Niko Vega Review [Performer Mag]

Nico Vega – Nico Vega
Produced by Linda Perry and Tim Edgar
Mixed by Tchad Blake

Juliette and the Licks and the Noisettes are among the kickass female-led rock bands to recently explode from the woodwork. Joining the ranks of rockers, Nico Vega should make popettes like Colbie Caillat and Sara Bareilles quiver in their boots.

Lead vocalist Aja Volkman’s pipes have been compared to Karen O’s of the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s, but her effortless transitions between sultry smoothness and growling scream-yells respectively reflect Chan Marshall of Cat Power and Brody Dalle of the Distillers. A lesser voice would drown in the wall of electric guitars, fierce drums and orchestral synth melodies that fill up the majority of the album’s space. But Volkman soars on top of it all with astounding authority.

Before signing with Myspace Records, the band was already drawing L.A. crowds with their energetic shows characterized by Volkman’s theatrical and oft-scantily clad performances. Like their onstage dynamic, Nico Vega’s 2008 self-titled debut refuses to settle, with songs swooping and diving between gritty and gentle, edgy and poppy. Burn Burn is one of the cleaner tracks, welcoming listeners into the album with a hail of drumbeats and Rich Koehler’s crackling surf guitar. Gravity is arguably the catchiest of the bunch, with its bouncy melody and the chorus’ sassy and infectious “Nananananananana!”

The band took the name Nico Vega from their ex-drummer’s mother, who the members laud as a “modern American saint.” This theme is expanded into a general “for the people” attitude that Volkman claims is at the heart of her lyrics. “I like to celebrate individuality and equality,” she says. “It’s important to be who you are.” Though spoken with good intentions, Volkman’s cliché statements mirror the mediocrity of her lyrics, which are easily lost in the album’s denser, more frenetic tracks. But in a song like Iron Man, in which the sweet acoustic guitar and fragile melody cry out for poignancy, the lyrics are frustratingly void of depth and tangibility.

One cannot question, however, the sheer awesomeness of Volkman’s voice and Nico Vega’s truly unique and diverse sound. Melodically, the songs are vigorous, surprising and expertly crafted. Their energy and innovation will undoubtedly catapult Nico Vega beyond L.A. fame. (Myspace Records) www.myspace.com/nicovega

–Brodie Jenkins