Matt caught up with EIGHTEEN VISIONS earlier this Spring for a brief chat. The band is on the verge of releasing their brand new, self-titled full-length, which is posed to be the group’s most melodic, arena-rockin’ affair yet. If you’re a sucker for great choruses, then I’m sure you already know what makes EIGHTEEN VISIONS so damn likable – Jordan.

Pastepunk: Back ground info. How did you guys get started?

James: We’d been in bands for a long time. I met Ken in high school, and we started jamming. Members kind of came and went as they usually do, and we were just kind of stuck with what we wanted to do, which was playing music. We kind of started off as more of a heavy metal band, and then evolved into a heavy rock band, which is where we are at today. Keith joined the band about 7 years ago, Mick joined about 6 years ago, Ken started off playing drums, and then switched over to guitar on the last record. Trevor took his place on drums, and here we are.

Pastepunk: What group of kids was EIGHTEEN VISIONS playing to initially?

James: We played to like hardcore and metal kids for the most part. We did it on the last record cycle too. We were able with that record to do different types of tours, with bands like LOST PROPHETS, and HIM, because our songs were a little bit more diverse, and a little bit more eclectic. We did Warped Tour, toured with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, kind of tackled every realm of music that we had been apart of, and also every kind of music that we wanted to dip our feet into.

Pastepunk: What were some of the bands that laid the ground work for you to be able to write this kind of record?

James: With this record we were listening to a lot of DEF LEPPARD Hysteria, and I listen to a lot of 80’s rock music anyway with a lot of gang vocals and stuff like that. We kinda wanted to take those ideas, and try it out. When we took those ideas and tried them out on our own, and in pre-production, we felt that it was working, and we wanted to take those ideas and throw them into our music. See how they do… We tried to modernize those ideas. On our last record, playing those songs live, the songs that had the pop hooks, and the big choruses went over better live. So we wanted to emphasize more on that because we are playing these songs live for kids, and we really wanted them to connect live, as well as over the radio. So we just kind of went for it.

Pastepunk: Hardcore has always been built on intimacy. Since you guys played to that scene early on, do ever wonder if you’re going to lose that intimacy by playing a different kind of music?

James: I think it is the same thing, just different kind of music. If you are talking about fan bases and different kinds of kids being disappointed or upset with our musical growth and maturity, and not having the same record that was your last record; a lot of kids want the same record over and over, but as a band we don’t want to be stagnant. We want to keep growing and maturing as musicians. We have been through that portion of our careers where we have gained and lost our fans because of what we are doing with our music. I think on an intimacy level, keeping it tightknit and stuff like that, hardcore in general is growing so much; the venues are getting bigger, the bands are getting bigger, and the kids expect to go see a big show in a 2000 to 3000 capacity room. Everybody is putting on a real show. So I think that the kids aren’t necessarily disappointed with the intimacy, and if they are than it’s not the right type of music for them.

Pastepunk: I was kind of talking more about crowd interaction. There is an obvious difference between DEF LEPPARD and GORILLA BISCUITS in the case of crowd and band interaction. Do you think that you are still going to be able to interact with the crowd on the same level?

James: There is a huge barrier, you know? Being a small band and playing really small venues is just fucking rad, there is no other feeling like it in the world. Everyone is together and intimate, and it’s personal. Then there are the larger stages. The small arenas and the big arenas, stuff like that we have also done. You aren’t as close to the band, but you have thousands of people into the music, and there is also no other feeling like that in the world. As a band we don’t just go up there and play our instruments – we put on a show, we entertain and we do our best to keep everybody in a 2000 cap room involved with the set. All eyes on us. Just singing along, dancing, crowd surfing…we are just like in tune with what we are doing, you know? That is what is important to us.

Pastepunk: Have you noticed a shift in the fan base at all, or have a lot of the old fans come on to the new stuff too?

