Mas Rapido! Discography of CDs

Mas Rapido! songs For a duo with such a knack for clever pop tunes, naming an album Dumb Is King! might seem like an act of anger or frustration, and that seemingly bears itself out at least a little bit on Mas Rapido!'s third album. Donna Esposito and Frank Bednash haven't lost their touch for pop songcraft on their third album under the Mas Rapido! moniker (they previously worked together in Cowboy & Spingirl and Toothpaste 2000), and their latest drummer, Eric Micali, fits just fine between Esposito's efficient and full-bodied guitar figures and Bednash's buoyant basslines. Esposito and Bednash's harmonies are real and satisfying and the tunes split the difference between '60s-style melodies and punky enthusiasm while making the most of both influences. But though it's hard to point out a bad tune on Dumb Is King!, some feel a lot more like padding than load-bearing parts of the album's framework ("Feelings" is better than its better-known namesake, but it's still below Mas Rapido!'s usual standards, and "Monster Magnet" ...

Mas Rapido! CD discography Mas Rapido! is the latest alias for Frank Bednash and Donna Esposito, who previously recorded together as Cowboy & Spingirl and Toothpaste 2000. This time around, Bednash and Esposito haven't let go of their obsessive love of classic pop riffs, but they have upped the guitar firepower factor a bit, with Esposito chopping out thick, chunky chords that still have a touch of jangle around the edges, splitting the sonic difference between punk sass and '60s pop sheen. Bednash holds up his side of the show with solid, supportive basslines that capably carry the hooks and the melodies (dig his savvy James Jamerson lift on "Those Shoes Look Good on You"), and both partners write great songs and sing 'em with commendable passion. Bednash's tracks are a bit harder edged, with shades of the early Who visible in "I Didn't Want to Hurt You" and "This and That" ...

Mas Rapido! albums Former Toothpaste 2000 nexus Donna Esposito and Frank Bednash still refer to themselves as power-pop, but the duo (joined by drummer Tom Costagliola) demonstrate in this incarnation a bit more fuzz and slam than sparkle and jangle. After moving from Seattle to New Jersey, it seems the band has toughened up their sound, paying homage to the punk and British Invasion bands that originally inspired them. The result is an album of burnished three-chord beauty ...