Four artists are called Mastermind: a Japanese Power Metal band, a US rock band, a DJ, and a US funk band.

1. Mastermind is a power metal band from Tokyo, Japan. They are: Yoshiyuki Watarai and Yoshiya Sato on guitar, Shinichi Kojima on drums, Norio Sato on vocals, and Naoyuki Hasegawa on bass. The band has released four full-length albums: Song for the New World (2000), The Way I Go (2001), To the World Beyond (2004), and From Here to Eternity (2006).

2. MASTERMIND is a progressive rock/metal band from the USA (currently none of the music on this page is from this band). Established in 1986, MASTERMIND is brothers Berends, Bill and Rich. Rich is a drummer who subscribes to the Carl Palmer school of drumming. Music, vocals, guitar, bass and faux-keyboards (actually a guitar-controlled MIDI setup) were handled by brother Bill, while Rich pounded out complex drumming. The music is guitar based, and they play a melodic ELP - styled energetic and bombastic progressive rock.

On their third & fourth releases, the music began to leave the 70's prog sound behind and the move towards a more progressive metal sound began. Jens Johansson joined the group on the 5th album "Excelsior! first release on a major label (Inside Out)though this album also has a lot of jazzy influences. With the release of "Angels of the Apocalypse" MASTERMIND's the band added a female vocalist and the move towards progressive metal was complete. The "Broken" EP was released in 2005 and a new album is forthcoming.

"mastermindband.com" is the band's official website.

3. Mastermind (aka X-Fly)

owner of Headfuck records.

raw and brutal hardcore techno.

4. MASTERMIND was a 70's Funk band from New York City.

Comparable to Brass Construction and Mass Production but not nearly as well known, Mastermind was an obscure ten-piece funk-soul band that recorded in New York in the late '70s. Unlike the Ohio Players, Earth, Wind & Fire, Tower of Power, the Commodores and other big funk-soul bands of the '70s, Mastermind didn't have a really identifiable lead vocalist. Several of its members could contribute vocals if called upon to do so, but everyone in the band was a musician first and foremost with the overall sound of the band being more important than the vocals.

Even though funk-soul was Mastermind's foundation, its very danceable and horn-driven music contained jazz overtones. In fact, jazz musicians David Sanborn, Steve Khan and Jon Faddis were employed on Mastermind's self-titled debut album, which Prelude released in 1977. Unfortunately, the LP didn't sell, and the band broke up without ever recording a second album.

Mastermind's members included trumpeter/vocalist Anselm Scrubb, baritone and tenor saxophonist Mario Ford, tenor saxophonist/flutist Guy Fuertes, alto saxophonist/flutist Lenny White (not to be confused with the Return to Forever and Twennynine drummer), guitarist/vocalist Joe Frye, keyboardist/vocalist Geoffrey Williams, bassist/vocalist Carl Bain, drummer/vocalist Brian Wilson (not to be confused with the Beach Boys member), percussionist/vocalist Wendell Derrick and percussionist Juan Clouden.

(Source: Allmusic.com)

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