{"id":21756,"date":"2020-07-02T09:51:36","date_gmt":"2020-07-02T13:51:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/?p=21756"},"modified":"2020-07-02T09:51:45","modified_gmt":"2020-07-02T13:51:45","slug":"music-spotlight-chescos-mascherino-keeps-busy-despite-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/?p=21756","title":{"rendered":"Music Spotlight: Chesco’s Mascherino keeps busy, despite pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff<\/strong>, Entertainment Editor, The Times<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Fred\u00a0Mascherino<\/p><\/div>\n

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and forced virtually everything to come to a halt, it was a shock \u2013 and it was something that took a lot of effort to get accustomed to.<\/p>\n

It was similar to a blizzard that was unexpected, came on quickly and dropped six feet of snow on the area. Virtually everyone was forced to remain at home \u2013 to stay inside and wait until it passed. And, even if you were able to get outside your house and attempt to go somewhere, you quickly found out that there was nowhere to go \u2013 that nothing was open.<\/p>\n

But a blizzard that incapacitates everyone for a week or more is no match for COVID-19. This deadly virus has forced people to stay at home. And, if you\u2019re staying at home 24\/7, you need to either find something creative to do or else resign yourself to binge-watching entire runs of television series such as \u201cGame of Thrones,\u201d \u201cBuffy the Vampire Slayer\u201d and \u201cWalking Dead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite the doom-and-gloom state of the music industry right now, Chester County\u2019s guitar stalwart\u00a0Fred\u00a0Mascherino\u00a0has found things to do at home \u2013 things that have kept his music career going and his creative juices flowing.<\/p>\n

Mascherino has been performing online, generating interactive projects with his fans and teaching classes virtually.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the things I\u2019ve been doing during the quarantine has been teaching lessons via Skype,\u201d said Mascherino, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon from his home in West Goshen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been teaching guitar lessons. I\u2019ve also been teaching lessons on other music topics such as songwriting, recording techniques and music theory.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had been talking to fans online and they\u2019d wind up asking me a lot of questions. I told them that I\u2019m teaching lessons. They were all sitting around bored too. So, they said \u2013 we\u2019ll take classes too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mascherino has written a lot of songs, produced a lot of records and played in quite a few bands. His musical CV is impressive.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

The Color Fred<\/p><\/div>\n

Just over a year ago, Mascherino reignited his solo project The Color Fred with a revamped lineup.\u00a0Mascherino\u00a0has also resurfaced with a brand-new song titled \u201cDon\u2019t Give Up on Me,\u201d which was released as a single and a lyric video as well.<\/p>\n

To celebrate its first new material in over a decade, The Color Fred played shows in Philadelphia at King Fu Necktie and Brooklyn at the\u00a0Knitting Factory.<\/p>\n

The Color Fred\u00a0is an indie-rock band headed by\u00a0Mascherino, a former guitarist\/vocalist for\u00a0Taking Back Sunday.<\/p>\n

The Color Fred\u2019s debut full-length album, \u201cBend to Break,\u201d was released in October 2007 via Equal Vision Records. The album peaked at #8 on the\u00a0Billboard\u00a0Heatseekers Chart. TCF toured the U.S., Canada and the U.K. several times.<\/p>\n

The Color Fred released \u201cThe Intervention EP\u201d in April 2009. The EP featured new and old songs performed acoustic, plus two home demos.<\/p>\n

When\u00a0Mascherino\u00a0entered the studio to record the second TCF album, he began collaborating with his friends\u00a0Josh Eppard\u00a0(Coheed and Cambria)\u00a0and\u00a0Andy Jackson\u00a0(Hot Rod Circuit)\u00a0in what eventually became\u00a0Terrible Things. That band released its self-titled debut album on Universal Motown.\u00a0Mascherino\u00a0then went on tour playing bass for\u00a0The Lemonheads\u00a0and guitar for\u00a0Say Anything.<\/p>\n

During that time,\u00a0Mascherino\u00a0was producing and writing for bands, eventually building his own studio —\u00a0Diver Down. In late 2018, he decided to close the studio to the public and start recording his own music again.<\/p>\n

Mascherino\u00a0had been living at a house located between Coatesville and West Chester for a while but now is a resident of West Goshen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI moved here two years ago,\u201d said\u00a0Mascherino, during a previous interview. \u201cI downsized a bit and turned the garage into a soundproof studio. I finished it about a year ago and then started working on new music. I had been producing and writing for other bands for about the past 10 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

One band that reaped benefits from Mascherino\u2019s studio acumen was June Divided — a Philadelphia-based quartet featuring Melissa Menago, Chris Kissel, Keith Gill and Lenny Sasso.<\/p>\n

