Mason Push the Edge of Destruction: Marcus Mason and Jimmy Katone Discuss the New Album, Legendary Collaborations, and What’s Next

Mason Push the Edge of Destruction: Marcus Mason and Jimmy Katone Discuss the New Album, Legendary Collaborations, and What’s Next

Canadian melodic rock outfit Mason continue their impressive ascent with the release of their third album, Edge of Destruction. Building upon the apocalyptic storyline that has connected their previous releases, the new album finds the band expanding both creatively and musically while welcoming notable guests such as Steve Overland (FM) and Jeff Pilson (Dokken, Foreigner).

Comprised of musicians spread across multiple countries, Mason has become a truly international project, proving that distance is no obstacle when passion, technology, and great songs come together. With three albums completed in just three years, the band shows no signs of slowing down.

Highwire Daze recently caught up with Marcus Mason (lead vocals, bass, rhythm guitar) and Jimmy Katone (drums) to discuss Edge of Destruction, the album’s concept, their impressive guest appearances, the possibility of live performances, and what lies ahead for Mason.

First off, introduce yourselves and tell me what you do in Mason, starting with Marcus.
Marcus Mason: Sure. My name is Marcus Mason, and I am the lead vocalist, bass player, and rhythm guitarist for Mason.

Jimmy Katone: I’m Jimmy Katone, the drummer for Mason.

Edge of Destruction is the name of the new album. Is there an overall story or concept behind the album title and the album itself?
Marcus: Yeah. Each album builds upon the previous one as part of an ongoing story. Every album has an apocalyptic theme that follows a traveler journeying from place to place. They’re all interconnected.

The first album is I Can’t Wait, which represents anticipation. Then you have Second Impact, which moves closer to the end. Now you’re at Edge of Destruction, which is the third chapter in the story.

They’re all related and move progressively closer to an apocalyptic ending. Edge of Destruction is simply the next sequence in that story.

Is this a trilogy, or will the story continue beyond that?
Marcus: I’d love to keep going. The next album would continue the story of the traveler and wherever we decide to take that character.

One of the coolest things about these albums, and something a lot of people have picked up on, is that I like to hide Easter eggs. If you unfold each album cover, it reveals a larger landscape scene that develops from one album to the next. At the end of each landscape, there’s a pathway, and the next album continues from that path. I love doing things like that.

We’d absolutely love to continue beyond a trilogy. That would be amazing. Right now, though, we’re at the third chapter for sure.

Steve Overland appears on one of the songs, “This Thing Called Love,” contributing backing vocals. How did Steve become involved with that track?
Marcus: I’ve been a big fan of Steve’s work with FM and his various projects over the years. When our guitarist John McAfee presented me with the original demo for the song, I thought it was fantastic. He wanted some time to re-record a few parts before we started putting everything together.

As the song developed, I recorded my vocals and Jimmy added his drums, but it felt like it was missing something. I started thinking about who would be the perfect vocalist to complement the track. Steve Overland immediately came to mind.

I made a few calls and was fortunate enough to get in touch with him. He was absolutely thrilled to be involved. Steve is a true professional, and he’s widely regarded as one of the great vocalists in the genre.

Once he added his parts, he brought so much magic to the song. A lot of people have said the track reminds them of early-’90s Nelson because of the harmonies. Steve did a fantastic job, and he was absolutely the perfect person for the track.

Tell me about “This Thing Called Love” and the inspiration behind it.
Marcus: “This Thing Called Love” is actually one of the few songs on the album that I didn’t write. John McAfee, who’s been a great friend of the band and has appeared on tracks from our previous albums, brought me a demo that he originally recorded back in 1987 or 1988.

John is an incredible guitar player. In the ’80s, he was in a band called The Affair. They appeared on MTV’s Basement Tapes, where Extreme finished first, Henry Lee Summer finished second, and The Affair took third place.

During that era, John recorded this demo and eventually rediscovered it years later. He played it for me, and I immediately thought it was amazing. I told him, “We’ve got to do this song.”

The song was inspired by meeting a girl who changed his life, and in a way it ended up mirroring his real-life experience when he later met his wife. It’s a story that’s very close to his heart.

We’re incredibly fortunate to have it on the album. As a band, we added our own spin and style to it, but at its core, it’s John’s song. As he likes to say, it’s like fine wine. It got better with age and was just sitting on a demo tape waiting to be rediscovered. We’re thrilled that people can finally hear it.

Jeff Pilson from Dokken and Foreigner appears on the album and plays bass on “Here I Am.” How did that come together?
Marcus: Our keyboardist, Peter, is good friends with Jeff. Over the years, Jeff spent a lot of time working in the San Francisco area, where Peter lives, so they’ve stayed in touch. Peter is also close with legendary producer Mike Varney.

