VERSA

Versa biography
Formed in 2006 by a group of musicians who met at the University of Victoria School Of Music, British Columbia, Canada with a shared interest in art rock and prog rock. One of the members Matthew Holmage has expressed a particular interest in the post-rock bands Sigur Rós, Mogwai and Godspeed You! Black Emperor and a desire to fuse this with the style of more mainstream prog bands such as Yes and Genesis.

Their self titled debut was released in 2007 followed by The Decline & Fall of... in 2010. The project was put on semi permanent hiatus until the release of their 3rd album A Voyage / A Destination in 2022. This was envisaged as a double concept album and they enlisted the help of such prog luminaries as Nick D'Virgilio and Ross Jennings in its making. Part 1 has 4 tracks of varying length, the centrepiece being the 26.59 track "Voyage" including the vocal talents of Marjana Semkina of Russian duo Iamthemorning. A Voyage / A Destination, Part 2 was released on 4 October 2024 and features Jennings on the song "Flew The Coop." This is structured differently with 11 short tracks plus the 17 minute "Artemis."

Matthew would like to get an up and running live version of the band if festival opportunities presented themselves. The current line up of the band is Matthew Dolmage, Benjamin Rancourt, Anthony Theocharis with Michelle Edwards on trumpet and Janelle Wrona on keyboards. Guitarist Hollas Longton provides creative support from his home in Holland.


- Richardh, October 2024