NOTE: All photos are copyright of Howard Shiau Photography 2025
Hinds, the indie band from Madrid, has gone through a lot of change over the last few years. It’s not surprising since their third studio album “The Prettiest Curse” was due to be released in April 2020, followed by an extensive tour. The record release was delayed until the summer and even thought they toured extensively following lockdown, primarily as a support act, the band didn’t seem to get their footing back. Bassist Ade Martin and drummer Amber Grimbergen quit the band at the end of 2022, the band changed management, and they lost their record contract. That’s a lot of change over a short period of time but founding members Carlotta Cosials and Ana García Perrote continued to push forward. As they started performing live again in January of this year, they added bassist Paula Ruiz and drummer Maria Lázaro as touring members. Hinds released their first single “Coffee” as a duo this February and their fourth studio album “Viva Hinds” was released in September. This month, they began a tour of North America with a stop at Lee’s Palace in Toronto on October 23rd.
We missed the first opener Jay Feelbender but were able to catch The Happy Return, an indie rock band from San Diego. Led by vocalist/guitarist Davin Eagleston and his brother, drummer, Bryce Eagleston, the four piece band played through a fun set. I haven’t heard of this band before but they have released three studio albums, the last “Lunch Break” in 2020. However, they have released two singles in 2024 so perhaps there’s another album forthcoming? I had to laugh when they said that their song “Annabeth” was inspired by the Percy Jackson books. Millenials! But then artists need to get their inspiration from somewhere and perhaps those teen books are a better place than the pain and angst that you often see from young artists. Either way, I thoroughly enjoyed their set and am looking forward to hearing more.
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Having seen Hinds a few times, I kinda knew what to expect: high energy, lots of smiles all around, some choreographed moves, and of course great music! They kicked off the set with “Hi, How Are You” from their latest record, an almost perfect opening for a show. Knowing that vocalist/guitarist Ana García Perrote had broken her foot early on in the tour, I wasn’t sure how her movement would be affected. Was she running around the stage like a banshee like she normally does? No, but then again the stage was small so it was perfect. She did have a picture of the x-ray (it was a Jones fracture) in front of her keyboard which made for a fun talking point. The setlist comprised of most of the songs from the latest record but a good spread from their whole discography. New members Ruiz and Lazaro seemed to mesh with Cosials and Perrote perfectly and the crowd, while not as insane as some I’ve seem at Hinds shows, were quite energetic and vocal. During the choreographed bits, Ruiz couldn’t stop smiling and laughing! What a great time. Also, two fans had made necklaces with a picture from the album cover which the two leads wore and one the fans was later brought on stage to play guitar on a song! Crazy! It was so good to see Hinds perform live again. The only thing missing was their usual crowd surfing at the end of every show and I must admit that I may have been slightly disappointed. Then again, broken foot, etc may not have been the best idea. They close out their North American tour with shows in Philadelphia, Washington DC, Boston and New York. Their NYC show on the 29th will be at Warsaw in Brooklyn, which happens to be the same venue we covered them in 2018!
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