Brightest Young Things

Nico Vega is a hot and even hotter looking new band from LA. They are touring with Shout Out Louds as we speak. We sent our new, hyper-literate contributor Andrea to interview them. Feathers flew.

Nico Vega, a PG-rated group of attractive rock star warriors, is on a crusade to fight hate, injustice, and apathy. The band is properly armed with intoxicating melodies, biting beats, jagged vocals, and front-woman Aja’s rock-hard abs. However, Nico Vega’s edge is blunted by its most valued weapon—candy-coated and nutrionally empty discourse. Nico Vega’s declared war against global unrest is musically tasty, but ultimately doomed by its own pseudo-philosophical message.

Full of spiritual rhetoric, but void of any straightforward answers, Nico Vega’s syrupy interview compels interpretation and inevitably invited my own personal commentary (see italics).

(but first enjoy the Guns'n'Bombs remix of their "Cocaine cooked the brain" single)

Brightest Young Things: It seems like the three of you are meant for each other—so how did you meet?
Nico Vega: We feel the same way. How we met is not as significant as the immediate connection we had when we were in a room with one another. From day one we know we were on a path towards something special and to us, important.

( They actually met through the same channels of socialization that most 20-somethings utilize—common friends. The difference being that these friends communicate ideas through a “secret language.” I bet it’s Spanish.
http://www.7x7sf.com/arts_entertainment/hotlist_blog/10268827.html.)

BYT: Are you soulmates?
(Ok, so this was a tricky and ill-articulated question).
NV: It sure feels like it! We are where we are now because of a unique artistic and personal chemistry. We love each other and miss each other when we’re not together.

BYT: Leo Tolstoy opens his book, Anna Karenina, saying, "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." Tolstoy's observation could very easily apply to most bands. Since you already acknowledge your bandmates as family—are you a happy family? A happy band? In what ways?
NV: We are a very happy, functional family. We love to be together and as a band we love to play music. We’re all intense personalities and thrive off this intensity. We push each other constantly to be better, work harder, and to always be accountable for the things we say.

(Tolstoy was saying that what makes us unique also denies us happiness. Tolstoy’s point was that there’s no such thing as a happy family. My point was that there’s no such thing as a happy band. The dellusionally happy Nico Vega missed that point.)

BYT: On a lighter note, if you're a family, who's mom, who's dad, and who's the recalcitrant teenager?
NV: Rich is easily the teenager. He always keeps things light, loves to laugh, and always has a good time. Dan is the dad, he’s the most disciplined and is good at keeping everyone focused and on track... Aja is the bratty little sister, for sure.

(So is that why Aja enrolled in an Overcoming the Ups and Downs of Life course at the Church of Scientology?
Or is it because she doesn’t like to eat her vegetables?)

BYT: What caused you to choose the name of Bush's disastrous and failed education policy (No Child Left Behind) as the title of your new album?

NV: Children are the real victims of any political, socio-economic policy. They’re who we’re supposed to be protecting, yet they constantly get overlooked. Human beings are not chess pieces. Nothing has greater value than life.

(The DC policy nerd in me still wonders if Nico Vega knows anything about No Child Left Behind other than that fact that it’s a piece-of-crap legislation with a catchy name.)

BYT: Who's your favorite grade school teacher?

NV:
Aja- My favorite grade school teacher was Joe Zingo. He was the most eccentric person in my life, and always acknowledging me when I did well. Also the first person to tell me that I could sing well.
Dan- My Dad. He pushed me to always aspire towards something great.
Rich- Mr. Geha. He really supported me and recognized talent when others just saw me as a delinquent.

(I wish I would’ve had a Mr. Zingo in my childhood. With a name like that, you can’t go wrong in a room full of third graders.)

BYT: You describe your influences as being "Any sort of passion, fire, or interaction between two people, or many people. Any person who has the will to lead people and sacrifice their own needs for the well being of others. Any warrior with a purpose, or a mission, and any artist who is not scared to be great. Anybody that decides to forgive themselves for the mistakes that they have made, and change for the better. We have a lot of musical influences, probably similar to the ones that you like. Oh...and, anybody who is a Lion at heart (support the pack, and be strong without judgment)…"—those are some pretty rigorous standards—who lives up to them for you? Anyone specific?
NV: We don’t expect anybody to be perfect, and they are rigorous standards. We hold the bar pretty high because of the standards laid out by others. We’re referring to people who inspire us. The Martin Luther Kings of the world, the Ammas and the Mother Teresas. People who have overcome tragedies or inspired others to be better. Also young children, because of the way they see without judgment.

(I guess I’m not familiar with the music of Mother Theresa… )

BYT: Most indie bands don't make a point of incorporating such direct social messages in their music. What comes easier for you—the music, or the words? Which are you more connected to?
NV: Communication is important. We are not an indie band! We make music. We see the world the way we see the world and cannot help but express those views. It would be dishonest to be any other way. The fact that people then respond and connect to our music is a unique gift.

(Since “indie” is an abbreviation of the word “independent,” the band’s distinctive style (and the interview itself) suggests otherwise… )

BYT: The clichéd "Hollywood mentality" doesn't really harmonize with a lot of your philosophies—how has living in LA shaped your perception of the world and how it manifests in your music?
NV: We love where we live, but we are who we are, and that is something that could not be affected by where we are or the people we are surrounded by. We met each other in LA, along with a number of amazing, talented people. The “Hollywood mentality” is a poison consumed by the entire world. It is capable of making people feel inadequate but ironically exists because the majorities want it to. They buy the magazines, watch the interviews or the gossip entertainment shows.

BYT: Nico Vega is described as a warrior and a way of life—where did the name came from?
NV: It was the name of a woman closely associated with the band who passed away years ago. Her story is a very personal story that had a positive influence on all of us. It actually inspired us to reach for something authentic and bigger than we are as individuals.

BYT: Your website credits Nico Vega as representing a "modern day saint," how do you define a saint of the 21st century?
NV:Someone who inspires love rather than fear.
Yes! Love, strength, individuality… She is the standard we aspire towards.

BYT: What do you believe in?
NV: Love.

BYT: Do you believe in ghosts?
NV:Who are we to know one way or another. We like to believe that anything is possible.

BYT: What are you going to be for Halloween?
NV: A hungry rock band on a stage in Atlanta, Georgia. The question should be: what are we going to be every other day of the year??

(A hungry rock band in some other U.S. city? )

In an attempt to help lead DC audiences to a more fulfilling and lighter way of being, the oppressively optimistic three person band, Nico Vega, will lure and seduce audience members with its voluptuous vibrations while delivering its chicken soup for the soul message at the 9:30 Club this Sunday night with the Shout Out Louds.

Oh and also, we have some EPs to give out, if you want them-comment on wanting them.