Continuing our series of written interviews with unsigned and independent acts, we had the opportunity to submit questions to Vespa Vulgaris.
How did you form?
Will Hessey (guitarist & singer) and Drew MacDonald (drummer) initially met in 2005 and have worked on various projects together over the years that followed. Mancunian Niki Downey joined the group more recently as bassist and artist. Although we have different personalities, we gel well together, have a great working rapport and each brings something different to the songwriting table.
How would you describe your music?
Our music is a sparkly cocktail of indie/alternative rock with a smidge of post-punk thrown in. We co-write all our own music and lyrics and we’re not afraid to experiment with a range of big and smaller name brand gear so each track has a unique sound. Our style of music heavily influences our artwork for the music, as done by Niki.
Where did your name come from?
“Vespa Vulgaris” – not only the name of a popular beat combo, is a Latin synonym (a scientific name that now goes by a different one) for the Common Wasp. That said, we thought it just sounded cool…
Tell us about your latest release…
Our latest release, self-titled “Vespa Vulgaris” is a punchy instrumental rock track with a raw fuzz sound.
What are your gigs like?
Because we love what we do so much, especially performing live, we see any chance, small or big as an opportunity to communicate with our fans. From the humble local open mic to the bigger supported gigs.