I don’t feel good about giving a negative review, but every Vedera song sounded the same. I was expecting a little more variety. And when a band uses lyrics that include “I see that sparkle in your eye,” (or anything close to it) I know it’s time for me to bail. Vedera are a great pop-rock band… if you’re in high school. The vocalist did steal the show as I excepted, and she was phenomenal, but the rest of the band did not impress me enough to get passed the general boringness of it all. I felt bad for them since only 40 or 50 people showed up and many of them were sitting at the bar. I figure that if I’m going to watch a band, I will show them enough respect to at least stand up. I guess I needed more rock and less pop. Twenty-five minutes of their set was all I could handle.

The other surprise Vedera’s opener. They were better than I expected. Though the singer looked about 16, This Is Me Smiling put on a solid show of piano-laced rock. Imagine a younger Ben Folds Five with electric guitar, but not quite that good yet. Give them a few more years (at least until they stop claiming “dependent” on their tax returns).

Vedera didn’t cure my music funk. I think what I really need is a Flogging Molly show.