Eli and Carrie Mardock (seen with their son, Lux), Jeremy Wardlaw and Jeremy Buckley (not pictured) are the owners and operators of Vega, a nearly-open Haymarket music venue.
courtesy photo by J.J. Dreier
by Chance Solem-Pfeifer
When it comes to building a new Lincoln venue literally from the ground up, the owners of Vega say they’ve learned to hurry up and wait.
“It’s kind of like being in school again, a lot of homework, deadlines,” says part-owner Jeremy Wardlaw.
“And pop quizzes,” adds co-owner Eli Mardock.
Naturally, the operators of the two-days-from-open Railyard music venue at 350 Canopy Street, Suite 220 want to book diverse shows and have fresh, high-quality ingredients for their menu of gourmet hot dogs (affectionately called “haute dogs”), but they also need walls. And a floor. The construction schedule thus far has meant working on the fly with the contractors, referencing a “massive,” sometimes indecipherable document about what will go where.
But that set of assignments is almost over for the owners: Mardock, his wife, Carrie, (the duo at the center of the Lincoln band Eli Mardock), Wardlaw and Jeremy Buckley. Vega will open for its first day of business Saturday with its first performances scheduled for Sunday from A Ferocious Jungle Cat and The Wondermonds.
Tracing back the origins of Vega, they remain a little conceptual. Wardlaw says the idea for a combination music venue/eatery existed in the minds of all four owners for a long time, since before he knew who the Mardocks were in the context of Nebraska music. Eventually, it was the couple who approached Buckley, the founder and organizer of Lincoln Calling, and Wardlaw, who has bartended and booked acts at Duffy’s Tavern, to make it a reality.
But only after everyone else said “no,” Wardlaw jokes.
After looking at other sites, in March 2012, they were approached by Railyard developer WRK with the opportunity to put their venue at the heart of the forthcoming entertainment district.
“In the end, we decided it was kind of a no-brainer,” Eli says. “We want to get in on this. You’re in the center of it all.”
With the venue name’s predominant V, the group of owners says they’ve found a simple, chic brand. It’s the back half of their LLC name, Astra Vega.
“We wanted something cosmic and astral-sounding,” Eli says. “We liked the AV (of Astra Vega), but Vega is a much stronger word. I think we whittled it down and came to that.”
“That was the easiest decision we made in the whole process,” Carrie says.
The idea for Vega is a combination of eatery, bar and music venue (open daily from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.), but one that they say must appeal to the changing crowds in the Haymarket, depending upon what larger events are happening and what day of the week it is. Not dipping into a niche or being coined a certain type of venue is a priority.
“I think it’s important for us to be really cool, but also accessible,” Eli says. “Cool bands, employees and owners, but if there’s an event at arena and you just went to a basketball game with your dad or grandfather, they’re not going to feel weird being here.”
“I think certain people in the community might not feel like they’re the kind of person to go to Duffy’s, not to pick on Duffy’s,” Carrie says. “My mom wouldn’t want to go there. She wouldn’t feel comfortable there.”
The roles of the Mardocks, Buckley and Wardlaw at Vega are well-defined but not necessarily binding. Eli says that Vega’s four-headed ownership is not an arbitrary demarcation of responsibility — with Buckley on the booking, Wardlaw on the bar, Eli in charge of the menu and Carrie handling finances — just that the roles rose up out of the quartet’s personal strengths and experiences.
Where they all overlap, though, is music.
So far, Vega has booked appearances by Tim Kasher, the ‘90s-era alt rock band Filter, as well as a handful of local shows including Funk Trek and Halfwit.
VEGA'S FIRST WEEK OF CONCERTS:
A Ferocious Jungle Cat w/ The Wondermonds
Sunday, November 3
8 p.m.
Filter w/ Fight or Flight, We As Human, & Nothing More
Tuesday, November 5
9 p.m.
The Envy Corps w/ Twinsmith, Tie These Hands
Wednesday, November 6
9 p.m.
Funk Trek w/ AZP & Foam Form
Thursday, November 7
9 p.m.
Bourbon Theatre Presents Portland Cello Project w/ Mondegreen (feat. Kurt Knecht and Jonah Sirota of Chiara String Quartet)
Sunday, November 10
7 p.m.
The Vega owners have maintained they intend to collaborate with the downtown venues where they’ve worked, performed and patronized for the last decade. This collaboration could take on the form of cross-venue booking. Portland Cello Project, which will perform at Vega on Nov. 10, was a show booked by The Bourbon for example. Carrie Mardock anticipates there will be “a lot of shows like that.”
“We’re coming from the perspective that the demand for live music in LIncoln is greater than what’s being met,” Carrie says. “So everyone will be fine.”
As for the idea of music scene saturation, it’s an issue that’s come up in name only.
“The worst thing ever is the best thing ever when there are too many good shows happening in one city when you have to choose where to hang out and spend your money,” Wardlaw says. “It’s a good problem to have.”
Likewise, Eli says he feels that healthy competition among venues is only going to benefit concertgoers.
“I’m not saying anyone needs to, but if any (venue) is feeling the heat, they’ll step up their game,” he says. “Everyone will do their part to make sure they’re still viable.”
While the doors are not yet open and furniture is still being constructed, moved and organized, as the owners look down the road to their first month, six months and year as a business, there’s no defined plateau for their success.
“We’ll never be comfortable,” Wardlaw says. “There’s always something more to do. Once you hit this benchmark, what’s next? This is indefinite. Never stop and say, ‘We made it.’”
As for how vibrant and busy the surrounding area will be in the next year, the Mardocks recognize that Vega and The Railyard are in a position to feed off each other. They say there is a natural uncertainty with regard to how well the larger development will perform, but they hope Vega has a hand in galvanizing its success.
“We’ve gotten that question: What if the whole thing is a flop?’” Carrie says. “The answer to that is I think our presence is really going to help the whole complex succeed.”
Chance Solem-Pfeifer is Hear Nebraska’s staff writer. Stay attuned to the Vega calendar for new shows, and see the concerts booked so far below. Reach him at chancesp@hearnebraska.org.