August 24, 2018 was the official release date for the band\u2019s EP \u201cBody Wars\u201d on Revival Recordings.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe new EP was recorded a while ago in our producer\u2019s basement,\u201d said Menago, during a phone interview from her home in northern Delaware.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe recorded five tracks there with Fred\u00a0Mascherino\u00a0and the other two were self-produced. Fred is a really good producer who understood what we wanted and how to achieve it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mascherino is credited as a producer and engineer on the 2014 EP\u00a0\u201cLight Years and Heavy Lifting\u201d\u00a0by Only on Weekends. He also produced the 2014 EP \u201cEvery Light\u201d by Modern Suits.<\/p>\n

In 2015, Mascherino performed a guitar solo on the\u00a0Double Experience\u00a0track \u201cGoddamn Mimetic Business.\u201d\u00a0The veteran musician also performed a guitar solo on\u00a0Joe Matera\u2019s \u201cEndless Summer\u201d from his 2012 debut album\u00a0\u201cCreature of Habit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mascherino seems to always have several irons in the fire.<\/p>\n

\u201cI played bass in the Lemonheads,\u201d said Mascherino. \u201cI played guitar with Say Anything. And, I had a band called Terrible Things. This is The Color Fred, which is my solo project. The new single \u2013 \u2018Don\u2019t Give Up on Me\u2019 \u2013 is the first thing under that name in 10 years.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did all the music on the record. I put out that first song on May 1 (2019) and I\u2019m happy with the response it\u2019s been getting. I have four more songs for this summer. In addition to the music, there will be YouTube videos and podcast.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe podcast is called \u2018In the Shed with Fred.\u2019 It\u2019s a bit of a variety show. I\u2019ll be playing pieces of new songs and talking about how I wrote them and recorded them. I\u2019ll also play older The Color Fred songs and some covers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Link for \u201cDon\u2019t Give Up on Me\u201d — https:\/\/eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fnightowlpr.us10.list-manage.com%2Ftrack%2Fclick%3Fu%3Dbd593d37ba925b45afb0d93bf%26id%3Dda920cd780%26e%3Df8c9bf4bd2&data=02%7C01%7C%7C7e26857968c942926bd908d6d24aa40d%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C636927615351387823&sdata=pRe2wqvzB6PXmjhtOcX%2BlLokMzD%2FszgTZPPf1ifVVus%3D&reserved=0<\/a><\/p>\n

Doing \u201cIn The Shed with Fred\u201d broadcasts from his home studio is one of those things that COVID-19 hasn\u2019t been able to mess with.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a YouTube show,\u201d said Mascherino. \u201cThere are no set schedules. I post when I have something that I want to put out there. I sing songs and tell the stories behind the songs. I also tell tour stories.<\/p>\n

\u201cLately, I\u2019ve been putting more time into my YouTube videos. I\u2019m upping my game and doing a few videos a week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Link for The Color Fred Facebook — https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/thecolorfred\/events\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI asked my fans to collaborate with me on one song,\u201d said Mascherino. \u201cThey would send me stems and WAV files \u2013 lead guitar, drums, bass, keyboards. There were some from electronic artists, but most were vocals and lead guitar.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey all contributed to the song. There was so much response, I needed to do multiple versions. I managed to get them all in by doing four versions.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe name of the song is \u2018Future Past.\u2019 I wrote it before the quarantine. It was all about sitting around doing nothing with someone you love. I wrote it at the end of January this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for \u201cFuture Past\u201d project — https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/thecolorfred\/videos\/681044465961666\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There are a number of Coatesville natives who have achieved international stardom and repeatedly expressed pride in their hometown. One of the first was Calvin \u201cSilky Smooth\u201d Grove, who was a world champion boxer. Then, there was basketball star Rip Hamilton, who was one of the premier players in the NBA.\u00a0Mascherino\u2019s name also belongs on that list.<\/p>\n

Mascherino, who lived in Coatesville when he was young,\u00a0has always had respect for his roots and pride in his hometown and it showed up in two tracks by Terrible Things.<\/p>\n

\u201cSteel Town\u201d was inspired by the series of fires in Coatesville a few years ago. Another TT song \u2013 \u201cUp at Night\u201d \u2013 dealt with that period when they told residents to keep lights on at night. The lyrics talk about being able to see Coatesville from space that night.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up in Coatesville,\u201d said\u00a0Mascherino, who has a degree from Temple University in jazz performance\/guitar.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a history of referring to Coatesville in my songs. I\u2019m proud of being from there. Some people don\u2019t have a good impression of Coatesville, but I think it was a good place to grow up and is still a good place to live.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now,\u00a0Mascherino\u00a0has been developing an attachment to West Chester.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u201cMy wife Elena opened up a vegan restaurant in West Chester,\u201d said\u00a0Mascherino, who was top-flight swimmer at Bishop Shanahan in the 1990s.<\/p>\n

