Vega4 @ Mercury Lounge, May 29, 2007

After opening for Augustana earlier in the year, Vega4 returned to town to open the show at the Mercury Lounge last Tuesday night. I was a bit surprised to see the band go on so early as they drew a good-sized crowd when opening at Webster Hall. It was nice to see that a number of people (60+) turned out at 8PM to see the band play. I really think it is a matter of time before Vega4 is playing bigger rooms here in town.


As the band was the first to play this night, they only had time for a five song set. The set list was:
- Tearing Me Apart
- Traffic Jam
- Bullets
- You and Me
- Life is Beautiful



The highlight of the set was You and Me, which singer Johnny McDaid introduced from the front of the stage. It was a great show but it would have been nice if the band was able to have played a longer set.



Check out my pictures from the band's show at Webster Hall this past February here.

Links:
Vega4 Main Website (link)
Vega4 MySpace Page (link)

Vega4 Plays Mercury Lounge on May 29th

After touring with Augustana earlier in the year, Vega4 returns to town for a show at the Mercury Lounge. I was amazed how tightly the band held the crowds' attention as the opener at the Augustana show at Webster Hall so I would expect them to be phenominal in a small club.

Also on the bill this night is Sounds Under Radio, who have a track on the Spiderman 3 soundtrack and Tab and The Stevensons are also playing.

Tickets for the show are only $10.

Links:
Vega4 MySpace Page (link)
Sounds Under Radio MySpace Page (link)
The Stevensons MySpace page(link)

Vega4 Sponsors Contest to Raise Awareness About Global Climate Issues

I am still somewhat amazed how quickly YouTube has changed video production from being a high-end expensive medium to one that is consumer generated with a reasonably low cost of entry. The Residents recently ran a contest on YouTube where entrants submitted self-produced video clips. Vega4 is sponsoring a similar contest to raise awareness of global climate change.

Drawing inspiration from a video on their MySpace page, London-based band Vega4 is hosting a contest in an effort to raise awareness about global climate change issues. Fans are invited to use the band’s single, “Life Is Beautiful,” as the soundtrack to videos or slideshows addressing environmental concerns. Entrants can upload their submissions to the Vega4 YouTube group (http://www.youtube.com/group/Vega4) starting now, until May 31st. The band will then select their favorite video and award the winner two tickets to the Live Earth concert on July 7, which will be held at Giant’s Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ. The contest officially kicks off this week in a tribute to Earth Day, as “Life Is Beautiful” is the featured iTunes Single of the Week.

Vega4 is hosting this contest to open dialogue among their fans and champion ways each and every person can make a difference in protecting the earth’s climate. “Life Is Beautiful,” with its hopeful lyrics and uplifting music, is an excellent theme song for raising consciousness about environmental causes. Small or large, any effort can help – “EPA estimates that simply increasing our national recycling rate from its current level of 30 percent to 35 percent would reduce GHG (greenhouse gases) emissions by another 10 million metric tons of carbon equivalent (MTCE). That amount is equal to the average annual emissions from the electricity consumed by roughly 4.6 million households.”
(http://www.epa.gov/wastewise/climate/change.htm)

More information on the competition is available on the band’s MySpace page, http://myspace.com/vega4 and official website, http://vega4.com/. Vega4’s album, You and Others, is currently available on iTunes and will be officially released in mid-June on Original Signal Recordings/Epic Records.

Previous Posts:
Pictures and a Review of Vega4's show at Webster Hall from Feb. '07(link)

Augustana @ Webster Hall, NYC Feb. 2, 2007

I moved about a week ago and I didn't get a chance to post these pictures prior to packing up my desktop. I now have the computer unpacked and online so...

Augustana played a strong set at Webster Hall earlier this month and worked approx. six new songs into the set. The main floor of Webster Hall was full before the band took the stage and the band held the crowd's attention throughout their set. The band started the set off strong and I believe the opening song was Bullets (two weeks seems so long ago). Boston was played right before the band finished their set and the crowd went nuts. For the encore, Vega4 came out to join Augustana on an all-out version of All The Stars and Boulevards.

Vega4 @ Webster Hall, NYC Feb. 2, 2007

Vega4 played a very strong 6 song set opening for Augustana on Friday night. The floor at Webster Hall was pretty full by the time the band took the stage and the band completely held the crowd's attention during their set. For this being the band's first tour, they already have a strong stage presence and their obvious enthusiasm was catchy. Vega4's CD hasn't yet been released in the US but the crowd seemed to know all of the songs. With this strong of a show, it seems likely that Vega4 will be headlining the tour on their next time through the area.

Augustana - All The Stars and Boulevards CD Review

This CD falls outside of the genre that I normally listen to but I have really enjoyed this disc. After repeated plays, the music continues to hold my attention.

I wasn't that familiar with the band prior to getting this CD so I have been doing some online research just to see what others are saying. I think Augustana gets incorrectly lumped into the "piano rock" genre. While there are some piano-based songs on this disc, the brunt of the disc isn't that close to Keane or The Fray. A closer comparison would be to The Hooters or The Goo Goo Dolls. What I really like about this disc is that Dan Layus' voice isn't mixed above the band so this really comes across as a complete work by a proficient band and not a singer/songwriter with a backing band.

A lot of the online reviews that I read focus on the track Boston, which is the CD's piano ballad. I think Bullets and Mayfield are much stronger tracks and are more indicative of the rest of the CD. Both of these tracks are catchy mid-tempo rock songs and have strong melodies and choruses. I also really enjoyed the song Feel Fine which channels the vibe of the early 80s California bands like The Plimsouls and The Beat.

I don't care much for some of the slower tracks on the disc (like California's Burning and Wasteland) as they seem to drag but, overall, this is a solid CD by an up-and-coming band. They are definately worth checking out.

Augustana is playing at Webster Hall on February 2nd with support from Vega4.

Augustana CD Giveaway

Contest is now closed and winners notified. Thanks for everyone who entered. Look for a new contest coming soon.

I have 5 copies of the latest CD from Augustana to give away. Just click on the Contest Entry link below and send us your full name and mailing address. One entry per person please.

All entries must be received no later than January 31, 2007. Winners will be notified via E-Mail.

Contest Entry

For more info on Augustana, check out these links:

Augustana's Main Website

Augustana on MySpace

Augustana Performing Live on VH1

Vega4 Concert Ticket Giveaway - Webster Hall, NYC Feb. 2nd

I have a pair of tickets to give away to see Vega4 at Webster Hall on February 2nd. Just click on the Contest Entry link below and send us your full name and mailing address. One entry per person please.




All entries must be received no later than January 19, 2007. Winner will be notified via E-Mail.

Contest Entry

For more info on Vega4, check out these links:

Vega4's Main Website

Vega4 on MySpace

Previous Post on Vega4

Vega4 Playing Webster Hall on Feb. 2nd

London's Vega4 is touring the US with Augustana and will be at Webster Hall on February 2nd. Fans of U2 and Snow Patrol should really check out the band as this should be a great show. Tickets are only $18 and are still available through Ticketweb.

Vega4's latest CD You and Others was released in the UK late last year and a US release is scheduled for sometime this year. Vega4 has already gotten some buzz in the US when their single Life Is Beautiful [MP3, 5MB] was featured in a Nov. '06 episode of Grey's Anatomy. The band also topped the Irish charts with You And Me, the lead-off song from the CD. This CD was produced by Garret "Jackknife" Lee who has done production work for U2 (How to Dismantle An Atomic Bomb), Snow Patrol, Kasbian and many other.

Check out the band's promo video for You and Me on YouTube