Vastards plays with musical nostalgia

Although the average Vassar student is more likely to have Animal Collective on their most recent Spotify playlist than old-school Britney Spears, that's not to say that nostalgia pop is underappreciated on this campus. Middle School Mug Night is always well-attended, and the Vastards, Vassar's nostalgia-pop-themed a cappella group, has many approving followers.

On Monday, Dec. 12 at 9 p.m. the Vastards are hosting their annual concert in Rockefeller Hall 300. As usual, all of the 10 groups on campus have come up with creative themes—ranging from ClassyCappella (Matthew's Minstrels) to the Night (Owls) of the Living Dead (the Night Owls) to A Very Merry Measure Unbirthday (Measure 4 Measure) to BAMcatz (Broadway and More A Cappella). But the Vastards theme this year is especially topical—Occupy Vastards: We are the 69 Percent.

The nonsensical theme is also typical of the Vastards, one of the newer a cappella groups on campus. The group started as the idea of two freshmen roommates, Kelsey Woods '06 and Jessica Copperman '06, in 2002, who wanted to create an alternative to the more established groups on campus. They held auditions to see who they could get, and ended up with about nine original members, some of whom either weren't accepted to other groups or hadn't auditioned for them, and wanted to find somewhere else to sing. By 2003 The Vastards gained Vassar Student Alliance (VSA) approval. The Vastards has worked on building its repertoire and fan base since then. By 2009, the group was chosen to compete in the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella.

The group primarily sings songs produced from 1985 to 2000. Member David Waldinger '13 said, "We leave ourselves a little bit of wiggle room so that we don't turn down song ideas solely on the basis that they're not quite our style, but the vast majority of our songs trigger that ‘Oh my God, I haven't heard this since my braces got locked with Cheryl's retainer under the bleachers!' effect.'"

The group has 18 members currently, and accepted five new freshmen from the large pool of students who auditioned this year. "The Vastards are some of the funniest, craziest and most diligent people I've ever worked with," Waldinger said. "And they definitely play as hard as they work. Seriously, if you ever find yourself invited to a Vastards party, accept the freakin' invitation."

Member Roman Mohr '14 echoed Waldinger. "We're quirky, we're loud, but we also know how to focus."

The group spends three two-hour sessions a week rehearsing. Lately, the group has been working on enhancing their sound and adding new songs to their repertoire. "Since I've joined the group, we've become a lot more serious," wrote Emma Young '12 in an emailed statement. "We're looking more at improving our pitch, soloists, individual skills and sound quality as a whole. On the large scale, we're trying to take a conglomerate of talented individuals, and turn it into a sort of single unit." For next semester the Vastards have planned to bring out "Lady Marmalade" (from the soundtrack for "Moulin Rouge!") and other, as of yet undecided, material.

Greg Shapiro '12, the group's pitch, recently arranged a medley of Destiny's Child songs, and Waldinger just arranged "What I Got" by Sublime, both of which will feature in the concert on Monday. "Those two songs are really an effort to diversify our repertoire ... we don't want people to just see the group as ‘pop' in the way of Britney Spears/Xtina Aguilera (although they are awesome and we love them, obviously)," wrote Young, "but see it as the entire scope of popular music, with a little something for everyone."

The group also has been working on polishing old songs, like the Spice Girls' "Say You'll Be There," and teaching them to their new members. The Vastards will also perform for their upcoming concert classics like Bonnie Taylor's "Total Eclipse of the Heart," Meredith Brook's "Bitch" and No Doubt's "Don't Speak."

"We're so excited to showcase all the work we've done this semester," said Mohr. "And the concert's sure to be a good time."