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Nico Vega

Rock

Nico Vega Tickets

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About

An edgy but commercial indie rock outfit with pop instincts and a theatrical streak, Nico Vega were formed in 2005 by Aja Volkman, a singer and songwriter from Eugene, Oregon who had come to Valencia, California to study acting at the California Institute of the Arts. After a few months, Volkman decided she was more interested in music than acting (she'd been writing songs since she was in high school), so she dropped out of CalArts to focus on her career as a vocalist. After playing a solo gig in Los Angeles, Volkman was approached by Michael Pena, a drummer who dabbled in acting. Pena was impressed with Volkman's style and talent, and teaming with guitarist Rich Koehler, they formed the first edition of Nico Vega. In 2006, the trio released their first EP, Chooseyourwordspoorly, but within a year, Pena left the group as his acting career began to take flight (his subsequent screen credits included The Lincoln Lawyer, End of Watch, American Hustle, and Cesar Chavez). In 2007, Dan Epand became the new drummer for Nico Vega, and the group released two more EPs that year, Cocaine Cooked the Brain and No Child Left Behind. The latter EP became Nico Vega's first release on MySpace Records, a fledgling label started by the people behind the (then) popular social networking site. In 2009, MySpace released the trio's self-titled debut album, which was primarily produced by Tim Edgar, with noted songwriter Linda Perry taking over the controls for three songs. While Nico Vega toured extensively in support, sharing stages with the likes of the Manic Street Preachers, Metric, and Neon Trees, the album's sales were modest, and the group stayed out of the studio until 2011, when they self-released the EP Nico Vega Covers Nico Vega and Rod Stewart. However, in time other media came to the rescue: when Nico Vega's song "Beast" was used in the publicity campaign for the video game Bioshock Infinite in 2013, the track racked up five million plays online, while their cover of Sonny Bono's "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" was used in the 2013 television mini-series Bonnie & Clyde. In 2010, Volkman met Dan Reynolds, who was the leader of a struggling band from Las Vegas called Imagine Dragons; before long, the two would marry, and Imagine Dragons opened a number of shows for Nico Vega. Once Imagine Dragons' debut album Night Visions began climbing the charts, their places on the bill were reversed, but Reynolds would step forward to co-write and produce a catchy tune for Nico Vega, "I Believe (Get Over Yourself)," which would appear on the band's long-awaited second album, 2014's Lead to Light, released by Five Seven Music.

Reviews

Rating: 5 out of 5 based on 3 reviews
  • Rating: 5 out of 5

    5 stars for Saint Motel!!

    by Dictator on 11/1/10Roxy Theatre - West Hollywood

    We really only went to see Saint Motel, but we were also down to check out the other bands since we hadn't heard of them. Saint Motel is a great band to see live. They played some songs off of their current EP, but also had a bunch of new songs that they played, which hopefully means that a full-length album may be on its way. I wished they had played more of their EP songs, but I enjoyed getting to hear their newer stuff, too. Great stage presence and energy, and they sound superb live! The Roxy was a nice, cozy venue to see them, and they even came out and mingled with the crowd after their set. The other groups didn't impress me too much, but I wasn't disappointed, since Saint Motel was the primary reason I went to the show.

  • Rating: 5 out of 5

    NICO VEGA was AMAZING!!!

    by kimtar90 on 11/1/10Roxy Theatre - West Hollywood

    Nico Vega is a band that I've been deeply into for the past year or so. Their music is unforgettable and brilliant in every aspect. But to really do justice to them, you have to hear them live!!! They are beyond AMAZING!!! so much energy throughout the entire show! Aja the lead singer continuously went back and forth from the stage, reach out to the fans, and also crowd surfed amongst us. She is full of energy in her singing and dancing, as well as drummer Dan continuously played furiously and fast! Rich was also reaching to the fans and his solos were incredibly done!

  • Rating: 5 out of 5

    AJA IS A GOOD WITCH!

    by AJWeiner on 10/31/10Roxy Theatre - West Hollywood

    This is the second time I've seen Nico Vega live and this show was as good as the first. The first time I saw Aja at the Troubadour months ago, I felt that she was so good that it rivaled seeing Patti Smith live, which is the highest compliment I could give. I had to go this second time to see if I was just dreaming. I wasn't! Plus her songs have been sinking into my soul since the first show too, so this one seemed even more powerful to me than the first. BRAVO!