ANCHR's Artist of the Week: Divino Niño

Sheeta-Kuri-Ooah! ( I am not sure what that means but it sounds like a great salutation.) As I'm sure many of you Chicago music lovers were able recognize, that is a lyric from the title track of Divino Niño's album Foam.

Photo by Alexa Viscius

Divino Niño is a five piece rock band based in Chicago composed of Camilo Medina, Javier Forero, Guillermo Rodriguez-Torres, Pierce Codina, and Justin Vitorri. Forero and Medina were buds as young children in Bogota, Columbia but when Forero's family moved to Miami, the two had lost touch… That is, until one day, Medina's family also moved to Miami, and fate had it to where he and Ferero reconnected when they recognized each other on the bus. In Miami they attended the same church where they had the opportunity to perform before an audience and experience the high of performing live. Years later, the pair moved to Chicago for college and their new independence granted them the opportunity to discover secular music like The Beatles and The Beach Boys, which thankfully for us, began the formation of Divino Niño.

Foam is a lovely album that should be on every vinyl collector's list. All ten songs are exceptional. “Melty Caramelo”? Bop. “Coca Cola”? Bop. “Maria”? Heart Break Bop.

Before anyone asks, yes, Divino Niño did make Perez's Best of 2019 with their song “Foam.” It was a hit amongst my fans. Full disclosure though, they sing in both Spanish and English— so if that turns you off, grow up. It's 2021 and all of us should be able to groove no matter the tongue. I love that we here in Chicago get to have our own Latin music group that we get to claim. Even cooler is that they actually sound great. With the present popularity of Latin-American artists being so high, i.e. Cuco, Omar Apollo, and the Marías to name a few, Divino Niño add a beautiful psychedelic rock ambiance to the current prevailing musical climate. I have yet to catch them live (I know, I know, very unlike me), but I'm pumped to finally get the chance to check them out at Pitchfork this fall.

Snag your own copy of Foam here, and get tickets to Pitchfork fest here.

ANCHR's Artist of the Week: Idles

Photo by Tom Ham

Idles is exactly what rock and roll needs right now. Their music is fantastic, their live shows are high energy and in your face, they’re affable— and to put it succinctly; they’re woke. In the current sociopolitical climate that both the U.S. and the U.K. find themselves, these five British blokes ensure their messages of inclusiveness, feminism, anti-classism, and anti-racism are definitively pronounced in both their recorded music and live shows. 

Idles formed in 2009, but it wasn’t until their 2018 album Joy as an Act of Resistance, my favorite album of that year, that they really exploded. Their music possesses the traits of empathy and vulnerability while simultaneously being ferocious. Their love of music is evident in their performance. I’ve seen them thrice and all three times they were terrific. They should be on every music lover’s list to catch live. 

Out of all the marvelous “post-punk” bands that have come of out the UK, Idles has become my favorite. I have zero hesitation when saying it is my opinion that they are presently the best currently active rock band in the world.  At their Lollapalooza after show at Lincoln Hall, members of Cage the Elephant and The Strokes were in attendance. If Julian Casablancas thinks you’re rad, then no other compliment is needed. 

Tune into Idles’ 2020 album Ultra Mono here, and watch their live performance of “Carcinogenic” for Independent Venue Week below.

PLAYLIST: ANCHR's (ANTI) VDAY TUNES

Feeling a bit lonely today? ANCHR here with some tunes that have gotten us through some of our saddest days. Check out the playlist below...