Ones To Watch: The Vintage Caravan

The Vintage Caravan are Óskar Logi Ágústsson (lead vocals, guitar), Alexander Örn Númason (bass, backing vocals) and Stefán Ari Stefánsson (drums).

Despite only being in their mid-twenties, The Vintage Caravan’s history stretches back more than a decade when schoolmates Óskar Logi Ágústsson and Guðjón Reynisson formed a band in the tiny town of Álftanes, Iceland. Sharing a deep-rooted penchant for rock music, the duo self-released their eponymous debut album when they were still fresh-faced teenagers in 2009 before penning a deal with Icelandic imprint Sena and unleashing their second album ‘Voyage’ in 2012 with bassist Alexander Örn Númason added to their ranks.

Won over by the trio’s embryonic talents, influential German rock imprint Nuclear Blast snapped up The Vintage Caravan in 2013, re-releasing ‘Voyage’ and funding a potent video for album offshoot ‘Expand Your Mind’. In keeping with the song’s heady lyrics and the psychedelic music, the kaleidoscopic, mind-bending video sees all three band members go on drug-induced trips that take them to space and beyond. At the time of writing the video has amassed a whopping 750,000 views and counting.

With their career on an upward trajectory, the band wowed at prestigious rock extravaganzas including Wacken Open Air and Hard Rock Hell in 2014 before laying down their first album (proper) with Nuclear Blast. On the eve of the release of ‘Arrival’ in May 2015, The Vintage Caravan announced the departure of co-founding member Reynisson with Stefán Ari Stefánsson replacing him. Widely lavished with plaudits and perfectly showcasing the band’s eclectic musical palate, the gargantuan-sounding album has a maturity that truly belies their tender years. 

Zip forward to 2018 and The Vintage Caravan have returned to the fold with their fourth studio album ‘Gateways’, which was released to the world last Friday (31st August). Recorded at Sigur Rós’ Sundlaugin Studios in Iceland and boasting the rip-roaring single ‘Reset’, The Vintage Caravan say of the record: “Overall we think this album feels more mature than the previous ones. We really pushed ourselves to make this album sound as great as possible. I won't name any names but some people have been heard saying this is the greatest thing since sliced bread.”

To celebrate the Ones To Watch feature, we have an exclusive premiere of The Vintage Caravan performing the Big Bill Broonzy track that Eric Clapton famously covered ‘Hey Hey’. Check it out here:

The Vintage Caravan will embark on an extensive European Gateways tour throughout the autumn including the following six UK dates:

NOVEMBER 2018
Nottingham Rescue Rooms – 8th
Hard Rock Hell – 9th
London - The Borderline – 10th
Glasgow - King Tut's Wah Wah Hut – 12th
Manchester Rebellion – 13th
Bristol Exchange – 14th

You can buy ‘Gateways’ on Limited Edition Digipack CD here and Limited Edition Black Vinyl here.

If you like what you hear, you can also keep up-to-date with The Vintage Caravan on their official website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.