VEGA

Life On Earth

PRODUCERS: various

Freeworld/Capitol 7243-5-20161

The vocal and songwriting talent of this male quartet from Detroit caught the ears of current Grammy nominee and hit-making producer Dallas Austin (TLC, Boyz II Men). Adopting a futuristic persona-reminiscent of George Clinton's space-age '70s high jinks-Vega works its way through a 14-track set that features a cross-section of uptempo and midtempo tracks, along with guest appearances by JT Money ("No Dough") and TLC's Chilli ("Spread My Wings"). Strip away the futuristic imaging and other production bells and whistles, and you can hear what initially attracted Austin: The foursome is particularly strong on the tender ballads "Heaven Needed You," "Another Day," and "No More." However, it remains to be seen how well they'll be able to hold their own against the genre's growing contingent of guy groups.