Masterpiece Theatre

Masterpiece Theatre

• Shrink-wrapped

It takes some real cojones to include the word 'Masterpiece' in your album title, but Josh Ramsay isn't too worried. 'I suppose I could be digging myself into a hole calling the record 'Masterpiece Theatre,' he chuckles, 'but it's tongue-in-cheek. And I'm not the kind of person that people would assume as being an egomaniac. I hope not, anyway.'<br>Given his feverish imagination and comprehensive musical gifts, Ramsay could probably get away with a little egomania. And with the release of Masterpiece Theatre, the frontman of Vancouver's Marianas Trench makes an iron-clad case for a prodigious set of talents-both his own and those of his bandmates, guitarist Matt Webb, bassist Mike Ayley, and drummer Ian Casselman.<br>Marianas Trench had already elevated itself above the rest of the pack with a 2006 debut, Fix Me, that showcased a knack for colouring outside the lines of factory-issue millenial punk, shrewdly-built pop, and super-adrenalized modern rock. Two years later, Marianas Trench has re-emerged with Masterpiece Theatre. And not surprisingly, it's a work of soaring ambition and decisive technical prowess.