Artist: Mass  
   Title: Crack Of Dawn
   Label: Escape Music

It's been a long time coming but it's finally here, the new Mass album ‘Crack of Dawn’.  The Boston hard rockers have followed up their 2000 best of album 'Mass Best Ones' with a new opus and what a corker it is!  Driving guitars, a thumping back beat, all capped by Lous D’Augusta’s towering vocals.

Things get off to a superb start with ‘It’s You’, a track that was originally recorded back in 2002, but this is 2007 and the track sounds more today than it ever would have in 2002.

The title track ‘Crack of Dawn’ is next this is a real cracker with D’Augusta’s vocals reigning supreme.  Things do slow down just a touch on the next track ‘Someday’ before picking up once more with one of my favourite tracks off the album ‘Empty Soul’.  A real top notch rocker with some streaming guitar work by Gene D’Itria, all embraced by the thunderous back beat provided by Lou Spagnola on bass and Joey Vadala on drums.

It's time to bring things down a touch once more with ‘Hello’, a semi acoustic mid tempo rocker where D’Augusta once again shines.  But it’s the rockier tracks on the album that really do for me as the things really get going with the superb ‘Magic Train’ and the equally majestic ‘Monkey Brain’, these two alone make the album for me.

But this isn’t the end of the great stuff as they just keep on coming with the likes of the riff filled ‘Sweet Lady Jane’ and the bitter sweet tones of the bonus track ‘Seven Days’ are just excellent.  Things do slow down eventually but the quality never ceases as the album continues to impress with ‘Castle’ and ‘Leaving You’, before rounding off with ‘Who Am I’.  Another great up tempo rocker that rounds off a great return by the band and one that will get repeated plays on my CD player.

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