Vela Rosa oozes the musical musk of classic rock behemoths like Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, the Rolling Stones, Kiss, Aerosmith, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton, Pink Floyd, and Lynyrd Skynyrd. The band’s debut is chock full of brawny blues-riffs, trippy musical passages, meditative ballads, and ripping lead guitars.
Vela Rosa’s music whiffs 1973 vintage rock n’ roll. You can just smell the arena potpourri of pot, patchouli, cigarettes, and cheap beer. If you close your eyes, you’d think this record is a lost artifact from the actual Dazed and Confused era, or you’d surmise this quartet is made of old rock n’ roll salts who have been playing music since the dawn of bell-bottoms and El Camino pickups.The fact is the Edmonton, Alberta-based quartet are just old enough to legally drink. Averaging out at just 20 years old, the guys have managed to strike the Hammer of the Gods on its debut, summoning the swagger and dexterous musicianship of their idols with cool nonchalance and artistic assuredness. For their debut, Vela Rosa went on a rollicking rock n’ roll adventure replete with an insane producer and $40,000 of their gear being held hostage.
“This album is the culmination of years of jamming and recording in garbage rooms with garbage mics,” lead guitarist/lead vocalist Wyatt Clark says with a weary laugh. “Our love of the music kept us together—at times, it felt like we were the only people in school and around town who liked this music. We certainly fought to keep it alive and put our own spin on it.”
The full album Run In Colour may just be an instant classic, and like all timeless musical statements, has an intriguing “Behind the Music” story. For starters, the band’s producer was a polarizing individual who employed questionable technical and interpersonal tactics. With one week to go, the band was informed there was a “suspicious activity” alert filed by the studio and they weren’t allowed to go back inside. When they did investigate, they found the studio was behind on its rent and that $40,000 of the band’s gear was seized as collateral against the lax payments. The band pursued getting their equipment back, and was eventually able to retrieve their gear but Vela Rosa had to finish recording in a makeshift studio in Wyatt’s parent’s basement. The anger and frustration of this arduous trek definitely come out in the aggressive and emotive album performances. Run In Colour captures a moment in time, framing a world-class new band stepping forward; documenting a nightmare album-making process, and snapshotting 20-somethings growing up. Chandler says: “It’s an amalgamation of experiences in navigating the transition from being a teen to an adult, and not wanting to mess that up.”
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Listen to the full album “Run In Colour” here.
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Music is available to listen on Spotify.
