starting with an outstanding solo spot for a clean-toned guitar with a slight Spanish flavor, then diving into King Crimson territory with a riff in seven. While the guitar is leaning on that riff, the bass is all over the place, never locking in to the kind of repeating phrase you usually hear in this context. The drums are also refreshingly free of simple patterns, instead taking a jazzy attitude with accents and fills. Weingarten’s wah-wah solo later in the track is an unexpected twist, as is the sudden entrance of piano nearly six minutes in. The Red Masque has a really distinctive approach to their material — while many of the elements, such as odd meters, dissonance, and chaotic improvisation, are used by other bands, you don’t generally hear them all put together. All this is to say that this band occupies their own stylistic space, with references to Van der Graaf Generator and King Crimson, but also touches of Siouxsie and the Banshees, Killing Joke, and Bauhaus. This is not the easily digestible prog of symphonic bands, but for lovers of the more dark and aggressive side of progressive rock should love this album.
Filed under: New releases, 2026 releases
Related artist(s): The Red Masque
More info
http://theredmasque.bandcamp.com/album/all-the-wolves-are-fed
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