The Vindys Release Live Album, New Single in March
After a quiet year, the band The Vindys is enjoying a flurry of activity.
The group played two weeks ago at the Canton Palace Theatre, where fans had a choice of attending in person with limited-capacity, socially distanced seating or livestreaming the show from the comfort of their own homes.
On Friday the band will release “Live at the Westside Bowl,” a recording of a 2019 concert at the Youngstown venue. And next Friday brings the release of “Morning Light,” the latest single from its upcoming album “Bugs,” which lead singer and guitar player Jackie Popovec promised will be released this year … she’s just not sure when.
The Canton concert was the first show by The Vindys — John Anthony, guitar and vocals; Ed Davis, drums and vocals; Rick Deak, guitar and vocals: Matt Jackson, bass; and Popovec — since playing for thousands of people outdoors in February 2020 for Cleveland’s Brite Winter music and arts festival.
“I thought it would be really weird with the limited seating, but it was just fantastic to play again,” Popovec said. “Whether it was 10 people or a thousand, we would have played the same. It was great just to be with the band.”
There was a sure fire sign how excited her bandmates were to play in front of audience again — everyone showed up early for soundcheck.
“That never happens.”
Popovec said she believes concerts like Canton show are going to become norm, even as live performances resume.
“The streaming stuff is here to stay,” she said. “That technology is going to stay around. Bands are going to have to get a nice camera rig and do everything — get a nice camera, good quality audio and good quality video. We feel like a production team.”
“Live from the Westside Bowl” will be available on streaming sites and for digital download beginning Friday, and the CD version can be pre-ordered on the band’s website (thevindys.com).
The band recorded the Westside Bowl show without a release plan in mind.
“We didn’t know if we’d want to release it now or 10 years from now,” Popovec said. “It was a good time to dive in and work on it since we weren’t doing anything for the moment … It’s kind of a nice snapshot of The Vindys and what we’ve done so far.”
The band will do a virtual album release party at 6 p.m. Friday from Westside Bowl that will be livestreamed on its Facebook page. Popovec said they’re encouraging fans to come out and pick up dinner to support the venue, which hasn’t been able to host concerts with an audience for a year. Discounted Vindys’ merchandise also will be available.
Some of the songs from the band’s first album, “Keep Going,” that can be heard on the Westside Bowl recording will be replaced in the live set once regular performing resumes by material from “Bugs,” Popovec said, although the band was previewing some of the new songs in the live set before the COVID-19 pandemic started.
The studio version of “Morning Light” will be released to streaming services on March 19.
“Rick and I wrote that song,” Popovec said. “It starts as a ballad and has a build up in the middle — crashing drums, some really cool vocals at the end with some sweeping guitar sounds. John is definitely all over this as well. It’s me trying to write a nice ballad song for the band.”
The band hasn’t set a release date for “Bugs” because Popovec said she wants to be able to play shows to support it. But The Vindys won’t wait much longer regardless.
“That’s the next thing we’re working on,” she said. “It will be out soon, before summer. It’s on the sweater — Bugs 2021 — so it’s coming out this year.
“For me it’s almost time to move on again. I have all these new songs I’ve written. I kind of just want to get in the studio again.”