| VHS or Beta | |
| Background: | group_or_band |
| Origin: | Louisville, Kentucky, USA |
| Genre: | Alternative rock Indie rock Post-punk revival |
| Years Active: | 1997–present |
| Label: | Astralwerks |
| Current Members: | Craig Pfunder Mark Palgy |
| Past Members: | Zeke Buck Jerome Miller Mark Guidry Mike McGill Chea Beckley Jason Clark Jim Orso |
VHS or Beta is a band originally from Louisville, Kentucky, later based in Brooklyn, New York, that combines elements of rock, house and disco.[1] The band takes their name from the videotape format war of the 1970s and 1980s, where Sony's Beta format competed with JVC's VHS.
Their self-released debut EP Le Funk found some success on the charts, but the band became better known in the wake of the 2004 album Night on Fire. After two and half years of touring, VHS or Beta recorded 2007's Bring on the Comets in Asheville, North Carolina, marking a slight change in direction towards a more straightforward pop sound, achieved without sacrificing their trademark dance sensibility.
Later singles "Feel It When You Know" (2009) and "All Summer in a Day" (2010) were issued on their own Chromosome Records label. The band's third album Diamonds and Death was released in September 2011 by Krian Music Group, followed by a dub version of the album in 2012.
The band's core members are guitarist/vocalist Craig Pfunder and bassist Mark Palgy. Guitarist Zeke Buck and drummer Mark Guidry, both founding members, left the band in 2006 and 2010, respectively. Guitarists Mike McGill and Eric Rodgers, keyboardists Chea Beckley and Jerome Miller, and drummers Jim Orso and Chris Berry have all toured and/or recorded with the band.
Palgy and Pfunder were in early 1990s band Raze with former Elliott and current Wax Fang drummer Kevin Ratterman.
In 2005, VHS or Beta opened for Duran Duran on a leg of the latter's 2005 North American tour.
The band's song "Night on Fire" was featured in Grandma's Boy and on The O.C., in addition to Mack Dawg Production's 2006 Follow Me Around. It was also used as part of the soundtrack for the videogame ."Burn It All Down" was featured on the soundtrack for the 2009 documentary The September Issue.