The Man In The Ironic Mask

Back with what’s being heralded as their best album for two decades, THE WATERBOYS have a busy year ahead. MIKE SCOTT cracks a smile for Terry Staunton

The music world is full of artists who hide behind masks, and Mike Scott is no exception. But the leader of The Waterboys and his ever-changing lineup of fellow troubadours take their masks very seriously – and very literally.

On a recent holiday in Italy, prior to gearing himself up for the release of Book Of Lightning, his 12th album in just under quarter of a century, Scott hit the motherlode and stocked up for the months ahead.

“There’s a carnival in Venice every February, where they have this old tradition of improvisational comedy all done with masks,” he says. “Everywhere you go there are these mask shops. I ended up buying about two dozen altogether, mainly because we’ve got a tour coming up, so we’ll be using them on stage. I’ve got a wonderful Pan mask, that’s a beauty, and then there’s a Bacchus mask, the god of wine. I’ve got five Pierrot masks, so the whole band can wear one if it suits the song.

“I must confess I do like a good mask, and I constantly find myself coming across a real gem and thinking about how Steve Wickham (long-time Waterboys fiddle player) would look in it. We haven’t gone as far as wearing masks in the studio yet, although I’m not against it if it helps us locate the vibe of a particular song, but at the …

by Terry Staunton
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