"The Rooks are a New York based quartet centered around the vocal and compositional skills of one Michael Mazzarella. If you like a tune and lyrical twist, you owe it to yourself to take a look at The Rooks" - Mojo
Who are these Rooks? Do they sing? Have they ever written a classic? Do they paint with sound? Do they believe that music is the universal bond? Do they drink beer? Are they happy in this ever-changing world? Do they dig Miles Davis, Led Zeppelin, baseball and Nick Drake? Do they hate the straight-jacketed, close-mindedly thinking, cookie-cutter, creative stomping, shoot-themselves-in-the-foot, waiting for the other shoe to drop, take what you can and dash policies of the music industry? Do they love their fans? Are they from New York City? Should you check them out? The answers are yes, yes, and a shout from the rooftops yes!!! Now how much more positive can you get than that?
"As close to perfection as you're likely to get, the veteran Rooks seamlessly blend their pop with folk psychedelia, straight up rock and anything else that might be floating around in Michael Mazzarella's beautiful brain!"
-San Francisco Bay Guardian
"A small but growing number of rock critics are claiming that Rooks singer/songwriter Michael Mazzarella is God. Personally, I wouldn't even claim he's Rod. It might go to his head and he'd stop making such revelatory rock 'n roll." -New York Press
"It really is a delight to hear your PERFORMANCE! I love your songs very much!" - Daniel Johnston
CLICK ON BELOW TO VIEW "NIGHTFALL" FROM THE CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED DVD "ONLY HOPE FOR WINTER" FEATURING MICHAEL MAZZARELLA WITH THE FELLOWS OF MORTIMER."
The Rooks founder, lead singer and songwriter Michael Mazzarella, will be the first to tell you he lives an unconventional life. It's the price he pays to be able to pen songs for a living. In the same breath, he will also admit that he’s extremely blessed and respectfully creates his art when the muse strikes. Living in the heart of New York City just a stone throw away from Central Park, he finds infinite inspiration in the town he loves and calls home. Mazzarella’s work has been lauded by fans and critics alike as some of the best songs to be written over the last decade. He's a songwriter's songwriter and is as prolific as the day is long. "Often, many songs are written around riffs, samples and patterns and that is where the classic song structure may suffer," he says. "If I can't perform a song on an acoustic guitar or piano and make it work, then it's not worth my time."
A native of Hartford, CT., Mazzarella's passion for music was bred on his teenage aunt's record collection while he was still a toddler. He heard music by the Del Vikings, Jackie Wilson and other R&B pioneers. When he discovered Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel and Harry Nilsson, he quickly threw all of those influences into the mix. By the time he picked up a guitar his intentions were set. After stints with various local bands and a year-long exodus living in London, Mazzarella returned to New York City to organize a band that could give his songs and harmonies the live, biting edge they required. There The Rooks were born. The sound was raw but melodic.
Throughout the 90s and into the new millennium, The Rooks continued to record and perform on stage as they mastered their craft. Known for their blistering live shows, the band embarked on a tour of Eastern Europe in 1994 and found themselves playing in front of rock 'n roll starved kids who saw The Rooks as the second coming of…The Beatles. They would also go on to play the U.S. on various tours throughout the decade as well as find themselves on Rhino Records' definitive power pop compilation Poptopia! Power Pop Classics of the 90s. Their signature song Reasons would stand side-by-side with some of the genre's best loved artists including Matthew Sweet, The Posies, Redd Kross and Jellyfish.
The Rooks would continue to collect accolade after accolade from some of the music industry's most jaded rock critics including writer's from Billboard and New York City’s weekly The New York Press. 1999 would see the release of their achingly beautiful masterpiece, A Wishing Well (Not Lame Records). This critical favorite of many is a swirling musical kaleidoscope of sound and color and is a shining example of why Mazzarella has been compared, and rightly so, to John Lennon. The following year would bring Encore Echoes, their fourth release on Not Lame. This disc is a compilation of everything they had released starting with their 1994 self-titled Guardian Records album and music from their two outstanding CDs A Double Dose of Pop and the ethereal EP Chimes.
Another release is a rarities CD entitled From The Shelves Of Soundscape Studio, referring to the mid-town Manhattan studio where the wealth of their material was recorded in the early to mid-90s. The Soundscape recordings allow the listener to be the proverbial fly-on- the-wall if you will, as note after note reveals how these much-loved Rooks songs came to life. In May 2000, Michael was contracted to write the theme song for The Discovery Channel's "Heavy Metal Month" including contributing a lead vocal for that commercial which played in heavy rotation. In early 2007, The Rooks found their song “Love Said To Me” alongside Joan Jett & The Blackhearts in the soundtrack for the independent film “Searching For Bobby D.” featuring Sandra Bernhard, Carmen Electra and Jackie Martling.
With a body of work behind him that would make most songwriters ache, Mazzarella looks forward to getting back into the studio to bring to life the compositions that flow so freely from his creative imagination. With production started on Something Blue, the band’s next full studio release, Mazzarella is working to craft a beautifully lush and deeply intimate album. With heartfelt lyrics, haunting melodies, breathy vocals and dreamlike instrumentation, Something Blue promises to be yet another inspired thread in The Rooks’already rich musical tapestry.
In the meantime, Mazzarella has just released his first solo effort, Grey Over An Autumn Winter which is neither a departure from, nor a recreation of his old Rooks catalog. His new songs retain the melodious characteristics he's become known for, while reflecting the work of a writer whom continues to grow and expand his craft without sacrificing quality in his compositions. From the lovely opening track "Fairground Is Gone," to the album's chilling ode to his mother finale "Dear Mariann," we anticipate that you will find beauty in Mazzarella's recent efforts.
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