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For those of you who’ve sampled the delights of Alton Towers, undoubtedly while there you were bullied onto ‘Nemesis’ by one neo-Nazi adrenalin junkie mate. Now, everyone knows the highlight of the ride is the sizzling anticipation as you’re held tantalisingly over the drop before plummeting down the remainder of the ride in a merry blur. Vega4’s debut effort has a similar effect on the senses. While its first four tracks whip the listener up into a frenzy of excitement, the remainder of the album quickly plunges into obscurity and suddenly before you notice, it’s all over.
Vega4 have been branded with an official poker to be the ‘hot new talent’. The band are now proudly sporting this tattoo as they embark on a series of high profile support slots alongside James Dean Bradfield, Boy Kill Boy and Maximo Park. A four piece, they are nothing if not diverse: comprising Irishman Johnny McDaid (vocals), New Zealander Bruce Gainsford (guitar), Canadian Bryan McLellan (drums) and Englishman Simon Walker (bass), all brought together through a love of music in London town.
‘You And Others’ gets off to a blistering start. Debut single ‘You And Me’ is all Strokes style minimalist riffing and guitar lines singing along with the distorted vocals. This is swiftly followed by the imminent release ‘Traffic Jam’. With its bittersweet lyrics ("All I want is someone to pull me out. Stuck in a traffic jam, nowhere to run for miles.") and gloriously melodic backing vocals, it’s an indie club anthem in the making if ever there was one. The epic ambitions of ‘Tearing Me Apart’ and ‘Life Is Beautiful’, with its poignant xylophone accents, help ‘You And Others’ continue on an upward trajectory. Suddenly though, you’ve experienced the highlights and the remainder of the album feels almost like a race to the finish line.
That’s not to say the second half is bad, more that it simply doesn’t live up to the high standards set by the album’s opening. Weaker album tracks of Editors, Bloc Party or Kubb leap to mind at certain points. Of course, we should remember this is Vega4’s debut and the second half is by no means devoid of power: ‘Bullets’ pulls off an epic chorus which is let down slightly by its weak verse sections and ‘Paper Cuts’ is reminiscent of ‘Lifeblood’ era Manics. Consider these the obligatory second thrill-making plunge on our roller coaster album.
Overall, what would have been an exceptional EP doesn’t make for a disappointing album as such, just one that loses its way somewhat, never quite fulfilling the promise of its opening gambit.
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