Hinds in Chicago: Rock n Roll By The Ladies, For The Ladies
The Madrid indie band rocked Thalia Hall “in the round,” houseshow-style
by Katie Ingegneri
iPhone Photos by Katie Ingegneri
Madrid’s lady garage rockers Hinds came to Chicago’s Thalia Hall last night, a welcome addition to our city’s excellent rock n roll scene, if only for one brief night. But forever in our hearts!
As I experienced during this year’s SXSW in Austin, Hinds are one of the most enjoyable live acts crossing the globe today. Their debut LP, “Leave Me Alone,” released in January, is one of my favorites of the year, simultaneously high-energy and low-key indie pop-rock tackling love, relationships, partying and the usual rock n roll concerns in charmingly phrased English-as-a-second-language. Comprised of guitarists and singers Carlotta Cosials and Ana Perrote, bassist Ade Martin and drummer Amber Grimbergen, it’s impossible to have a bad time listening to their music or at their shows. I saw them at SXSW right after having my first round of overwhelmed-loneliness-panic (a familiar feeling for many when settling into the madness that is SXSW Music); they were playing on a small stage in a crowded bar, and I drank bourbon and danced and the familiar camaraderie of being lost in the music took over. I was very glad to hear they would be making their way to Chicago on their non-stop global “Leave Me Alone” tour, and was also very pleased with my post-show purchase last night of their tour shirt that includes both dates, 7 months apart, that I got to see them this year.
Thalia Hall was set up “in the round,” a Shakespeare-era term (or at least that’s what I associate it with) for when the stage is in the center and the audience is around it, as opposed to their usual stage at the front of the hall. At Thalia, a medium-sized venue, this created a great intimacy as the balcony level was closed and Hinds performed on a stage resembling a boxing ring, all facing each other. I wasn’t sure how elevated the stage would be but it was scarcely more than 2 feet above the crowd. I was really happy about this, as Hinds’ exuberant indie-garage rock and joyful attitude is wholly in line with the Chicago houseshow scene including our mutual friends Twin Peaks (sadly in a European exchange as the dudes are in Hinds’ native Europe right now), and the height of the stage allowed the members to easily bounce off stage if they felt like it, and at one point Ana, the closest one to where I was standing, ended up in a temporary crowd mosh that we should’ve kept going. I liked the “in the round” because, like a house show, it was easier to see the faces in the crowd as people enjoyed the music, took pictures and sang along.
My iPhone photos — always a struggle when juggling beers and jackets — came out pretty poorly as I wasn’t as close to the stage as I would’ve liked, and my favorite rock shows are usually impossible to photograph anyway as they’re just blurs of energy on stage. Hinds was no exception, as they jumped, bounced and theatrically posed with their instruments around the stage. Did get some decent videos though (which I can’t embed — but I can embed my Instagram videos so check it out at the end of this piece!)
Their DIY-style approach to performing was on display as they lightly fumbled with some of the tempos when starting or ending songs, which is a bit funny when you think about the fact they’ve been playing basically hundreds of shows this year alone, but I think it adds to their charm and doesn’t take away from the music. It definitely makes them more human and relatable as opposed to a band that just blasts through their songs without any changes. They spoke to each other in rapid Spanish and engaged the audience in funny banter, and at one point a group of women began singing a song in Spanish and Hinds sang along with them. I wish I knew Spanish (I studied French in school) so I knew what was going on.
While the show was 17+, which usually ensures a wilder time, I think the crowd could’ve stood to have more of the Chicago house show scene’s usual energy, but Thalia Hall often falls prey to the flanneled, bespectacled hipsters who don’t want to do much more than stand. Those of us who mosh at Twin Peaks’ in-store shows were probably the ones trying to make it happen the most, and had Hinds played an actual house show here I know we could’ve gotten it going. But some girls did manage to elevate themselves to crowd surf, and I was struck by how many girls were jumping and dancing in the most energetic parts of the songs as we stood near the stage — it was refreshing to see, especially with music being played by all women as well. It did feel like a “safe space” for those of us who get exhausted by the garage rock shows where the moshing gets too aggressive and drunk guys take over the space. There weren’t a huge amount of guys there — despite the good music being played by attractive ladies, I guess some men still have a problem with embracing female bands. Oh well — more space for us. (And was probably made up for with what seemed to be a fairly sizable lesbian contingent.)
And while Hinds are all very beautiful and talented, they’re super relatable and approach their music and performance in a way that’s really down-to-earth and very rock n roll. They don’t stand on stage in sexy little outfits trying to appeal to men. They commented on how the “in the round” style meant the audience could “see [our] butts” and how Carlotta had chosen that show to wear “a pyjama,” a red onesie. With a non-stop touring schedule, comfort and utility definitely seem to take priority as the girls are usually wearing big shirts, various onesies or shorts (until they got to chilly Chicago, of course). They seem like your fun friends on stage, smiling and joking and playing as best they can. It’s basically impossible not to love them. My witty best friend (and the ex-girlfriend of various musicians) and I had been discussing them a few months ago, and while she said she first kind of wrote them off as “la la la, we’re hot and messy, la la la,” after I put the album on she admitted their sound was “endearing.” Endearing seems to be the right word.
When I was waiting in the crush of people to get merch after the show, a middle-aged, Cubs-bedecked man pushed his way up to the front next to me and I was annoyed on behalf of the girls, who probably have to deal with all sorts of creepers on the road, but when he just bought a CD and didn’t seem to be trying to hang around to creep it was okay. That’s something I definitely wonder about, as attractive young women on tour, how much shit they have to put up with from men overstepping their boundaries in crowds. They had a male friend (or boyfriend) with them who was helping to sell merch and was walking around the stage, I don’t know if he’s sound/security or maybe a combination of whatever they need at the time. I know they also have a female tour manager and I wonder what it’s like to tour with a group of women and your friends across the world like this. We certainly need more lady-centric bands like this in the DIY and rock scenes across the world.
Don’t miss Hinds whenever you get a chance to see them live! Can’t wait for their next album and whenever I’ll get to see them play again. And hopefully doing a Houseshow interview one of these days, because if anyone belongs in this magazine, it’s them.
