Well, i'm kiran - you may remember me as that nerdy 13-year-old who put his 100 favourite albums up on acclaimedmusic last august... and it had the residents in it 4 times.

Anyway, what are the best masks in music? One of the stylophonists/percussionists in our new band is wearing a Venetian mask, so it just gave me the idea.

I'd like to structure a kind of voting system rather than a list, as I can barely decide myself. there are links next to the nominees which lead to links baring pictures of the band in masks.

THE NOMINEES

SLIPKNOT Well, these guys are the obvious famous ones. The scary 9 men in masks who make nu-metal heavier than the average bill for one of their shows. they have the LONG NOSED DUDE. they have the FREAKY CLOWN. they have the JUMPSUITS (and remember, i'm talking early slipknot masks, not the new crappy ones).

http://musicmedia.ign.com/music/image/slipknotinstudio_082903.jpg (there's a link to a picture of slipknot, but to be honest, if you don't know what they look like, you've obviously been living on planet mars for the past 10 years)

KISS I just had to choose them - it was inevitable, was it not? While not neccessarily masks, Kiss certainly hid their identities under the thick black and white make up of the band, styles which have become iconic and renowned the world over. The music? Shit. The merchandise? No better. The look? Awesome.

http://www.wolf-howl.com/wp-content/uploads/kiss.jpg (note - picture may turn you homosexual)

MUSHROOMHEAD The argument is that Slipknot ripped off these guys. It's a shame Mushroomhead are about ten times worse than slipknot and then perhaps I'd give a shit... but no, that's not the case. Mushroomhead take metal to a level so degradably cliche, it makes never gonna give you up look like subterranean homesick blues. luckily enough, they have the awesome "X masks". And you thought Shawn Crahan looked creepy.

http://img376.imageshack.us/img376/3919/mushroomhead1qw.jpg

THE RESIDENTS - This is where it begins. The Residents have been around for 40 years and contained complete anonymity... and they've gone through some incredible masks over the years, but the set I've chosen is of course their legendary eyeball masks. They have an incredible stage presence with those masks.

http://assets.mog.com/pictures/wikipedia/30629/750px-The_Residents.jpg

GWAR I can't say i know very much about these guys, but a picture of them sends me into a hysterical fit of laughter. I mean, you wonder why Gwar haven't filed a lawsuit against Lordi or something - they've gone all out with the masks. There's also, like, fifteen of them, which is nice, I guess, but also a little crazy.
http://blog.synthesis.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/gwar1.jpg

BUCKETHEAD The venetian mask-and-KFC bucket combo is legendary. In fact, it makes the guitarist who he is today - a total fucking maniac. However, I've seen pictures of him unmasked, and to be honest, if I had a face like that, I'd wear a venetian mask-and-KFC bucket combo as well. Hey, what the hell, I'd wear it anyway!

http://www.premiumseatsusa.com/concert/Buckethead/images/buckethead_jk02.jpg

So there you have our 6 nominees. Sorry if you know any more bands with killer masks. And if anybody asks "where's mudvayne", i'll rip your head off, ok? GWAR are a gazillion times better than mudvayne in the masks department and you know it ( so what are you waiting for? vote! hell, i'll cast mine.


THE RESIDENTS

I'd vote for MF Doom.

Out of those 6, I'd definitely choose The Residents.

when i saw gary wilson a couple years ago he had a blow-up doll duct-taped to his face for most of the show.

does that count as a mask?

Not exactly the most highbrow idea for a thread, but I say GWAR. Hate their music, but I would probably love their shows.

Agree with MF Doom, and would add Sir Nose D'Voidoffunk to the list of nominees.

I like what The Knife did in the DVD that came with their deluxe edition Silent Shout.

lol. people seem to be complaining about this being a bit lowbrow and tacky

Cher was the best musician in Mask (obviously only by default).

Years ago I saw Faith No More and Billy Idol on Halloween. It was the last stop on the tour, so they played practical jokes on each other at the end of their sets.
Idol dropped a bunch of fish on the stage as Faith No More were finishing (a reference to their "Epic" video). When his show was ending, Faith No More came out on stage in a conga line wearing nothing but paper bags over their heads.
Although these weren't exactly masks, I was glad they had them were wearing them, it gave me something to focus on.