Wild Beasts
Vega, 2012
2011 was a very good year for Wild Beasts. Their latest album “Smother” ranked high on almost any Best-Of list and a huge tour saw them play everywhere from Australia to Turkey to Mexico. The show in Copenhagen in December is the last of the tour and year, the flight back to the UK is booked for the next morning. We lead Tom and Hayden into the freight elevator that is normally used to get gear up to the main stage. The acoustics is amazing in there, yet there’s always the possibility that somebody calls the elevator and it starts to move unexpectedly and noisily (which of course happens as soon as we close the elevator door). But Hayden and Tom are in a good mood and burst into laughter – and not for the last time during this session. Right in the middle of the first take of “Bed of Nails” a stage worker pops into the elevator with perfect timing. He hesitates for a second before a short “oops” escapes him and everybody starts laughing again. Yet in the end we manage to get brilliant recordings of “Bed of Nails” and “Reach A Bit Further”, with the sound reverberating from the elevator walls and making Hayden’s and Tom’s impressive voices even more powerful.
- Camera
- Michael Luger
- Sound Recording
- Bence Kováts
- Post production
- Michael Luger
- Photography
- Tom Spray
- Artist
- Wild Beasts
Vega
If you find yourself in Copenhagen and like to go to shows there is no way past Vega. The 1996-opened venue in the Vesterbro neighbourhood hosts national and international acts from all kinds of musical genres on one of its many stages. The 1500-capacity “great hall” (Store Vega) is the place for well-known names and has seen Prince, Björk and David Bowie perform, while smaller and upcoming acts play in front of max. 500 people at Lille Vega. Additionally there are rooms and bars for club nights, more concerts, parties and other events. All this is housed in a beautiful modernist building from 1956, originally named “The People’s House” and designed by architect Vilhelm Lauritzen for the Danish worker’s union. The dark wood panels, mahogany floors and original details from the 1950s have been preserved despite the building being unused and deteriorating for many years before it was renovated and turned into a music venue. Visitors on a budget who still want to check out the atmosphere at Vega can always look for (usually free) events at Ideal Bar on the ground floor.