Music silly enough that never fails to amuse me,

Songs that make me want to headbang, start a moshpit and break stuff,

The simple (mostly acoustic) tunes with strong words that deserve to stay on repeat for days,

The songs that make me wish I wrote the lyrics,

And the songs that hurt my soul and make me get high on the pain.

VAST falls under the last two.

After a long day at work, I was ready to hurt, with a chest already burning from the mixture of Jager and beer. Philadelphia’s NorthStar Bar crowd was mellow yet excited, sipping on their beers, their eyes fixed on the stage. I have a tendency to huff and puff at the opening acts if I’m too excited and impatient for the headliner, but one of the three bands made me shut the hell up and listen carefully as my eyes wiggled from one band member to the other: August House.

As I was watching them get ready, little did I know that these four guys from OC, California were setting up to blow our heads off. They were explosives in human disguise, and once each one of them got behind their weapon of choice – Everit on vocals, Nick on guitar, Hayz on bass and Dennis on drums – the stage exploded. Their energy was vibrating the floorboards underneath my feet, and my vocabulary was narrowed down to “whoa” and “wow.” I won’t be able to tell you which songs they played since it was the first time I even heard of them, but I felt every single word and note inside my skull. Everit’s fingers clutching the pink duct-taped microphone as he threw himself on the floor, singing his guts out, Nick’s blurry face behind his black hair as he pounded and pounded on his guitar left me hungry for more. For the first time, I found myself running to the merchandise stand and purchasing CDs right after seeing an unfamiliar band.

When I met them after the show and collected autographs, I was fascinated by how humble and down-to-earth they were. Instead of having to face a “I signed your shit; now get the hell out of my face” attitude, I found myself chatting with them, talking about our tattoos, what’s where in Philly, and how they travel – for those of you who might be curious, they drive everywhere, and Philly was their 13th stop on the tour. 13! I could’ve sworn it was their first.

After August House was Kill the Alarm, and then it was time for VAST. My elbows glued onto the side of the stage, in front of the microphone stand that was obviously going to be Jon Crosby’s, I was ready for the ride: I was on a rollercoaster, and the duration of the ride was twenty songs. The wind was burning my face, my heart was beating faster and faster with excitement and satisfaction, my lips were singing every word to the tunes that tickled my insides. During “Pretty When You Cry,” I closed my eyes and made a stop inside my little brain, getting lost inside dreams, feelings and memories. When I heard the first few notes of “Touched,” my eyes were wide open so I wouldn’t miss the view and carve it into my skull forever. “You guys are good,” said Crosby when everyone sang along to the “aieee-yeaaa.”

The set list was as follows (Thanks to Craig for stealing it for me): Here, Pretty When You Cry, Falling From the Sky, Thrown Away, Touched, Frog, I Don’t Have Anything, I Can’t Say No, The Last One, Free, Desert Garden, Tattoo of Your Name, You’re Too Young, Nights of White Satin, Flames, Turquoise, My TV and You, 3 Doors, Dirty Hole, Everything Passing (they didn’t play the last 3 songs, if I remember correctly). VAST will crawl under your skin and leave you begging for more; DO catch them on their Spring Tour.