Folk and Indie Artist Veo Voom Enjoys Connecting with his Audience
By Netera Landar
I think the first thing you notice about folk and indie artist Veo Voom is his personality. He’s not afraid to be himself. I recently caught him on stage at The Eye Candy Music Club. He was wearing fuchsia-colored shield-visor sunglasses, a raccoon T-shirt, yellow cartoon shorts, and was holding a pizza guitar. I’m not joking. His body is covered in tats. That’s Veo.
I was introduced to him when he performed at Stoney McConnell’s party for his then-girlfriend, Chip, on April 11. They recently got married on Second Life.
“I think I’ve always been unapologetically myself. When I was younger, I tried to change to fit in, but it was just really exhausting,” he told me. “As I grew up and went through school, I slowly came out of my shell and just embraced my whole goofy personality (on the last day of my senior year of high school, I walked the halls playing my accordion). I also really enjoy connecting with the audience on multiple levels.”
It’s one thing to connect on a musical level. What he really enjoys is chatting with folks, joking around, and trying to add what’s said in chat into the current rhyme scheme.
Veo plays the guitar, but he also enjoys using a banjo. You might catch him putting his spin on cover songs. Oh, and he digs drums.
“They’re great exercise, and just super fun to play! The only formal training I’ve really had was a year or so of piano lessons when I was in elementary school. Then I briefly took some guitar lessons, but my teacher and I would just jam and play tunes out of Guitar World magazine. I’ve always had an ear for music, so that’s usually how I feel music out, and it’s what really enabled my addictive habit of trying to play just about anything,” said Veo.
Knowing that he touches upon numerous genres, I asked him which he feels more “at home” with. He enjoys singing classic rock, including covers by Cat Stevens, Jim Croce, The Beatles, and all the great singers his parents introduced him to over the years.
“That said, I have such a deep appreciation for music, and I feel like I have a bit of an eclectic taste, because there aren’t really many genres I don’t like,” he told me. “I do perform in RL venues here and there, mostly open mics and the occasional brewery gig.”
Veo is also a songwriter. His songs capture memories from his life, and sometimes they are inspired by a story of their own.
“I’ve never recorded a full album, but I did have an electronic EP back around 2010 under my old producer name, Kostya. I currently have one track out on all platforms (Forgotten Melody), and I’m working on an EP/album. The goal, in my mind, is (to complete it) by the end of the year,” he said.
You can also find Veo on YouTube, Spotify, and all the other platforms under his real-life artist name, Son of Hutch.
I asked what led him to Second Life?
Back in 2007, he learned about it through friends who would play Counter-Strike 1.6 and World of Warcraft with him. One of his friends said he was making beer money on the side selling digital tattoos, and that the whole virtual world was user-created.
“It really piqued my interest, so I dove down the beautiful rabbit hole of live music. I performed for about a year back in 2007, and then for about 13 years, I’d occasionally pop back in and then drift away again. In 2020, I came back when COVID hit and started performing again. Then I took another two-year break, and I came back around 2023, and I’ve been here ever since,” he said.
He calls Lonesome Dove his home base venue. That’s where he’s made so many friends. It’s also a no-stress environment that makes performing there relaxing. He’s also sung at United Rhythms, Streaming Falls, The DropZone, Pour Decisions, Eye Candy Music, NEF Live, Templemore, Pride at Home, Silent Melody, Love Kats, Bar None, Wanderlust, and so many more.
I asked what he loves singing, and he said, “Harvest Moon” by Neil Young; “Wicked Game” by Chris Isaak; and anything by Death Cab for Cutie.
What does he feel are the pros and cons of performing in a virtual world? He feels it’s a great opportunity to connect with and perform for people around the world right from his home. He feels the biggest con is not being able to see their reactions in real time. Gestures help to bridge that gap a bit.
Veo is managed by Honey and Sonny Stryder. His words: “They do a fantastic job helping me juggle all the things, making posts, and all that. I’m super thankful for them!”
He’s been super busy in real life, but if time permits, he’ll attend a set of another SL singer. He’s always down to hear some live music! He offers a shout-out to some of the amazingly talented performer friends he’s made over the years: Amberlin Amelia, Friar Fox, Frogg Marlowe, Selene Skyfall, Erika Ordinary, Prim Shady, Semina, Vic, Mimi Carpenter, Camme Carver, Tally Mercury, Coralie, and so many more if he had forever to tell us.
Netera Landar
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