Vedora At Radio Bean (just barely) March 1, 2015

Words by Tim Lewis.

I had a great time seeing music last night. I worked until 7:30 and got home just before 8. An old friend had stopped by so we chatted for a bit, but as the hours ticked by, it got closer and closer to Vedora‘s Midnight show. I left around 11:45 and took the cold icy walk to Radio Bean. The footing was pretty good, so I made decent time and could see them bringing in the instruments as I got close. I entered and settled in. It was just about midnight and they were steadily setting up. Soon enough, they started to play. The set was mostly new songs from their upcoming album. They started slow and let the first song, Floating, build into a nice roar, then followed with a familiar Terrarium. Vedora are champs at creating a moody atmosphere and then rocking hard, and that pattern flowed through the hour long show. Matt Hastings had lots of room to unleash his blistering guitar work. Caroline‘s bass drove the songs in fun directions and Jane Boxall Percussion was super precise and quite bombastic on drums. It was so much fun watching her play and listening to the way she would use every part of the cymbal to find the perfect note. Whether she hit the edge with the side of her stick, tapped the edge or tapped the center, it gave the songs just the right weight. On one song she used two sticks in one hand and two mallets in the other to enhance the rich texture of the music. Caroline’s sultry voice was nicely balanced by Matt’s deep singing as they alternated the vocals on different songs. A new song called Emptyness was moody with a very intense end. They followed with Bare Trees which was a fun bouncy groove that slid into some spacey music. For a moment I thought a spider might wander aimlessly, but the song solidified into a groove that my mind found familiar and my body just knew. I quickly realized they were playing Pink Floyd’s Lucifer Sam and was ready to sing along when the That Cat’s Something I Can’t Explain part came around. I love that song and they did a great version of it. Up next, Matt sang a great version of Promises, then they played another great new song called Feeling. Sober followed, and featured a slow burn sonically rich solo from Matt and tremendous drumming from Jane. They followed with a stunning cover of Tool’s Sober then closed the night with an unnamed mostly instrumental song with wispy vocals from Caroline. Even though they were done, a few people had entered at the end and wanted more music. They did not have anything else rehearsed so they played Bare Trees again. After that I said quick goodbyes, and Jane handed me a copy of the setlist. She’s so thoughtful and has added a wonderful dimension to the band. The walk home was cold and icy and blissfully happy.

This post was originally published by Tim Lewis at his personal blog, https://timstriangletribune.wordpress.com.