SAN ANTONIO – When you live in San Antonio and you see a local band dub themselves your “emo primos,” you know you’re in for a good time.
Vintage Pictures, a four-piece energetic powerhouse, was founded by brothers Christian and Jacob Felan. The band expanded with bassist Gabe Jimenez and guitarist Jalen Johnson. The band has been playing shows around town for seven years since then. Each member brings a different influence to the sound, with sounds ranging from Hardcore Punk to Shoegaze to Cumbia and Norteño.
“Shoegaze” is a genre of alternative rock characterized by its ethereal soundscapes, heavy use of reverb and other effects. The term “shoegaze” itself comes from the way musicians often look down at their effects pedals as they play, seemingly appearing as if they’re gazing at their shoes.
“Everyone’s all over the place, but that’s how our concoction of sound is made,” says vocalist Christian Felán.
The band enjoys the way that the San Antonio music scene is a tight-knit community of people who can support each other.
“I think the cool thing is there’s a stage for everybody,” drummer Jacob Felán says. “We’ve had friends in the music scene that we met since we started, and they’re still going at it.”
Felán echoes this sentiment, highlighting the creative synergy in the city.
“My favorite thing is all the creatives that are in San Antonio because you can tell we all inspire each other,” says Felán.
Guitarist Jalen Johnson appreciates the scene’s diversity.
“They have a lot of hardcore and punk, and Shoegaze is really popping off. But there’s also like a lot of Indie, Tejano, just a lot of stuff to draw influence from and vibe with,” said Johnson.
Despite the vibrant community, the San Antonio music scene faces challenges, particularly the closure of venues.
“I’ve seen a lot of venues close in recent years, and it’s kind of taking away those safe spaces. I wish there were more opening back up to build that community,” says bassist Gabe Jimenez.
Songwriting for Vintage Pictures is a collaborative effort, although the timeline for a song getting written can depend on different factors.
“Sometimes it’s me and Christian locked away in a room and then we just hash out an entire song and then shelve it for a year. Then, when Jalen or J.J. bring it up, they put their own twist on what we had, and it turns out way better than what we had originally. Sometimes it could just be as simple as a riff, and then everybody dives in at practice, and then it’s like, ‘Oh my God, we wrote a song in five minutes,’” explains Jimenez.
Their latest single, “Mi Obsesión," showcases their versatility. Guitarist Johnson says the song is a style that the band had wanted to write for a long time.
“We were wanting to write a Cumbia kind of song for awhile and we had three different ideas that we’d been working on individually. One day at practice, we were just like, ‘Hey, what if we just smash them all together?’ and they all happened to be in the same key.”
For this SA Vibes set, Vintage Pictures performs “Lil' Guy,” “Purple Dino,” “Twist of Fate,” and “Mi Obsesión.”
You can catch Vintage Pictures at Smash’d every first Saturday and third Friday of the month. They also have a First Friday show coming up at The Lighthouse Lounge on Feb. 7.
KSAT also asked the band for a few local music recommendations! After you check out their set, they recommend you give a listen to Street Lamp, Temachii, Powdered Wig Machine, and HoneyBunny.
You can find more information and music from Vintage Pictures on their Instagram or their Spotify. There are more links to music and performances on their Linktree.
You can learn more about KSYM 90.1 FM on their website. Special thanks to Cameron Reid, Donnie Meals and the KSYM staff for hosting us and mixing the music for this performance.
About SA Vibes
San Antonio is well-known for its culture, but the local music scene has always seemed a bit hidden.
Unless someone takes you to a local show — at venues like The Lonesome Rose, Hi-Tones, The Mix, Paper Tiger and 502 Bar — chances are you’ll never even know our music scene exists. That’s what made me decide to launch this passion project that we’re calling “SA Vibes.”
My name is Valerie, and I’m a video editor at KSAT. I’ve been attending local shows for over a decade, and I want to put a spotlight on the great talent that San Antonio has to offer.
Each month, we’ll be releasing a new “SA Vibes” video across all KSAT digital platforms and our YouTube channel, showcasing a local musician performing live versions of their songs from music venues around the city and the KSAT garden.
If you’re a San Antonio musician and would like to be a part of this project, please send information about your next show to our SA Vibes email. (We can only feature original music because of licensing.)
