In March of 2016 we talked with up and coming band VISTA before the release of their debut EP "VERSUS," you can read that article here. Since then the band's popularity has grown and we had the chance to catch up with them before the release of their next single "Henchmen."

VISTA is:

Hope Vista: Lead vocals/guitar
Greg Almeida: Guitar
Matther Vlossak: Drums

Crowdsurf Central: How did fans respond to your EP 'VERSUS'?
Hope: I think the response was pretty good! I was happy with it. It was a pretty rushed process, but you learn a ton with each release and the fact that it was received well as a new band has been a super great thing to expand on.

Crowdsurf Central: What inspired the slightly heavier sound in "Henchmen?"
Hope: I think collectively we all thought that “On The Brink” and “Mansions” were the two strongest songs on “VERSUS,” so I personally wanted to take the dark undertone of “Mansions” and kind of smash it together with “On The Brink,” which was written to define VISTA’s sound as anthem rock. So we’ve just been exploring different grounds as to what that genre means and how we can explain it to people when they ask. We’re constantly exploring, experimenting!
Greg: Honestly, it just got a tad heavier naturally. The lyrics Hope came up with at first kinda catered to that. Then we just took them and applied it. Other songs could be softer, who knows.

Crowdsurf Central What are you looking forward to most about opening for Against the Current?
Hope: To be honest, I’m completely terrified. I’ve been so nervous and just anxious every day since we found out about the show. But I’m just going to use that nervous energy and throw it into our set. I’m stoked to potentially expand our audience, play with such a sick lineup, and have this opportunity right in front of us. It’s gonna be sick.
Greg: Stoked to hang and hopefully make some new fans. And to come off stage sweating and feeling like we did good as a band. Stoked to meet everybody!
Matt: Jeez. Just having the blessing to open for ATC, a band I've admired for awhile and always wanted to see them live. The fans have wanted it for so long too which is weird since our band's are so diff. It won't hit me until seconds before we play and I'm on stage putting my in ears in.

Crowdsurf Central: As an opening band, what do you do (either individually or as a band) to get the crowd hyped up?
Hope: We all have a ton of energy on stage and just feed off of that natural high. We’ve been an opening band before, so we understand what that entails and know that we have to work 10x harder than the last time to really pull the crowd in and get those audience members to feel what we’re doing. The fact that we’re able to work together cohesively on stage is a big, big comfort.
Greg: Covers help. Just be personable. Be yourself. Show them why they should like you, etc. Matt: If you're not walking off the stage at the end of the set drenched in sweat and gasping for air then you didn't go hard enough. I have a tendency to stand up at certain parts and shout out lyrics or clap my sticks together to get the crowd involved.

Crowdsurf Central: "Henchmen" is full of energy. Do you bring the same energy to the studio as you do the stage?
Hope: Yeah! I actually get really bored at the studio…. which is probably a bad thing to say. But I really put so much of my energy into performing. By the time that adrenaline wears off by the last song of our set, I start to feel like a wet noodle because of how much energy I put out. I’m just an energetic person in general, though. I like to jump around and dance, sing, be silly. That’s just my personality naturally!
Greg: Yeah, I try to literally go nuts with every show I play. I'm really glad we got that energy out on the recording though. Makes me happy!
Matt: I normally don't watch the crowd because you'll find me headbanging and hitting hard. I obv. don't run around or have the freedom the other two have. But I make my drum parts around what I'm capable of doing behind the kit while giving that kid who came to our show the best performance they've ever seen.

Crowdsurf Central: "Henchmen" comes out on Jan 13th - what comes next?
Hope: “VERSUS” was only put out like… 7 months ago. It feels like over a year. But it’s only been 7-8 months, so we aren’t in a rush to throw another EP out there so quickly. We really want to write and not necessarily move at a slow pace on purpose, but we want to make sure every track on the next EP is properly developed. I think our goal is May/June for a new EP. And touring in the Spring hopefully.
Greg: Some more new music being written, for sure. And some more shows! Probably on the East coast for now. But we would like to go into new markets this summer!
Matt: Writing and touring is top priority. VERSUS was a step in the right direction. I want to have new songs for sure. I have a tendency to get bored haha, it's my A.D.D.

Keep an eye on Crowdsurf Central for the debut of "Henchmen" on January 13th.