James: I think for the most part, three records ago we had written a very different kind of record – that was with our Vanity album. It was very different than the previous one, which was way more metal and way more chaotic. The Vanity record had a bit more structure, and more melody – had more rock elements in it, and that is the record that kids were like, ‘wow, I’m not into this’ or like ‘wow, I really like this.’ That is kind of the record where kids start shifting, and we lost fans. Old fans became new ones. Then with Obsession, kids kind of weren’t surprised that we took the more melodic route or the more rock route. I think our Obsession fan base is kind of where we are at today. Our new record is the next step up from our last record, and I think that our fans are going to get it. They’ll understand it. They know now that record to record, there is going to be something new and something different. Sound wise or song wise, it’s not going to be like a huge 180 shock for them where they are gonna be like, ‘what is this? I don’t know what they are trying to do here.’

Pastepunk: Why do you guys play music? Like, do you guys have some kind of mission statement?

James: We play music because it keeps us happy. It is what we love doing. Whether we are doing it on a small scale, or a large scale, we’d be doing it regardless. Being able to create music, and get it out there to people, lyrically and musically; just expressing yourself emotionally to people, and having them connect with it – that’s what it’s all about. We play music to us happy, because it keeps us sane, and it’s what we love doing, but there is that sense of gratification when it touches someone, whether that is one person or a million people. They can relate to what is going on, or just understand where you are coming from.

Pastepunk: You guys are pretty theatrical in your music – you’ve got a big sound. Are you guys planning on incorporating that kind of stuff into the live setting?

James: Any kid that has seen us in the U.S. over the course of the last year knows that we bring a big production to a small venue. We try to bring the arena show into the small venue. You know, create that kind of atmosphere with lighting and theatrical stuff. Just getting the crowd real involved, and making it like a real fucking rock concert, regardless of the size of the venue. The tours that we are doing right now like the Warped tour, obviously we can’t do much there. We are on this arena tour with AVENGED SEVENFOLD and COHEED AND CAMBRIA, and we are also limited to what we can do time wise, and having room onstage as well. Once we get to a comfortable point where we are higher up on the package and headlining our own tours, we will definitely keep trying to keep the theatrics there. Just bring the show into the small venue. There is nothing else like it. You pay ten or fifteen bucks to get into a show, and see a bunch of rad bands, and then take the extra step to put a bunch of lighting in a venue that usually is not capable of housing that kind of stuff. Bring the smoke, and the banner, and you bring that type of feel and atmosphere. Kids really appreciate it. Not every band thinks to do it, or even has the means to do it. It takes a lot of time setting up all that stuff, and getting there earlier than we have to. Just give kids their money’s worth.

Pastepunk: So you guys are going on an arena tour with AVENGED SEVENFOLD and COHEED AND CAMBRIA? I had no idea it was such a big tour…

James: We are actually doing that right now. The venues range anywhere from 3500 to like 7000 kids. Even 3000 capacity venues are small arenas; small college type arenas, and it’s just incredible. It’s incredible to get that kind of exposure on our new record cycle. Get that kind of experience in early…

Pastepunk: Are there any songs on the new record that you are specifically proud of?

James: For me, there are a couple of songs that stick out. One of them is “Broken Hearted” It’s very very pop, it’s got a DEF LEPPARD type feel to it, and that song just came a long way. It was one of those songs that everyone was very afraid of because it what it was, and the potential that it had. When we finally tracked it and finished it, it was kind of like, should we put it on the record; should we give it a shot? We almost didn’t even track it because it was so scary, and it was such a potentially big sounding song. When it came down to it, we were like, ‘this could be our only shot, so lets just put it on the record because it is one of the best songs that we have.’ We did that. We put the best 12 songs on the record.

Pastepunk: What specifically scared you so much about “Broken Hearted?”

James: It’s just a very big sounding song, and it is very different for us. Even though it ties in with other songs on the record with gang vocals and pop choruses, it was just really scary for us. It almost didn’t get recorded because we felt it might not be the right time for that song. When it came down to tracking the best 13 or 14 songs, that was one of the best ones at that point. Then when it came down to picking the best 12 songs for the record, it was kind of a no brainer. Everybody loved it. It’s scary because it’s so different, and there are people who are going to listen to it for the first time and know EIGHTEEN VISIONS, and if it’s the first track they hear off the new record, it could be a bit dangerous for us.