“Here I Am” was actually a song from Peter’s old progressive rock band, Timmy. Since I play bass on most of our tracks, I thought it might be interesting to bring in someone different for this song.

Peter suggested calling Jeff Pilson, and fortunately Jeff was available just before heading out on tour with Foreigner. He was excited to be part of the project.

Having someone with Jeff’s reputation on the album was fantastic. He’s an incredible musician, and we’re grateful that he was willing to be involved.

Let’s talk about one final track, the album closer, “Eye 4 an Eye.” Tell me about that one.
Marcus: “Eye 4 an Eye” is another interesting one. There are essentially three songs on the album that originated elsewhere: “This Thing Called Love,” “Here I Am,” and “Eye 4 an Eye.”

“Eye 4 an Eye” was another song written by Peter and his bandmates in Timmy back in the day. We debated which track would become the featured song. We really loved “Here I Am,” and ultimately felt it had a little more edge and worked perfectly as the album opener.

For “Eye 4 an Eye,” we brought in guitarist Rick Mead. People may know Rick from the Canadian band Syre, as well as his work with Helix and Platinum Overdose. He’s a fantastic guitarist.

When I sent him the demo, he felt like the perfect fit for the song. The original recording had degraded quite a bit over the years, so it was really rewarding to bring the track back to life.

It’s a very different song for us. The breaks, transitions, and bridges are incredibly diverse and add a lot of character. We felt it made the perfect bonus track and a great way to close out the album.

Jimmy, you had a lot of fun playing drums on that one, didn’t you?

Jimmy: I sure did. Absolutely.

Has Mason had a chance to play live yet?
Marcus: We’d love to do something like that. One thing about Mason is that it’s truly a global project. I live in Toronto, Jimmy lives in the United States, Peter lives in the United States, John lives in the United States, and Peppi lives in Germany. We’re spread out all over the world.

Playing live could definitely happen, but it would have to be the right opportunity for all of us to make it work. There’s obviously a lot of travel involved for everyone. Right now, Mason works really well as a studio project, but if the opportunity presents itself, we’d absolutely take a serious look at it. It would be an amazing experience for us.

Jimmy: I actually think we’re more prepared to play live now than we’ve ever been. More than ever, I think we’re ready to go.

Marcus: One of the amazing things about modern technology is how we collaborate. I’ll start working on a demo, then Peppi will pick it up in Germany. After that, Jimmy adds his parts, and then Peter in San Francisco contributes his ideas. By the next day, we’ve made tremendous progress because we’re all working in different time zones.

The traditional method of everyone gathering in a studio is still fantastic, but our digital workflow allows us to collaborate continuously. Whether it’s through Zoom, phone calls, emails, or file sharing, we’re able to keep songs moving forward around the clock while still managing our everyday lives.

Jimmy: I’ll finish a drum track at ten o’clock at night, send it off to Marcus, and by seven o’clock the next morning, there’s already a rough mix sitting in my inbox. We’ve really got the process down to a science at this point.

Jimmy, you’re known for your work with Hit The Ground Runnin’, and you’ve also released solo albums. How did you wind up becoming a member of Mason?
Jimmy: Marcus actually wrote the biography for Hit The Ground Runnin’. He started working on the book around 2020, and that’s how we first met. He contacted me to interview me for the story, and we became very good friends.

Over time, Marcus became involved with the band and even managed us for a while. He helped book shows and supported the band in many different ways. Through all of that, our friendship continued to grow, and eventually we became musical partners as well.

It happened very naturally. We’d talk about music, and Marcus would send me songs and demos to get my thoughts. We’d go back and forth discussing ideas, arrangements, and different directions for the material.

At some point, we knew we wanted to take things a step further. When activity around the Hit The Ground Runnin’ reunion began to slow down, we decided to start a new project together. We explored a few different ideas, and eventually that evolved into Mason. That’s how we got to where we are today.

What has it been like having Pride & Joy Music release all of those Hit The Ground Runnin’ albums?
Jimmy: It’s been great. We reunited Hit The Ground Runnin’ around 2021, and within a few months we had a deal in place with Pride & Joy Music. We were making videos and getting everything moving again, which was really exciting.

We released Lost in Translation, and then not long after that we saw the re-release of Control Yourself. It was a wonderful experience. We were very happy working with Pride & Joy, and we’re grateful for everything they were able to do for us.

