New Release: Vectralux, Each Morning and the Morning Thereafter

Atlanta’s Vectralux came out of left field recently with a swarthy collection of indie pop gems. Showcasing 11 original tunes, listeners may hear a touch of the band’s influences. From their website, “Vectralux are… a 4-piece Alternative + Power Pop + New Wave band from Atlanta USA, influenced by the music of  Elvis Costello and the Attractions, The Replacements, Cheap Trick, Joe Jackson, Dinosaur Jr,  and many more.”

Vectralux have recorded an assortment of highly listenable songs on their debut album. If you are a fan of rock ‘n’ roll, you may just love this, as the band are clearly fans of rock ‘n’ roll. You can hear such influences as The Who (“Hidden Days”), The Cars (“Almost Whenever Now”), and The Rolling Stones – “Woo hoo! Woo hoo!” – on the excellent closer “With Grace (I Walk In).” So many more here, but with the band underscoring their own unique sound with accomplished musicianship and solid vocals.

You may develop new habits, like “…not going to ruin the day” (“To Be Untitled”) or new earworms from the Hawkesian “Almost Whenever Now,” with no shortage of synth and handclaps. For a taste of psychedelia, check out “Who Can Figure Out Such Devices?” Pianos and drums power “Missing Trains,” while the line, “All the best girls have cowboy eyes” (“Illustration No. 6”) may or may not be an adaptation of the 1982 Pete Townshend album All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes.

No Earplugs recently spoke with Vectralux bassist Andy Tegethoff:

What is the origin of the band name? So, the band name comes from our leader Hannibal Heredia (the “Joe Strummer” of Clashinista, also of Stovall and Atticus Flinch/The Flinch). It’s a made-up word that seems somehow familiar, and evokes a kind of 50s-60s  brand name vibe. Like maybe it’s a new model of Chevrolet. Or a kick-ass stainless steel vacuum cleaner. 

What building is that on the cover? The cover photo is courtesy of amazing Atlanta photog Jeff Shipman. He is seriously talented. I believe the building is the Terminus building on Peachtree.

If you feel like divulging, what are the day jobs of the band members? Hannibal (Heredia, lead vocals and guitar) is a family lawyer. Kelly Shane (our drummer and my close musical collaborator for like 20 years) is a math professor at Floyd College in Rome, GA. Our keyboardist, Dan Barker, is a piano teacher and musician – so he’s the legit one. And I’m just a simple Data and Analytics consultant.

You’ve stated some of your influences. What are others, and are any specific songs odes to them? I hear The Cars, among others. Our influences are all over the place, but we’re trying to focus on a fairly succinct sound. We’ve all been playing for 20 years, so we’ve gathered a lot of inputs. Hannibal brings a solid 90s alternative vibe. Kelly brings an 80s alternative thing. Dan is a jazz fiend with a lot of Americana leanings. And I’m kind of pushing classic rock/New Wave ideas. So The Cars are DEFINITELY in there. Also New Order,  Blur, Wilco, Squeeze, The Who – tons of ideas being filtered thru.       

What is the first single from the album? First single is “Almost Whenever Now” (written and sung by Tegethoff). We have also made “Hey!,” “Hidden Days,” and just a week or so ago, “Missing Trains” available for free on SoundCloud. I think that will probably be all we let go for free right now. Although since we’re on Spotify, I have seen some of the other tracks get put on playlists. Which is really cool!

Any upcoming shows? We played at Star Bar 8/28, but frankly Covid is making everything really weird right now locally. Most people seem to still be avoiding shows, especially indoors. We promoted the living crap out of that August Star Bar show, but…meh. Attendance is unpredictable, venues are at odds with themselves about masks/vaccine mandates, etc. So, we might plan a show for when we receive the vinyl copies of the record in Jan/Feb. But for the time being we’re trying to crank out a new EP before the end of the year, and generate some video content of some kind.

If you still have no sense of what the actual heck this band sounds like, LISTEN! Or, read more from the group’s Bandcamp site:

“Q: What if…Elvis Costello had met the Attractions in Chapel Hill in 1988? The Cars had formed in Minneapolis in 1983? Joe Jackson made a record with the Pretenders? Blur attended university together in Athens, GA in the late 70s/early 80s?

A: VECTRALUX.”  

To discover more about the newest sounds coming straight outta Georgia, visit the band’s website and show them some love by purchasing the new album at Bandcamp.

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