Mind’s Eye Are on Their Way to Becoming a Household Name
From a skatepark show to headlining festivals, Mind’s Eye are quickly gaining traction in the alternative/indie scene
You may know them from their breakout single, “Wasted Affairs,” or maybe even from their multiple viral TikToks, but indie alternative band Mind’s Eye are here to let you know that they’re so much more than that.
What started out as a solo project has evolved over the years into the final formation of the five piece band, consisting of Vince Lopez (vocals), Kelli Kumiko (bass), Jack Duda (guitar), Andrew Scott (guitar) and Jacob Cambra (drums). The band has created a unique and inclusive space for their fans, letting them be in on the inside jokes. Allowing fans to become an extension of them turns the idea of Mind’s Eye into one big family, and fans are eager to become a part of it.
PHOTO BY @MIGUELPADILDO
Unequivocally, Mind’s Eye are a band that’s taking over the alternative scene quickly, from selling out The Echoplex and the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles, to headlining Viva! Pomona and recently releasing a live EP with Audiotree.
Pleaser sat down with the band to dive deeper into their history together, the creation of the Audiotree EP, their feelings about selling out the El Rey Theatre, and much, much more:
Pleaser: How would you say the local scene [in Los Angeles] has helped build up the band to where it is now?
Vince Lopez: I don’t know if the LA scene has affected us as much as it has embraced us. For me, it felt like we were embraced with a sense of community and then felt a part of it. We didn’t start in the LA scene, we were just the TikTok song guys. The LA scene is strange, just really random. You get put on bills that you pay to do while you’re playing with other musicians that are in completely different genres than you. But, I feel like the indie Hispanic scene is who embraced us the most.
Jack Duda: When we started playing shows, there was almost a lack of a scene going on. It didn’t seem like there was much of a community until people actually knew who you were and you were on streaming platforms and playing shows with bigger bands. What we actually experienced was one band would play and then all of their friends would leave after, so it really was just people going for the band they were there to see and then leaving immediately after. We would only have like ten people leftover in the crowd to see us, which was great to have gained those couple of people who stayed as new fans, but it wasn’t until we played with bands who are a little bit more notable that we saw anything big.
Seeing that transition from playing with a bunch of different bands to playing / headlining your own shows, what was that feeling like to know that the crowd is all officially there for you?
VL: It made me finally feel like we were in a real band. A marker of that moment was when we opened for sundiver ca. That show was in Phoenix and that was kind of the first time where we were playing somewhere that we hadn’t been and there was a generous amount of people there for us. The second time we played with sundiver ca it was in LA, we did a Halloween show, and they opened for us. That was the second time that I felt that way. It’s strange going from our usual LA shows where there’s like, 25 people there max, and then selling out a place because people are there to see you. LA is such a strange place.
And now you’ve co-headlined Viva! Pomona with Late Night Drive Home which is a huge accomplishment. How were you guys feeling going into it?
JD: I was excited and I think it’s really cool to have done that. Our manager / friend Lucas always loves to toot this horn, talking about our growth as a band in such a short amount of time. Our first show with Lucas had maybe about 40 people there, and then a year later we sold out The Echoplex which was crazy, and then six months later we sold out the El Rey Theatre. It’s crazy because when we were still starting out, we were playing The Haven in Pomona which is right next to The Glass House where Viva! was held, and on that day Inner Wave was playing the same night as us which we thought was so cool. We thought it would be so cool to be able to play there too one day, and now we are, which is a super surreal thing to think about — where we were two years ago and now we’re in this spot where we’re doing the things that we’ve always wanted to. It all seemed a little untouchable back then, but now we know that what we want is in our reach.
You guys just released a live EP with Audiotree. I’m sure there are a lot of artists that you’ve watched on there, so did it feel like a full circle moment for anyone?
Kelli Kumiko: It was so scary and so intimidating. You know that this is the thing that’s going to pop up when someone looks you up, so the pressure was insane. It’s the same sh*t we’re doing all the time, there’s just a million camera people in the room too, but it was still scary.
