EP Review | The Beautiful Nothing | Vistas

Edinburgh indie trio Vistas are a firm favourite of mine, so starting off the year with a new EP from them on January 26th is a massive treat. ‘The Beautiful Nothing‘ comprises five songs – four of which were released as singles, and then the previously unheard title track.

Back of the Car’ was the launch single, and it set the tone for this new project perfectly. It feels somewhat darker and more complex than everything the band had released up till this point, but it retains the upbeat tempo and catchy hooks they’re renowned for, and the writing duo of frontman Prentice Robertson and Spector’s Fred MacPherson provides.

Sophomore single ‘Follow You Down‘ is a sultry, edgy love song about how far you’d go for someone, and it has one of my favourite guitar riffs from Dylan Rush and vocals from Prentice in the band’s entire discography spanning all the way back to 2016. Jamie Law’s bass line is the cherry on top of the already delicious cake, underpinning the track and bringing everything together perfectly.

I reviewed ‘My Head Feels Strange‘ for Discovery as a single, back in December, so all I’ll say about it is that I think the synths are outstanding, and it’s another brilliant tune, this time with the theme of mental health.

One More Night With No One‘ is another one that I feel has discussions around mental health, and Prentice’s vocal on it can only be described as sensational. The lyrics have such depth to them as well as being fun to sing along to, the heavy synth sound is so appealing to listen to, and I think the production on this one stands out so much as well, especially in one specific section where there’s an echo of the singer’s voice.

Finally, the title track ‘the Beautiful Nothing‘ deserves a mention, and while it’s a very hard choice, I think it may just be my favourite on the EP. I think it sums up everything the band were aiming at with this EP both lyrically, sonically and thematically, and it’s undeniably one of their best songs ever.

As well as standing alone on their own merits, these all come together to form a sonically cohesive body of work that highlights once again how talented these Edinburgh indie boys are, and why they’re one of my favourite bands. Everything changes in the end, except my love for Vistas. New music from them is always going to be what I’m hoping to find. Roll on album three, I say!