Vie Jester’s new EP, ‘Masquerade’, presents itself like a costume box found in an attic that smells faintly of ozone and old, ambitious blueprints. This Los Angeles trio, typically weavers of their own heavy, harmonious rock tapestries laced with esoteric concerns, have opted for a different kind of unveiling: they’re trying on other people’s clothes.
A covers EP can be a curious beast. Here, Vie Jester offers their hard rock refractions of songs from Godsmack, A Perfect Circle, Incubus, and, quite the intriguing detour, Hans Zimmer. The title, ‘Masquerade,’ is apt. But what kind of masquerade is it? A playful romp, or something that allows deeper, usually guarded, aspects of their musical psyche to step into the light, disguised as another? Given the EP’s described lyrical undercurrents – a wrestling match with self-destruction, inner chaos, and the primal scream for transformation – one suspects the latter.
Their translation of these diverse pieces through their established three-piece arsenal of progressive grooves and melodic vocals is where the real alchemy happens. That Zimmer interpretation, for instance; it doesn’t just become ‘rockified’. It feels like they’ve cracked open a geode to find, not crystals, but the furious, beating heart of a small dragon. Unexpected, and strangely compelling.
These aren’t their original narratives of social angst or spiritual seeking, yet the selection and re-forging feel purposeful. The inherent turmoil described – the frustration, the urge to combust and reform – seems to find a comfortable, if volatile, home in Vie Jester’s chosen skins. It’s less about imitation and more about inhabiting; a method actor’s approach to tribute.
The effect is a little unsettling, like seeing a familiar face in a dream wearing an unfamiliar, yet perfectly fitting, expression. It leaves you pondering not just the skill of the adaptation, but the shadows and desires these borrowed melodies allow Vie Jester to explore. What do these reinterpretations ultimately unmask about the band itself?