Marcus: Just to add to that, their 1989 album was actually reissued through AOR Heaven before Pride & Joy became involved. That reissue ended up being the final release on the label before it closed, which was really special.

How does it feel knowing you were the final AOR Heaven release?
Jimmy: It was really cool. Once I understood the significance of it, it became very flattering. We were excited and honored by it. It was a great feeling for the entire band and everyone involved.

Marcus: The final product turned out fantastic. We sold a lot of copies, especially in Japan, and it was amazing to watch new fans discover and fall in love with the music. That was the most rewarding part of the entire experience.

Jimmy: It was pretty surreal, Ken. The band hadn’t played together in many years. To suddenly reunite, release new music, sign record deals, and have all of it coincide with Marcus’s book release was really something special.

Marcus, are you involved with any other bands or projects outside of Mason at the moment?
Marcus: Absolutely. Over the years, I’ve been involved with a lot of reissue projects, helping bring overlooked or unreleased material to a wider audience.

I also have a few projects in the works right now. One of them involves Nilver Pérez from the Revlin Project, who actually appears on our album. I played bass on two tracks for him. Nilver is a great friend and an incredible musician, so when he asked me to be part of the project, I immediately said yes.

That release should be coming out later this month. Outside of that, we’re already looking toward the future of Mason and hopefully a follow-up to Edge of Destruction.

Creatively, I’m always writing. I’m constantly coming up with new ideas, recording demos, and experimenting with different musical directions. So there’s always something in development.

Jimmy: One thing that’s worked really well with Mason is our workflow. When we finished the first album, we were already working on the second before the debut was even released. By the time the second album came out, we’d already started the third.

We’re really in a groove now. Marcus has already brought forward some new material, so even though we haven’t completely sunk our teeth into the next album yet, we’re already tossing around ideas and laying the groundwork.

Marcus: Exactly. We always want to improve. When I listen to our debut album, I think we did a very good job. Then we challenged ourselves to make the second album even better. Now I genuinely feel that Edge of Destruction is our strongest work yet.

The goal for the fourth album will be to top that.

We’re constantly trying to improve the songwriting, production, performances, and even the small details. Most importantly, we pay attention to what the fans are responding to.

Jimmy: Absolutely. We’re never complacent. We’re always trying to get better.

Three albums in three years. How do you do it?
Marcus: I think Jimmy and I are very similar in that we prioritize music in our lives.

For us, writing, recording, and developing ideas happens naturally. Another factor is that not every song makes the album it was originally written for. Sometimes you’ll have songs sitting in the vault waiting for the right opportunity.

That’s exactly what happened with “Hanging by a Thread.” It was originally considered for the second album but didn’t make the final cut. Later on, we revisited it, reworked it, and it became one of my favorite tracks on Edge of Destruction.

Technology helps, too. Because we’re a global band, we don’t have to be in the same room to create music. We can all work independently while still sharing the same creative vision.

The key isn’t necessarily being in the same place. It’s being on the same wavelength creatively.

Well, we’re down to our final question. Do you have any message for the Mason fans who have been following you since the first album?
Marcus: Honestly, I’m incredibly grateful.

One of the most rewarding things has been watching the music grow organically. Every album has expanded our audience a little more. When we released “This Thing Called Love,” I opened Facebook and saw dozens of people sharing the song. Many of them were people I had never met before.

That tells me listeners are genuinely connecting with what we’re doing, and that’s an amazing feeling.

To all of our fans, thank you for listening, sharing the music, and supporting us on this rock and roll journey. It truly means a lot.

One last word from Jimmy.
Jimmy: I’m very grateful as well.

I’ve loved making these albums with Marcus, and I’m incredibly thankful for the fans who’ve supported us from the beginning. It’s exciting to watch our audience continue to grow as we grow as a band.

We’re always enthusiastic, we’re always ready for the next challenge, and we’re looking forward to what’s ahead.

So to everyone who’s supported Mason, thank you very much. Cheers!

In Conclusion

With Edge of Destruction, Mason continues to prove that geography is no barrier to creativity. What began as a collaboration between musicians scattered across multiple countries has evolved into one of melodic rock’s most consistently productive projects, delivering three ambitious albums in just three years.

From the soaring harmonies of “This Thing Called Love” to appearances from respected rock veterans Steve Overland and Jeff Pilson, Edge of Destruction showcases a band that refuses to stand still. More importantly, Marcus Mason and Jimmy Catone remain determined to keep pushing forward, already setting their sights on what comes next.

If their current trajectory is any indication, the story of Mason is far from over.

For more information on Mason and Edge of Destruction, visit the band’s official social media pages and streaming platforms.

(Interview by Ken Morton)

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