Electric Free At Noon set draws new fans to Te Vista
New Jersey’s rising alt rockers Te Vista last came through WXPN in February for a Homegrown Live show. They returned Friday to deliver a blazing Free At Noon performance. Dont’t miss them at XPoNential Festival in September!
Te Vista | Photo by Max Bennett
Te Vista is one of the region’s hottest up-and-coming acts, and their first-ever Free At Noon here at WXPN led to a slew of new fans craving more homegrown, jangly, alt-rock tunes.
The New Jersey band came in hot with a planned eight-song set, but treated the in-person audience to not one, not two, but three encore songs.
They opened with two unreleased tracks, titled “Motorcycle Song” and “Wasn’t 2 Blame” on their setlist. The former saw guitarists and vocalists Ricky Hardin and Niko Berardo trading licks and solos, the latter a high-tempo pop rock bop that had drummer Desi Berardo (he and Niko are brothers) furiously drumming and bassist Grace Halter thumping away on her Telecaster bass.
Their first album, House, came out in December 2025 and the band jumped right into that material. They played “Thought He Cared” and flowed seamlessly to the fiery “Didn’t Like,” which had all four musicians rocking hard to the upbeat track.
“Pull My Train,” “Corpse,” “Fight Another Day,” and “Don’t Go”—all from House—came before the set technically ended. But the band had more in store for the crowd, who clamored for at least one more song.
Before the encore, Niko Berardo dedicated the entire set to the late Irish singer-songwriter Glen Hansard. They played 2023’s “Resurrect Me” first and fittingly, given the track’s strumming and lead guitar work echoes Gordon Lightfoot’s “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” which was adapted by Bobby Sands for his Irish ballad “Back Home in Derry.”
They closed out with two more new songs, “Made From You” and “What You Did Again.”
After reciveing a huge ovation, Te Vista headed to the lobby area where dozens of fan, existing and new alike, lined up to scoop some merch and meet with the four-piece outfit, almost as if they forsee the band achieving greater success as they progress in their career.
Te Vista’s star is clearly rising, and after they play our XPoNential Festival on Friday, Sept. 18, that star will be shining brighter than ever. Catch them Aug. 22 at Philly Typewriter with local favorites Hurry, Aug. 27 at Fringe Arts, and this Saturday in Glassboro.
