Mas Rapido!

Mas Rapido! ranks among numerous monikers adopted by guitarist-vocalist Donna Esposito, previously of the Cyclones, and bassist-vocalist Frank Bednash, formerly of the Riff Doctors. The pair consistently delivered energetic power pop through sharp songwriting while frequently altering both their group identity and their drummers. Esposito, a New Yorker, and Bednash, who hails from North Carolina, first collaborated in 1983. They issued a single under the name Cowboy and Spingirl, a phrase drawn from a Chinese restaurant menu that later revealed itself as a double entendre. Following a self-released cassette, the duo signed with Subway Records and delivered an eight-song EP in 1988 that merged their own demos with tracks cut alongside Mitch Easter. After moving to Seattle, they unveiled a full-length Cowboy and Spingirl album in 1993. Once they issued a follow-up titled Odds & Bobs, the project transformed into Toothpaste 2000 and produced six albums for Parasol Records, beginning with 1997’s Death of the Italian Film Star. Subsequent time spent in the U.K. preceded a relocation to Hoboken, NJ, where Esposito and Bednash resumed crafting uptempo pop, now sharpened by punk influences, under the Mas Rapido! banner. The resulting trio recorded its self-titled debut for Parasol in 2003. Pity Party arrived as the second Mas Rapido! album in 2007, and Dumb Is King followed in 2010.