With Vega 4 and Augustana as the billed entertainment one knows they are going to be treated to some great music. In the smoky darkness of Fort Lauderdale's Culture Room, Vega 4 was first to take the stage.

Vega 4 is a band from London, but the individual players come from every corner of the world. John McCaid, the lead singer, is from Ireland, as well as bass player and avid Paul McCartney fan, Gavin Fox. Bruce Gainsford, the guitarist, is from New Zealand, or as John put it during the performance, "Where Lord of the Rings was filmed." Last but not least, Bryan McLellan, the drummer, is from Canada.

{mosgoogle right} Together this band writes and plays songs telling stories which their audiences connect with. John McCaid's voice is moving and soulful. He sang the songs with a spirit and passion that transcended throughout the club and touched everyone who listened. At times, the audience was so fixed on the music, one would think they were placed under some sort of spell. On some of the other songs, the audience sang along, clapped, cheered and connected with him.

These band members know how to please their crowd. John greeted the audience with a hardy, "Hello people from Florida!" It was gracious and cheerful. John made sure that he talked to the crowd while segueing into each number. Gavin introduced John as the lead singer, and joked that the only reason why John was from Ireland, "was because it was an accident at birth."

They moved onto their next song, "You", dedicating it to Augustana as a thank you to the band for letting them share the tour.

All the members played with an enthusiasm and energy, reflected by the crowd's positive reception of them. John did more than his part to connect with the audience by jumping off stage and literally wandering into the crowd itself, greeting its members and happily accepting hugs and kisses from the predominantly female audience. This band is truly one whose progress bears watching.

Augustana, the five-piece band that continuously cycles through lead guitarists and keyboard players, hails from Los Angeles. They opened their act with the sixth track from their CD, All the Stars and Boulevards, called "Feel Fine". Dan Layus, the lead singer and member of the more consistent trio of the group, sang the song with the same rich vocals that one would enjoy while listening to the CD.

"All the Stars and Boulevards" was delivered with soulful melody. Dan, without a doubt, knows how to move his audience emotionally and this song's melancholy tune worked wonders. "Sunday Best", a personal favorite off of the CD, had the audience singing merrily along.

The band even appeased the nagging wishes of the audience by playing their hit from the CD, "Boston".

The band's performance was a little stiff, performing with an "all business" attitude. Dan, Jared Palomar (bass), and Chris Sachtleben ( lead guitarist) made very little effort to interact with the audience. The disconnection with the crowd became apparent during the middle of the act.

In spite of Jared, who occasionally got the audience jumping with him on the more upbeat tunes, Augustana's stage presence seemed to reflect a band whose members have been on tour way too long. They played well and their delivery was flawless. They even treated the crowd to some of their new material, which was warmly received. Yet, somehow, one felt these guys really could have used some well earned, and much needed, rest.

Based on the audience's consistent response: repeated singing of lyrics to all of the other songs played from their CD, deafening applause after they completed their encore—decidedly so.

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3.25 Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."