By September of last year, Fred Mascherino had achieved the adolescent dream of wannabe rockers everywhere. His band Taking ack Sunday had a gold record under its belt. He had played alongside bands like My Chemical Romance and Linkin Park. He had rocked out to a screaming mob at Live Earth. By November, he was back to square one: trying to gain recognition as an indie band, trying to get in the door of the scene. Mascherino had taken that step that so many deem suicidal to a music career: going solo.
Certainly, he was aware of what he was doing. One assumes he knew the risks he was taking, and what it could mean for his audience. But still, one wants to know: What possesses a true rock star to step away from it all?
The News-Letter had the opportunity to get all of this and more right from the man himself.
Right now, Mascherino is on tour with his new band, The Color Fred. They support Angels and Airwaves, another gone-solo project. But what of his previous band, Taking Back Sunday?
"In Taking Back Sunday, we all did the writing. Any time you have that, you're going to have some arguing," Mascherino said. He takes the time to think first, and you can tell that he really wants to get his feelings across.
"There were some people who wanted the music to progress, maybe change a little bit. And there were some others who wanted it to follow the tradition of the band. I was just trying to escape the whole debate. I just wanted to just play music that flowed naturally."
And flow naturally it does. The Color Fred's album Bend to Break has plenty of these "honest" tracks where Mascherino reveals his feelings with little room for misinterpretation.
"The last song, 'Don't Pretend,' is a very clear message to whoever it was about," he said cryptically.
"It also paints a story for the listener that's not really that vague. When you're writing lyrics for a band, what you write in your bedroom and what you bring to the band changes ... because you're trying to please the other people in the band."
The track "Complaintor," as another example, begins with the words, "These four years were a suicide," an obvious reference to his time with Taking Back Sunday.
"I was killing myself [with Taking Back Sunday]," he said. "I was busy for years, with no rest, and I wasn't getting the enjoyment out of it artistically that I really wanted, and it was killing me. I really felt like it was changing who I was."
He said there was no big fight, no diva stormout; it was just a move that he had to make.
He said that he doesn't feel any regrets about leaving a band that could fill a stadium.
"I was proud of the music that we made, but I just didn't feel like we were going to keep doing it again and again ... I wasn't going to do it just so I could continue to be considered successful."
Also of note is the actual, physical album that The Color Fred released. The case and liner notes are made from 95 percent recycled cardboard, the CD tray is cornstarch (which dissolves in water), and the entire package is 100 percent biodegradeable.
"I felt like I wanted to have what I do in my personal life ... to carry over into this as well. My hope was that it would inspire other artists, especially ones that sell lots of records. ... I played Live Earth last July, and there were a lot of artists there saying a lot of things. I want to see them doing more to do their own part [to help]."
A strict vegan, he drives a vegetable-oil powered car, and there is an (unconfirmed) rumor that he plans to buy carbon credits to offset the impact of his current tour. Surely he is a shining example of the environmentally minded musician movement.
Mascherino's obvious focus on integrity will surely lead him to produce more quality music. We can only hope he gets the recognition he deserves.
The Color Fred is performing at Sonar this Saturday. Call (410) 783-7888 for more information.
