Going to see a band is as much about the show and theatrics as it is about the music. Otherwise why not just save the money and stay at home listening to the studio recording?
There are some bands that rely on light shows to create a visual enchantment with colours to match the music. You don't need to be on LSD to see colour in music, and the song Reptile by Nine Inch Nails couldn't be played to anything but a green hue.
There are other's though, that affect themselves to provide an element of theatre to proceedings, but donning masks and other ways of adorning themselves. Perhaps it was intended to let the music they create be the celebrity, rather than themselves, or perhaps it was when starting out, just in case the music didn't take off, they could pivot careers without anyone even knowing. Either way, here are the best masked bands blending music and stagecraft.
Slipknot
One of the biggest heavy metal bands in terms of commercial mainstream success, Slipknot has been beating people's eardrums since 1995 with their self titled debut album.
Slipknot wear masks that apparently correspond to the personality of each member, although it stemmed from their percussionist deciding to wear a clown mask on stage at one of their first gigs at halloween. They update but mostly keep to the underlying theme of the individual masks with each new album. In 2002, vocalist Corey Taylor said of their masks, “it's our way of becoming more intimate with the music. It's a way for us to become unconscious of who we are and what we do outside of music. It's a way for us to kind of crawl inside it and be able to use it.”
Get your Funko Pop Mick here to scare the hell out of you this Halloween! 👇
Mushroomhead
Avantgarde art rock was the impetus for the masks of Cleveland based Mushroomhead, a band with clean and harsh vocals and percussionists that complement the drummer. Wait, are we talking about Slipknot still? The 'who came first' animosity of Mushroomhead vs. Slipknot is one of the more ridiculous art battles, given it's driven by fans, who probably like the music of both bands regardless. For what it's worth - Mushroomhead came first in 1993.
Utilising a piano in much of their music to add some glamour, Mushroomhead also tilt less toward the abrasiveness of Slipknot but use more melody, funk and hip hop elements. You could be forgiven for mistaking some of their songs as a 'turned up to eleven' offering from Faith No More.
Kiss
Yeah these guys. Yeah technically not the same kind of mask as the other two in the list, but what is a mask really? It's a disguise covering ones face, and Kiss' face paint does just that, and since they went first, or at least popularised it in a big way back in the 1970s, they deserve a mention.
Influenced by the glam and glitter of 70s New York, including the theatrics of Alice Cooper and the post punk aesthetic of the New York Dolls, Kiss themselves have become of the most influential rock bands of all time, as well as one of the best-selling with more than 100 million records worldwide.
Their face paint choice is also meant to match the personality of each member.