 MARIAN MASTRORILLI:
Vocals & Guitar
Marian's
musical life began in 6th grade with a "cool"
flower-covered electric guitar and amp (with
tremolo!). As a "child of the 70's," she blissfully
sang along with Queen, Elton John and Led Zeppelin,
that is, until anyone walked into the room.
In the late
80's, voice & guitar classes at the New School
in Manhattan helped move Marian out of her room and
into NYC's CBGB's Record Lounge, The Back Fence
& Trocadero. In '95 Marian formed the duo
Mercury Rising, playing a mix of originals and
creative cover tunes at NYC's Downtime, CB's
Gallery, Orange Bear, Baggott Inn, etc.
The duo grew
into the band Project Mercury in winter '98, and
appeared at showcase venues Nightingale Bar, Elbow
Room and the Lion's Den. In October '98, Charlene
Donohue and her violin came on board, and the band
edited down to take on the coffeehouse crowds at
Eureka Joe's, the Gaslight, Hillside Cafe, and Sun
Music Company.
Life and love have fueled some interesting lyrics.
At
Palisades is a love song to the legendary
amusement park. Love.com speaks of the
misadventures of online dating; Beach
Musings sings the praises of the Jersey
shore. Marian's influences include said 70's rock
gods; quirky goddesses Kate Bush, Aimee Mann,
Vienna Teng and Tori Amos; and a mix o'men like
Damien Rice, Tom Petty, R.E.M., Ben Folds Five and
Joe Jackson. Click over to the MUSIC page to see what this
mix adds up to!
Awards are a happy part of the story.
Faded
Leather received Honorary Mention in
Billboard's International Song Contest. In 2002,
Marian was a winner of the New Jersey Folk
Festival new songwriter showcase award.
How
Did You Get Like That? won a Billboard Certificate of
Achievement in 1998.
Marian is a
member of Indiegrrl, BMI and former VP of Tribes Hill. Among her recording
credits: NJ band PH101, Ohio artist Mare Adams, and
several independent recordings in Nashville,
Portland, Philadelphia, Chicago and western
Mass.
Click here to see more
photos.
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