First Avenue Presents
CANCELED: INNER WAVE with Divino Niño
Monday, May 4th, 2020 / Doors: 7:00 PM / Show: 7:30 PM
All Ages
Standing
$18 Advance, $20 Day of Show
This show has been canceled.
There is no rescheduled date, but First Avenue is now offering credit for canceled shows.
Please carefully fill out the form at the link below to receive a credit equaling your ticket purchase for this event. You can then apply that credit to a future ticket purchase for most First Avenue Presents events at The Cedar Cultural Center. You can also call etix to request a credit at 1-800-514-3849.
Once you’ve found a new event you’d like to apply your credit to, please contact etix at support@etix.com, or 1-800-514-3849.
After a two week period, all tickets purchased online (that have not opted for a credit) will be automatically refunded. For any ticketing questions, please contact etix at support.etix.com or 1-800-514-3849.
If you are interested and able to donate, consider putting the cost of your ticket toward the TC Music Community Trust’s Entertainment Industry Relief Fund in support of individuals in need. All funds donated will directly impact someone who has lost a gig due to COVID-19 and its effect on the industry. The outpouring of words of encouragement and monetary donations thus far has been incredible, and we thank you for your continued support of the Twin Cities music scene. Click here for more information or to donate.
About Inner Wave
Los Angeles, CA. Fresh, easy listening, interstellar sounds from the minds of this so-called ‘indie’ group to create an environment for everyone to come together, dance, experiment and trip out. Shine, think & nurture. Thank you.
Visit Inner Wave’s Website
Inner Wave performing "OOF" courtesy of Inner Wave's YouTube channel.
About Divino Niño
Divino Niño’s new album Foam feels like catching up with a lifelong friend. There’s undeniable songwriting chemistry between guitarist Camilo Medina and bassist Javier Forero, who met as kids in Bogotá, Colombia and years later reconnected by sheer happenstance after their families had both moved to Miami. Now Chicagoans, their rhythmic, soulful -- and at times bilingual -- Latinx punk songs are a reflection of their continent-spanning bond and proof that Divino Niño couldn’t have formed without unlikely but happy coincidences.
This shows on the entirely inviting, syrupy, and sexy Foam. The quartet’s Latin American roots seep in throughout the LP’s silky psychedelic flourishes but especially on single “Maria,” which is sung entirely in Spanish. Inspired in equal parts by Argentine punk and the narratives of Mexican telenovelas, the personality-filled track is one of the most memorable on the record. Though it’s the first song Medina has ever written that wasn’t somewhat autobiographical, it’s delivered with enough emotion to feel real. Medina sums up the band’s ethos: “We are very driven by feeling: something that's cozy, at home, and a little sentimental.”
After cutting their teeth in southern Florida bands, Forero and Medina decamped to Chicago in 2010 to study at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. There they met guitarist Guillermo Rodriguez and together, the three became roommates in 2013 and started the earliest Divino Niño demos. Drummer Pierce Codina joined some time later and after several recordings and mixtapes like 2016’s The Shady Sexyfornia Tapes, the bluesy, drum-looped early tracks gradually evolved into the nostalgic, synth-led rock of Foam. Recording and scrapping the record multiple times, the tracks heard on Foam eventually took shape as they patiently found their voice.
The ten tracks on Foam feature silky harmonies from Medina, Rodriguez, and Forero, wistfully romantic lyrics like the yearning plea on the title track (“I really wanna run away with you”), and sunny, honeyed arrangements. Songs like “Quiero” trade-off between English and Spanish with woozy guitars and harmonies anchoring the sweetness of the lyric: “I don’t ever want to change your mind / I want to be with you the way that you are.” It’s as close to a complete picture of love as a song can get, tackling everything from emotional intimacy, curiosity, and sex without a second wasted.
There are sonic touchstones that are fun to spot like the pristine City Pop-indebted production flourishes (it’s not a stretch to guess the title “Plastic Love” is a Mariya Takeuchi nod) and the subtle shoegaze of “B@d Luck.” But really, Foam is a love letter to Chicago’s vibrant music scene. Forero explains, “The Chicago community helped sharpen the vision and what we are supposed to be doing.” To the band, immersing themselves in shows with acts like Bunny, Glyders, and Parent crystallized how the city can and should feel like a musical home.
In fact, the band even recruited an all-star list of local collaborators like Justin Vittori (Knox Fortune, Grapetooth) who provided keys and auxiliary percussion while Luke Henry played slide guitar. Twin Peaks’ collaborator Andrew Humphrey helped mix the LP while others like Paul Cherry, Twin Peaks’ Colin Croom, and Mild High Club’s Matt Roberts lent a helping a hand with production. Though Foam is the product of so many personalities, backstories, and influences that cross genres and geographical lines, Divino Niño has managed to create something that feels truly fresh and uniquely them.
“This is us trying to find - obviously - our own voice and who we are,” says Medina. “Everything here is very heartfelt and emotional. We wanted to show that we are all softies.”
Visit Divino Niño’s Website
Divino Niño performing "Foam" courtesy of Divino Niño's YouTube channel.