Vedera's Single "Satisfy" Off Album "Stages" EP

At once aggressive, atmospheric, and emotionally forceful, Vedera are a four-piece indie rock band from Kansas City, Missouri, who have made a name for themselves through a pair of small-label recordings and plenty of touring. The band was formed in 2004 by singer, guitarist and pianist Kristen May and lead guitarist Brian Little, worked together in a band called Red Authentic, and joined forces with bassist Jason Douglas and drummer Drew Little.
Kristen May was raised in a musical family, so she was influenced by her mom's Joni Mitchell and Carole King records while also exploring Stone Temple Pilots and Nirvana, the bands her brother was into. May got her first guitar at age 17 and began penning her own songs. Brian Little and May knew each other in high school and started a band together after dropping out of college. In 2003, high-school friend Jason Douglas was asked to join the outfit along with Little's younger brother Drew. The group was named Veda, in part for "Vedha," a Hindu word meaning "sacred writings" and in part for Vada, the character played by Anna Chulmsky in the 1991 film My Girl. The new band quickly went into the studio and released its first EP, "This Broken City," though Second Nature Recordings, a Kansas City-based independent label. A year later, Vedera released their first full-length album, "The Weight of an Empty Room," but shortly afterward the band changed its name from 'Veda' to 'Vedera' to avoid legal action after learning another act was using the same name. Vedera wasted little time establishing the new moniker, re-releasing "The Weight of an Empty Room" and logging more road work, co-headlining a tour with Dear and the Headlights.
Vedera is now ready to take on the world with their forthcoming second and major-label debut album, "Stages." "We're a family and we're very devoted to this life and to our music," May says. "We try to be as honest as we can and put everything we have out there with as much conviction as possible." According to a recent blog on the group's Myspace page, "Stages" will be available on iTunes on October 6, and is produced by Mike Flynn and Warren Huart (The Fray, Augustana). Rough cuts of "Back to the Middle," "Satisfy," "Forgive You," and "Taking Chances" have been made available on the band's MySpace page.
Satisfied now? The first single "Satisfy" explores a question which we all see ourselves asking at some point in our time: Is there anything left in the world that will satisfy me? The answer is yes, and it lies within the lyrics. Vedera has a strong voice which is sure to entertain and it cuts away from those cookie cutter artists. I heard them for the first time, and Kristen has a beautiful voice!

JLS Tops UK Singles Chart With "Beat Again"

The British boyband JLS (Jack The Lad Swing) went straight in at the top of the UK Singles Chart on last Sunday with their brand new single "Beat Again." The 4-member R&B band, who were runners-up in the 5th series of ITV reality talent show "The X Factor" last year, coming 2nd to Alexandra Burke, but now they have the biggest-selling #1 debut single this year, has now replaced Gaga's "Just Dance", and Pixie Lott's "Mama Do", and took the #1 spot from Euro-pop band Cascada. "Beat Again" sold over 100,000 copies to be crowned the biggest selling first week, the Official Charts Company said, with only Dizzee Rascal's Bonkers having higher weekly sales in 2009.

JLS appear to be a boyband on the brink of success. Industry insiders are already heralding them as the biggest and most successful launch since Westlife a decade ago. Their single "Beat Again" shot to the top of the charts this week and is shaping up to be one of the hits of the summer. The band's website is the 3rd biggest in the world for a Sony act, trailing only Beyoncé and American Idol's Adam Lambert. George Ergatoudis, head of music at Radio 1, says: "There's definitely room for an exciting new boy band, to strike a balance with all the great new female artists." JLS is due to release their debut album later in the year, and have inked a contract with Epic stateside.

Alexandra Burke | "Hallelujah" (Live)

Alexandra Burke was born on 25 August 1988 in London, and winner of the 5th series of UK television singing talent show "The X Factor". Alexandra became the current European record holder for single sales over a period of 24 hours, selling 105,000 copies of her debut single, "Hallelujah", in one day. "Hallelujah" went on to become the Christmas #1 single of 2008. It is the 1st time that an X Factor winner has topped the end of year chart in the UK with their winner's single, and making Alexandra the 1st British female solo artist to sell a million copies of a single in the UK.

At the X Factor's final, she sang what would become her debut single, a 1984 song by Leonard Cohen, "Hallelujah", for the 1st time. Finally, with over 8 million votes cast in total, Alexandra was revealed as the winner with 58% of the final vote, which is 1 million more votes than JLS in the final. Alexandra's cover of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah", which she performed on the show, is available as a digital-download now, and will be released on CD next Wednesday (December 17th).