Know Your Local Band: Versa

If you’re seeking something a little more epic and sweeping in the local musical landscape, Versa might be the ideal place for you to start. The quintet is often fleshed out by extra players and their live sets have been known to take people to transcendental places. Versa’s multi-instrumentalist Matt Dolmage took the time to answer Monday’s standard line of questioning.

Monday Magazine: Describe your band’s sound in just five words:

Matt Dolmage: Progressive, dynamic, ambient, experimental, rockin’.

MM: Been together since?

MD: January 2006.

MM: Latest release?

MD: We have a new album coming out in June, called The Decline and Fall of . . .

MM: Origin of band name?

MD: Hollas—our violinist—came up with Versa’s Vice, which we thought was a little too early-’90s grunge-pop, so we dropped the Vice.

MM: Listeners might be surprised to learn of this influence on your band?

MD: Sonic Youth would probably be a surprising influence.

MM: Who’s on your dream tour?

MD: Sigur Ros, Godspeed You! Black Emperor and King Crimson.

MM: Most memorable moment as a band?

MD: Supporting Italian Edition at Sugar for a full house, or writing a song on our new album, “Holes 3,” as a group.

MM: Member of your band who most needs a hug:

MD: Our music might be dark and brooding, but we’re all pretty happy guys! So I’ll just say Anthony, arbitrarily.

MM: What’s one thing you want Victoria to know about your band?

MD: You should come and see us live—we play an epic show.

MM: Upcoming shows?

MD: Nothing scheduled—we’re taking the next month or two off of live performance to finish our second album. We’ll be playing a CD release show hopefully in June sometime, so keep your eyes peeled for that.

MM: Future plans?

MD: Finishing our second album, and then doing our first tour to support the album this summer. After that, who knows?

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Versa
(At the M Awards Afterparty with Hotels in Glasgow, Hollydene and Water Machine)
10pm Tuesday, March 31
Lucky Bar, 517 Yates
$7 or free with M Awards stamp
250-382-LUCK