As Hinds prepare to release their fourth studio album, VIVA HINDS, Carlotta Cosials and Ana Perrote find themselves on the precipice of a new era. After a decade of relentless touring, critically acclaimed albums, and navigating the unpredictable tides of the music industry, the Madrid-based duo has emerged stronger, more resilient, and with a renewed sense of purpose.
This latest record, which they describe as both a survival mechanism and the fruits of their unbreakable bond, sees them rebuilding from ground zero, releasing the shackles that threatened to drag them down, and instead growing upwards together, towards something brighter.
In this candid interview, Carlotta and Ana break down the challenges they’ve faced, the inspirations behind VIVA HINDS, and the profound friendship that has been the cornerstone of their journey. I must say, it’s a conversation that’s as heartfelt and honest as the music they create. It reveals two artists who, despite the odds, are determined to keep moving forward, always together.
Harvey (interviewer): Firstly, I want to jump straight in here, and I want to talk about Spain. What aspects of Spanish culture have shaped who you are as people and, in turn, your creative output?
Carlotta: I think one of the main things that sets our country apart is our concept of friendship. I’ve never found the same depth of connection in other countries. When I travelled to the USA and had a group of friends there, I started to analyse how they relate to each other, the things they talk about, and how they treat each other. It’s different. As a Spaniard, I think our words “amigo” and “amiga” (which mean friend) are seen in a much deeper way than in other countries. You really count on each other. You don’t have to pretend to be someone else; sometimes, you like yourself even better when you’re with your friends. It’s very cultural—we love to be in a group, to support each other, and to feel success as a group, not necessarily as individual success. I think that’s very Hinds.
Ana: Yeah, that’s true.
Carlotta: You see this band, and we’re two best friends who started it exactly like that. I don’t want to be above you, nor do I want to be less than you. The better you are, the better Hinds is going to be. So everything is a plus. It’s not about individual competition; it’s about the group.
Ana: It’s about how spontaneous Spanish people are. We call each other up, and everything is pretty casual, you know? It’s not overthought. We spend a lot of time with each other outside of the industry, sharing things and just having fun. It’s very casual compared to other cultures. You don’t have to book something three months in advance to have one dinner with your friend, which we’ve seen, especially in the States. It’s very spontaneous, and obviously, Hinds could not be more like that.
Harvey: That’s something I definitely envy about Spanish culture—your warmth and casualness. More of life happens because people are more open and less self-conscious. That leads me to my next question: you’ve been through challenging times as a group and personally. There have been splits and setbacks, but you’ve emerged with a new album. Do you think your resilience came from those setbacks to influence the overall tone of the album?
Carlotta: I think I have to clarify something—it’s not necessarily a Spanish characteristic, but both of us work so much. We’re really disciplined, and we’re reflexive. When something hits us, we’re very quick to stop seeing it as a problem and start solving it. When we were at our lowest and got the final hit of our two bandmates leaving, it somehow gave us freedom. Suddenly, it was just Ana and me, and these are the songs we’re writing right now. We started writing like crazy.
Ana: When you’ve got nothing, you’ve got nothing to lose.
Carlotta: Exactly. I never, ever doubted Ana, and that’s crucial for survival.
Harvey: So once you had each other, you knew you were going to make it through?
Carlotta: Yes, I thought, “I think we’re going to be okay. I think it’s going to work either way.” This is the first album where we didn’t care about whether it would be on the radio or do big numbers. We wrote it for us, and we had no idea we’d even be doing interviews about it. It’s an album that we made for survival.
Ana: Everything on this album would be different if we hadn’t gone through the past four years. Everything has influenced it. Nothing would be the same—the recording location, the mood, the production—it all changed because it was just the two of us. It’s the first album we’ve made as a duo rather than a four-piece, so we decided everything. There weren’t as many egos fighting for their moment, wanting their instruments louder, and all the insecurities that come out in the studio when you’re a bigger group. The lyrics, the songwriting, the choices—everything was different.
Harvey: And that rawness comes through. You were in a state of reinvention, maybe even exhaustion, after all that. You were thinking, “What band are we now?” With just the two of you, how do you see yourselves evolving? What’s next for Hinds?
Ana: Nobody knows where we’ll be in a couple of years. We don’t plan, we live in the now. We’ve never been ones to plan far ahead. If people make plans for the art they’re going to create, I’m not interested in that kind of art. Isn’t art supposed to reflect life, and life, art? We don’t stress about the future. We haven’t even released this album yet! Hopefully, we’ll be together, making music. That’s all I want.
Carlotta: We don’t strategise musically. We don’t plan what we’re going to create. We’ve been creating, which makes me happy because they’re really good songs, but we don’t have a set strategy. Of course, our team has an overall strategy—there’s the space where we’ll be heard, and they think about all that stuff. But we’re on an indie label with a small team, so they can have their strategy, but I want to stay wild. Don’t tell me what to do—I’ll do the opposite.
Harvey: Earlier, you mentioned your bond, and you’ve previously described yourselves as “millionaires in friendship.” That’s clearly a key part of your dynamic. Can you think of a time during the writing or performing of this album when that really came through, where you truly had each other’s backs?