JD: I thought seeing the room in particular was really cool because it’s something you always see on a screen. The way they set up the cameras around the room is so strategic and seeing the set up after watching it your entire childhood was really cool. Being able to be like, “Hey, I’ve seen this corner of the room before,” but now seeing it in person was a really cool thing to be a part of.
Absolutely! I bet it was a weird feeling to be on the other side of the screen this time. Vince, during your time working at Universal Studios Hollywood you would make TikToks of your experience there. A recent TikTok showed the before and after of working there to now being able to play shows and pursue music. Can you talk a little more about that experience?
VL: I honestly felt a big sense of community there. There’s still a bunch of people who work at Universal that come to our shows. It is crazy because when I was younger I wanted to work at Universal Studios — I didn’t want to do the trash, which is what I ended up doing. Working there was weird at the time when we started to gain more traction.
This isn’t an over-exaggeration, I was literally cleaning up vomit and someone went, “Are you the lead singer of Mind’s Eye?” and I said yes and they went, “Why are you working here?” I’m like, “Because I live in Los Angeles and I still need to pay my rent.” (laughs) I didn’t know this until multiple fans told me, but something about the fact that I was very open about where I worked was very relatable for a lot of people. I’m just some dude that does the trash, and we’re still able to do the music thing — it’s cool to have people tell me that when they saw me doing that it reassured them that they could do it too.
Did it feel nice to be able to profit off of your experience on Tiktok?
VL: It felt good to be able to use the videos — they wanted to fire me for them! They tried to fire me so many times for the videos. They brought me in and tried to say I was filming backstage and then tried to fire me because guests would take pictures with me. I told them I wasn’t going to do that and if someone wanted to take a picture with me I was going to say yes. My department took me to HR and the HR lady was sick as hell and told them that there wasn’t a rule against me taking pictures with people and if I wanted to I could. It felt absolutely fantastic.
How has it been to be able to watch each other grow inside and outside of making music?
JD: We’ve been together for almost three years and it’s been super cool. The first week I moved [to LA], I practiced with Vince and there was a completely different formation of the band. Our first show was at a skatepark in Costa Mesa and I was drumming originally, so it’s really cool to see how things change and we’ve been pushing each other to be more collaborative. Also, changing our recording process from a bedroom to having our own studio to practice in is really cool.
VL: It’s pretty wild to see. It’s crazy because I met Jack on an app where musicians can meet each other to form bands and now these people are my friends! Such an internet, Gen Z way to meet somebody. (laughs) Outside of the band, it’s interesting to watch people grow for the better as people and to work as a unit. We’ve grown better at communicating and figuring out problems and solutions. It’s also crazy to see everyone’s aesthetic change over time when I look back at old pictures.
You guys recently sold out the El Rey Theatre in LA, can you describe the show for fans who weren’t able to make it?
VL: That show was actually bonkers, it was the biggest room we’ve headlined. It felt like a bunch of people who were in on the joke. A bunch of people who just wanted to f*ck around, and I think that’s the cool part about our audience. We like to interact with everyone. That’s the fun part of a Mind’s Eye show — you’re a part of the show too. You’re not watching us stare at our feet and try to look really hot. We try to include everybody and we’re lucky enough to have a fanbase that wants to be included.
Fans are the most important part about this whole music thing! Any final thoughts you’d like to tell the ones who are reading this?
Jacob Cambra: Drink lots of water, salt your pasta water before boiling.
VL: Drink lots of water except on Wednesday. Don’t drink the water.
KK: I think I would say, hey queens, hello queens, and hi queens. That’s it.
VL: Dare I say, slay mama? Also, be better.
KK: I’d also like to say touch up your roots, they’re coming in and they’re dark. Also, what are your pronouns? Hmm, when you bleach your hair you have to tone it too because some of you are orange!
JC: Be careful about getting in pools because heightened copper levels can turn your hair green.
VL: And, you need to do your eyebrows. Also, what’s that smell? It’s you, isn’t it and that fried hair? (laughs) But actually, we’re working on an EP and there will be new music at some point. It’s on the way!
