CD Reviews by Alex Greenberg Sherri Mullen - "Mask" If you read the universally favorable press about Sherri Mullen, it leads you to an impressive observation: rarely does one see an artist that is not a late-teen-through-mid-twenties Gen-Xer burst onto the central PA music scene with such tenacious abandon. Since 1999 when she first began exploring guitar, the 'Rock Divaí' has pioneered a successful arts-based website (www.artsfortress.com), fronted an impressive solo/duo/trio/full band live act that features a healthy list of both originals and covers, and hosted a celebrated PA Webcast homegrown show (www.pawebcast.com) that offers a wonderful instant feedback forum to local acts. This inaugural CD, "Mask", is the final scene of the beginning of Mullen's musical epic. This collection conveys a broad spectrum of emotional feels, from the shiny optimism of 'Morning Sun' and 'Light of Day,'through the darker sentiments of 'Cinderella,' 'Broken,' and 'Mask' to the mature complexity of 'Pushed Away' and 'Fire.' There is as equal a variety of musical versatility, from the piano and voice ballad 'Fire' where Mullen displays her long-honed classical keyboard chops, through the crunching, electric guitar rock of 'No Return,' 'Broken,' and Mullen's defiant, anthemic reading of 9/11, 'Home of the Free.' Consistent throughout is the dramatic power of Mullen's voice: emotive, sustained and unrelenting. She is in good company on this project as well. Joe Mohn lays down effective, straight time rock drums with Ray Rossi lending a hand on percussion. Doug Stockton fills out the bottom with informed, tight bass work. Dave Kelly, lead guitarist, the other half of Mullen's duo act, mentor, and her general Luca Bras' hammer, tears things up with blistering solos, tasteful fills and volume artifacts, adding nitro to the fuel mix. Besides the above-mentioned substance of this CD, you also get an autobiographic feel from this collection that conveys a real sense of sincerity and communion with the listener. That, coupled with the obvious, powerful talent of Mullen and her cohorts and the broad variety of material presented makes for a successful debut from a blooming artist of undeniable substance. www.sherrimullen.com