Carlotta: I have several moments, but one of the most beautiful ones is when we were loading the van to go to the studio, to the house we converted into a studio. It was just the two of us, Ana and me and her dog, Wok, in my mum’s van, loading all the amps and stuff. We were so happy—taking all the little things, some carpets for the sound, fruits our moms gave us, and driving those 14 hours. It was one of the best days ever. It felt strong because we had each other, and I was so ready to make this album. It’s hard to explain, but either you find that in someone, or you don’t. I’m so lucky to have found Ana long ago. It’s like nothing can beat us. If the car breaks down, it doesn’t matter—we’ll wait for the truck and rehearse our little dance. Every bad thing turns into something positive because we don’t take life too seriously.
Harvey: That gives you so much resilience. You don’t let things take over and overwhelm you. Ana, do you have a similar anecdote?
Ana: To be fair, it’s always been the two of us. Anyone who has worked with us knows this—it’s always been us driving that van. But rather than a happy moment, I remember when the other two members left. It wasn’t an easy exit—it was a very painful moment. They quit the band the day before we had our first official meeting with our new managers. We went to London, trying to find a manager after being without one for half a year, doing everything ourselves. It was a big deal, and we had a lot of problems to go through. We knew we weren’t an easy band to sign, and we were excited about this team who might help us out of the mud we were in. The other two members left, and everything had been so hard. I was emotionally bad. Up until that moment, I was able to deal with the fear and anxiety on my own and then put on my strong cape when I was with Carlotta. But this time, everything was so much bigger than before. I remember being able to show that side to her, to be truly myself, and be so scared. And the way she reacted—she just held my hand and said, “It’s fine, everything is going to be fine.” That was a huge release. I didn’t need to be the strong Ana in that moment, and she fully got it. We’re so lucky to have found each other.
Harvey: It sounds like that moment gave you a new protective layer around your friendship. It was like a baptism of fire. You knew you wouldn’t be the same again. It would have been easier to go your separate ways, but you didn’t. You decided to give it another shot. That must have been a really tough time, but also formative.
Carlotta: Yeah, it was. But then we recorded VIVA HINDS in rural France. It was amazing. We had two different trips of ten days each, driving down south to a little town called Besse. The first house was all made of stone, and we recorded all the drums there. The drums sounded amazing because the house had this strange chamber under the living room that just made the sound delicious! It was raining the whole time—and it was so green, with nothing around or nobody around us. We couldn’t even go to the supermarket because it was 30 minutes away, so we did this huge grocery shop. And that’s when we started drinking just black coffee because we ran out of milk.
Harvey: Ah, is that where the song came from?
Carlotta: Exactly. No milk, just black coffee and canned food. It was fun, though.
Ana: After that, we had a month with some big shows, and then we went to the coast. It was summer, and the sunset was at 10:30pm. You could see the ocean through the windows. The house was white and blue, and we recorded everything in the living room. It had a huge influence on the way we were recording. Studios are often uninspiring, cold, with no natural light because of the sound. But being in a house, in a home, was so comforting. It was easy to work harder without thinking about the money or the time we were spending. After recording, we’d walk ten minutes to the closest bar, play games, and talk about silly things like “If you had a superpower, what would it be?” It was very special.
Harvey: And is that house the one in the artwork for ‘Coffee’?
Ana: Yes, that’s the house. The insert in the vinyl shows a picture of the house, and the music video coming out today for ‘The Bed, The Room, The Rain and You’ includes footage we filmed there. You can see the whole house in the setup.
Harvey: Brilliant. Now, this next question wasn’t planned, but I’m curious. My best friends and I love each other, but there are little things that annoy us about the other person. Since you spend so much time together, are there any little things you joke about that annoy you?
Ana: A friend told me about his dad’s ‘toothbrush theory’. When his parents first moved in together, they’d always fight about where to put the toothbrush. Then one day, the dad realised he didn’t care where the toothbrush was as long as it wasn’t a big deal for his wife. They stopped fighting about it, and many other things, because they let go of those little annoyances. I think it’s similar with us. We know each other so well that if something is really big for me, Carlotta sees that and lets it go. It’s definitely not an ego thing. We even have this saying between us—if we don’t agree, we say, “I don’t agree, but you can convince me.” Most of the time, whoever cares more about the issue wins, and it’s fine because we take decisions every day. It’s about trusting each other’s instincts.
Carlotta: I love when we fight—it turns me on because I know we’re going to dive into every single detail of the disagreement. Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose, but it’s not a big deal!
Harvey: And when you argue, it’s not devastating because you know you’ll come through the other end stronger. Maybe with the other band members, that dynamic didn’t work, but with you two, it fits together.
Ana: Exactly. With four people, it was too democratic. Everything got diluted, and no one was happy in the end. Now, it’s just the two of us, and we make decisions quickly.
Carlotta: Have you ever been in love?
Harvey: Me? [I’ll admit, this caught me off guard]. Yes.
Carlotta: Do you recognise that feeling where you know exactly what’s going on in the other person’s head without even talking about it? That’s how it is with us. When we disagree or fight, we know what’s going on and treat each other with kindness. If I’m winning, I won’t brag about it. And if I want something the next time, Ana will let me have it. We’re so aware that we want Hinds to succeed, and Hinds is the two of us. I want Ana to feel super happy, proud, and excited. The only limit we have is… embarrassment. We spend hours choosing promo pictures because we don’t want to force the other to feel embarrassed! That’s the limit.
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- Album Recording
- Ana Perrote
- Carlotta Cosials
- Friendship
- Hinds
- Indie Rock
- Music Industry
- Spanish Music
- Viva Hinds
