Myztery’s new album, Cyber Superstar (to be released in early 2012), is more contemporary sounding than the band’s previous two releases, employing more drums and a greater reliance on keyboards. The result is no less dramatic and psychedelic and the lyrics remain spiritual and uplifting.

“Ultimately, we deal with themes of love and peace and those kinds of things,” says founder/frontman Diamond, who founded the band with his now-wife Star,originally from Vancouver, BC but now from Chatham, Ontario. Trinity was invited to join the band several months after it began, taking care of special effects and other miscellaneous things. They adopted the stage names for this phase of their career.

It’s a complicated story, which led Diamond to pen his autobiography (scheduled for release in September of 2012). So Myztery continues to touch on real-life, personal encounters on their upcoming album which hopefully contain inspirational or cautionary messages.

The self-produced album features Diamond and Star, Mister Lee (Lead guitar). Special guests include guitarist David Sinclair (former guitarist with Sarah McLachlan), bassist Miles Hill ( former bass player with Van Morrison), Freaky Man (drums), Mimi (bass, harp), Bob Dickson (acoustic guitar and former bandmate with Diamond in Tyranny and Quantum Leap) and drummer Gino Gerussi on the track “Weapons of Love,” a song released in 2008 as an animated video by Davide Di Saro.

“’Weapons of Love’ was inspired by a suicide bombing in Israel probably three years ago,” says Diamond. “I’m part Jewish on my mother’s side even though I’m Catholic, and there was something about that suicide bombing by a Palestinian which prompted me to write the song.”

"Touch the Sky" is another powerful song that Diamond wrote on mandolin outside a hospital room in Penetanguishene, Ontario, where Star’s step-mom lay dying. “I sang the song for her the night before she died and I played it for her daughters and everybody was weeping,” he recalls. “It’s about reaching out and touching the sky.

"I Believe" (Later renamed "Power of Love") was written near the end of 4 months of touring from Vancouver, BC to Ontario. They were parked for several days in their Myztery tour bus at an RV park in Perth, Ontario to rest and plan a return route back to Vancouver, BC.

Diamond notes, "It was a way for me to express my feelings about everything that went on during the tour:  all the challenges, financial difficulties, our tour bus getting stuck almost 2 feet in a muddy field, almost maxed out VISA, and so on.  .   

Diamond is a multi-instrumentalist known to pull out a range of instruments for Myztery, such as shofar, bamboo (ney) flute, kinnor harp, violin, cello, psaltery, lyre, fretless standup bass. His musical calling began at age 5 when he took piano, then, in grade 5, drums, then guitar. Star started young as well and in Myztery plays keyboard, psaltery, kinnor harp, bass, Celtic harp and percussion. They both took similar paths, joining the church and performing music at various youth gatherings, retreats and conferences. They both released music independently, Diamond seven solo albums and Star one.

In 2004, Diamond received a Decree of Laicization from Pope John Paul II, releasing him from his priesty vows/promises of celibacy and obedience. (Diamond was employed as a Catholic priest for 10 years with the Archdiocese of Vancouver, BC). Diamond received a calling to pursue music full time while studying to be a counsellor. He left his academic studies to start a band.  He was recording the debut album by Myztery (then called The Mysteries) when guitarist Derek Mason invited Star to help with vocals. “I fell in love with her at first sight,” recalls Diamond. “I invited her to a party and then I wanted to date her. I told her when we went out for coffee that we were going to get married and she agreed with me.”

The band, as it stood, disintegrated and with Star’s visual eye for colours and images was resurrected as Myztery. They bought masks and costumes from Israel, Egypt and India, as well as from local clothing stores, costume shops, even Wal-Mart, Value Village and Shopper’s Drug Mart.

“When I started reading about mystery plays in medieval Europe in the 15th century, I got the idea of this Heaven and Hell thing because that’s what they did back then. They had stages with trap doors and swinging angels and demons, so we used whips and chains and fire and smoke and blood and all that kind of stuff.

Also, I have to give some credit to the band KISS, whom I saw as a teen in the early 1970's in the Pacific Coliseum.  Gene Simmons was breathing out fire, spitting out blood and they had huge explosions of real fire probably about 50 or 60 feet high.  It blew me away, as a kid, and helped me realize that rock and roll could also be highly visual and entertaining, much like an opera." 

The band, which released its second album, Tempus Fugit, in 2008 (to be re-released in October of 2011 with updated music on some songs), intended those recordings to be listened to from beginning to end as complete experiences “like Dark Side of the Moon or The Wall, by the band Pink Floyd” notes Diamond, so they warranted an equally over-the-top live concept, including as many as 10 costume changes.  For the new album, however, Myztery toned it down. “There will be face paint — mine is a diamond — and we will have minimal special effects, lighting and costume changes, so we will make the show more contemporary.” -

Myztery's song "Power of Love" (aka "I Believe") was on an earlier release of that album but the upcoming album has that song replaced by "I Believe," which features Star, rather than Diamond singing the song and has a very different arrangment with a slighly slower tempo and is transposed to the key of Bb from the original key of G.  Star likes her version better and Diamond agrees :)

Myztery is busy developing their next album and plan to spend, hopefully, most of 2012 composing the music for it in addition to touring to promote Cyber Superstar in Canada and possibly some concerts in the USA and other countries as opportunities arise.  Then again, Myztery knows how to make God laugh:  Tell Him your plans.

"Life is good in Ontario," Diamond notes.  "I love Vancouver.  It is my home, my place of birth and where all my musical memories were formed, but Toronto is also a great place in terms of the music scene because there are so many live venues here, a great diversity of musical styles and, geographically, a well-connected place, as we can be in Detroit in an hour and New York in a very short flight or even a long days drive!  It's all about love for us, when it comes down to it, and we love what we are doing, we love our fans, we love life and want to use our gifts to spread peace, love and joy to all nations.  We also want to rock peoples' faces off as well." :-D

Diamond recently initiated a Federal Court copyright infringement case against several defendants pertaining to the CTV 2010 Olympic song "I Believe" (Stephan Moccio/Alan Frew).  Diamond's Statement of Claim was filed in September of 2011 and the case is proceeding under a special case management judge.

BIO

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