His wife\u2019s restaurant is called Love Again Local (18 South Church Street, West Chester,\u00a0www.loveagainlocal.com<\/a>). It features a wide variety of vegan sandwiches, salads, daily specials and desserts.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been vegans for 20 years,\u201d said\u00a0Mascherino. \u201cElena\u2019s restaurant has been open for two years. It started when she had success making vegan cookies and evolved into a restaurant in downtown West Chester. We make a lot of the meats and cheeses ourselves.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe closed down when the pandemic first hit. Eventually, we re-opened for take-out. It\u2019s been a challenge but we\u2019re hanging in there. I\u2019m in the restaurant helping at times but my wife wants me to stay home and focus on my music.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for The Color Fred —\u00a0https:\/\/youtu.be\/WcT-4wd-hVE<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mascherino has been staying busy with several online projects.<\/p>\n

There is a series of streamed performances that smartpunkrecords has been presenting called \u201cSmartpunk & Friends \u2013 Live on Instragram.\u201d<\/p>\n

On April 9, the final act on the four-act bill was Mascherino\u00a0and The Color Fred. The podcast also featured Mover Shaker, Absinthe the Father and Taking Meds.<\/p>\n

While that podcast was a limited event, another event featuring Mascherino is a weekly happening.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery Sunday morning, I have a Livestream session called \u2018Coffee with Fred,\u2019\u201d said Mascherino. \u201cIt is an acoustic session and it begins at 10 a.m.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy music career has definitely been affected by the quarantine. When it happened, I had just left my day job of six years \u2013 leaving that to go back to music full-time. It looked like my studio was picking up.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a lot of session work. Bands came in and I\u2019d produce them. I\u2019d also help with the songwriting. As a producer, I was always a song guy more than a tech guy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI also had live dates scheduled for The Color Fred. I had to cancel shows that were supposed to happen in May.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mascherino is also a family guy. In addition to assisting his wife in her restaurant venture, he his helping his daughter with her music career.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u201cThis Friday night, I\u2019m planning to play a show at Fenn\u2019s in West Chester with my daughter Lily,\u201d said Mascherino. \u201cThe plan now is to play live and stream it from the venue. It\u2019s an acoustic set that will start at 7:30 p.m.<\/p>\n

\u201cLily, who just graduated from CPFA (Center for Performing and Fine Arts: PA Leadership Charter School) in West Chester, has her own band called Lilito. My son Scout, who is a student at West Chester East, is also in the band.<\/p>\n

\u201cLily, who is going to Berklee School of Music in Boston in the fall, just released Lilito\u2019s first single which is called \u2018Ding Dong Ditch.\u2019 Lily and I will be playing the song live Friday night \u2013 a live acoustic version.\u201d<\/p>\n

The show at Fenn\u2019s Upstairs initially was planned with a live audience in mind.<\/p>\n

The following message was posted on the venue\u2019s Facebook page on June 25 \u2013<\/p>\n

\u201cHELLO WEST CHESTER! We are so happy to announce that in the green phase we are reopening our live music venue with reduced capacity and safe measures in place! And what better way to open up our venue than with solo sets from our friends and talented musicians @thecolorfred and @iamlilito ? This is an incredibly exciting show! We will require masks and have a max of 25 people in the venue, but we will definitely get this filmed and work to livestream it if possible! See you Friday, July 3rd!\u201d<\/p>\n

It was replaced by this message which was posted Wednesday afternoon \u2013<\/p>\n

\u201cOur exciting Friday show with The Color Fred and Lilito is now a live stream only event! We will film and record it in high quality from Fenn’s Coffee in West Chester, PA. We are happy to be changing the format and making this show more accessible and safer for everyone. Thank you to the people who reached out and expressed concern given the recent uptick in cases.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mascherino said, \u201cWith the spike in COVID-19 cases over the last few days, I decided that a show with a live audience wasn\u2019t what I wanted to do. I was about to call the club to inform them of my decision when they called me to talk about changing the format. I was glad they did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for show with Lilito — https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FennsUpstairs\/?__tn__=%2Cd%2CP-R&eid=ARARf0Da9IZaHOGEAkm0_3nTQ7yp6jloyH5y_qYKndlqrmwO1-Ij00A9WXbZKH2KIiOOrhiyU9SYzZBe<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Video link for Fred Mascherino in the studio — https:\/\/youtu.be\/11C0QSaADdM<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and forced virtually everything to come to a halt, it was a shock \u2013 and it was something that took a lot of effort to get accustomed to. It was similar to a blizzard that was unexpected, came on quickly and dropped six […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21758,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4357],"tags":[112,3162,8055,9017,8054,400],"class_list":["post-21756","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-d-arts-entertainment","tag-coatesville","tag-featured","tag-fred-mascherino","tag-love-again-local","tag-the-color-fred","tag-west-goshen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21756","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=21756"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21756\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21757,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21756\/revisions\/21757"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/21758"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=21756"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=21756"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=21756"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}