Last Sunday night at Lincoln Hall was a night for the books. Mexico City-based indie rock band Little Jesus and Chicago-based rock band Divino Niño have joined forces and have embarked on a co-headlining tour together across the states. Not only was it a stacked lineup of Latinx artists, but the audience was one of the most engaged and energetic crowds I had ever experienced at a Lincoln Hall show; this made for an incredible celebration of Latinx music.
Immediately taking Lincoln Hall by storm, PIERI owned the stage; delivering the same energy that a headlining act would. I was immediately captivated by her vitality and confidence (and I’m a sucker for live auto tune when it's done well) paired with her reggaeton rooted sound. As an opener, PIERI really stood out on stage and really got the crowd into their high spirits. She was the perfect setup for the following two performers.
I could really feel the sense of excitement for Little Jesus building up. In all honesty, I had no idea who Little Jesus was prior to this show; but I can confidently say that I walked out an immense fan of theirs. As they came on stage, the crowd went absolutely haywire. Lead singer Santiago Casillas casually rocked a bright orange fur coat and shades. Traveling all the way from Mexico City for this tour; this was undoubtedly a very special occasion for their Latinx Chicago fans. I was in awe with just how spirited their fans were; as they danced and sang EVERY single word. Their euphoric riffs made for an upbeat and lively set that was a spectacle in itself; and we still had Divino Niño’s set to bask in.
As if Little Jesus hadn’t just put on an astounding set; the main event was just getting started. Having just released their latest record, Last Spa on Earth, Divino Niño made it back to Chicago for a very special hometown release show. There’s no doubt LSE is an incredibly underrated release from this year and I had been heavily yearning to experience their new direction in sound live. LSE takes a turn away from their psychedelic rock sound to an exploration of beats, reggaeton and house.
They opened their set with the album’s intro “LSE,” then transitioning into “Nos Soltamos” and then straight into “Foam.” I was already fan girling from the get go; but this string of first few songs had me even more eager for the rest of the show. Camilo Medina (Vocals, Guitar) along with the rest of the crew (Javier Forero, Guillermo Rodriguez-Torres, Pierce Codina, Justin Vittori) soared with confidence; materializing their new body of work so flawlessly for the crowd. Their single “Drive” came out about a year ago and it did not disappoint live. As if that wasn’t enough, “Tu Tonto” went even harder live than I thought. Something about the polarizing psychedelic to reggaeton sounds alternating back and forth throughout the night made for a very impressive performance from Divino Niño. It has me very excited to see what they do next and how far they’ll go with their stellar new album.
The conspicuous Latinx pride at Lincoln Hall Sunday night made for a momentous evening with so many talented artists under one roof. It was so refreshing to see a bill consisting of indie Latinx artists and it had to have been one of my favorite shows of this year. PIERI , Little Jesus and Divino Niño put on a once in a lifetime set and It made me extremely proud to be a Latino in a room with my people.
All photos by Andrew Lagunas