Legendary Spanish filmmaker Víctor Erice’s 1973 full length debut “El espíritu de la colmena” (“The Spirit of the Beehive”) is a masterwork. Set in the wake of the Spanish Civil War, the film explores the chaotic, and at times surreal, Spanish societal landscape through the eyes of two young sisters. The younger, Isabel, is quiet and guileless, often the butt of her older sister Ana’s mischievous jokes. The film’s power lies in this dynamic, constantly offering a dualist, albeit naive, perspective on the pertinent questions of the day.
Hinds, the fuzzy Spanish indie rock quartet, seem to emulate Erice’s formula. Instead of pondering the politics of their postwar homeland though, the members of Hinds have something else on the agenda: love — whatever that means for a group of rowdy and riotously fun 20-somethings. The band’s recently released sophomore record, “I Don’t Run” finds front-women Ana García Perrote and Carlotta Cosials getting messy with the idea of love, relationships and sex in an outing that, while nothing new, proves a worthy exercise.
Hinds has a sound — and people have always really liked it. Even before the band’s inception, Perrote and Cosials garnered buzz with their indie-rock-fused, breezy Bob Dylan covers. From there, the two began recording a handful of original tracks before adding two more members to complete their lineup.
The group’s early material, complied on the 2015 compilation “Very Best of Hinds So Far,” already finds the band locked into their sunny blend of post-punk and west coast indie rock. It’s easy then to understand Hinds’ early popularity when listening to playfully endearing tracks like “Bamboo” and “Trippy Gum”. It wasn’t long before the band’s sound earned comparisons to that of other beloved indie slacker acts like Mac Demarco and Best Coast. On their 2016 full length debut “Leave Me Alone,” the Madrid band continued to crystalize their sound and ultimately garnered wide spread appeal.
On “I Don’t on Run,” the trend continues. Sunny, reverb-drenched guitars, washed out vocals and a tangible exuberance saturate almost every track on the record. And while the band continues to wear their early influences on their sleeve, they also seem to be incorporating a bit more of the vicious side of California rock, at times recalling contemporary acts like Wavves or FIDLAR. But even this new edge does little to differentiate the tracks on “I Don’t Run” from other songs in the band’s growing discography.
That said, the album's theme of love adds a conceptual depth to the band’s approach — with Perrote and Cosials constantly vying for the album’s most insightful or compelling line. Generally, Perrote tends to land on lines with immediate punch, like when she frankly asks, “Why did you have to kiss me after sex?” on the track “Tester.” Cosials on the other hand prefers the poetic, delivering each line with a hefty dose of youthful ambivalence. The combination of each perspective creates a fresh outlook on the commonly banal subject matter.
Yet, when the two come together in harmony the band really starts to hit its stride. Album opener, “The Club,” a standout on the record, accomplishes much through this concordance, positioning Cosials and Perrote as separate but equal parts of a unified psyche. “Last night was wrong, I know/ You don't need a lover/ But I don't want/ I don't wanna go” the two sing in chorus, painting an oblique portrait of modern love in charming fashion.
For everything that’s right with “I Don’t Run,” one can’t help but want something more. It seems to listen to Hinds is to be at a really great party — but just like every other party, once the smoke clears and the night comes to an end, life moves on without a passing thought.
Artist: Hinds
Album: “I Don't Run”
Label: Lucky Number
Tracks: "The Club," "Soberland"
If you like: Best Coast, FIDLAR, Mac Demarco
Shamrocks: 3 out of 5
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