In 1988, Vega became the bass player for a
New York hardcore band Collapse. Collapse released a demo and contributed a track on the 1988
New Breed cassette compilation released by Freddy Alva of Wardance Records. In 1989, Vega replaced Alan Peters (ex-
Agnostic Front bassist) in the New York hardcore band Absolution. In 1990, Vega was instrumental in forming the new
post-hardcore band
Quicksand; at the time Vega was a prominent bassist of the genre. Quicksand released their debut album,
Slip, in February 1993. In February 1995, Quicksand released their second album,
Manic Compression. Later that year, Quicksand disbanded, and Vega began to DJ around New York City and Japan. The band reunited briefly in 1997 and toured with
Deftones the next year. After this tour, the band desired to write a followup to
Manic Compression, although tensions between bandmates caused the band to split up permanently. In 1999, when Deftones bassist
Chi Cheng was unable to perform onstage during a Deftones tour due to a toe surgery, Vega filled in for him on bass. In addition to his career with Quicksand and Deftones, Vega has released solo material. He released his first solo
EP entitled
The Ray Martin Sessions through the indie record label grapeOS in 2000. Vega's solo work was more similar to melodic
pop-rock of
The Beatles than his heavier
hardcore- and
metal-based work in Quicksand and Deftones. the success of
The Ray Martin Sessions allowed Vega to tour the US and UK. He toured with former
Orange 9mm/
Helmet guitarist
Chris Traynor, musician/fashion model
Sibyl Buck, and Charlie Walker (
Split Lip) on drums. In June 2012, Vega and Quicksand would secretly reunite to play a surprise set at Revelation Records' 25th anniversary show. This performance was followed by an appearance on the
Jimmy Fallon Show as well as two headlining shows at
The Bowery Ballroom and The Music Hall of Williamsburg in August 2012. Quicksand would later act as one of the headliners at California's FYF set. In January 2013, Quicksand embarked on their first tour since the late 1990s. They released their third album,
Interiors, in November 2017. The band released their fourth full-length album,
Distant Populations, in 2021. On March 9, 2022, Vega announced in an
Instagram post that he had departed from Deftones. In a video explaining his departure, he cited a contract dispute as the reason for leaving, saying, "Our respective management had a conversation to discuss a new contract, and they offered me the same deal... At that point, it was clear there was no opportunity for growth for me. So I declined the offer. And then I called the guys immediately to see where the miscommunication was to resolve it, but there was no response. A couple of days later, I received an email from their lawyer that their offer was withdrawn, and that they wished me the best." Vega follows a
vegan lifestyle. ==Equipment==