IDLES

Lincoln Hall 8.1.19

photos by morgan winston + review by Angela Brooks


The bass heavy ‘Colossus’ got the crowd swaying as IDLES stepped onto the stage at Lincoln Hall. The 500-capacity venue certainly felt the shake of every single person in the room screaming “GOES AND IT GOES AND IT GOES,” with stage diving harmoniously happening left and right. 

With a rough exterior, IDLES might be mistaken for an unaware, angry punk band; but Talbot often checks in on the crowd to make sure everyone is safe, and dedicates songs to his infant daughter before going on about the band “being full of feminists.” They bounce into ‘Mother’ and the womxn in the crowd particularly make themselves known. Everyone chants: “Men are scared women will laugh in their face, whereas women are scared it's their lives men will take.” IDLES are a band that are not afraid to call out patriarchal men in an environment where womxn are usually not welcome. 

During ‘Television’ (That somehow seamlessly transitioned into Living on a Prayer), Guitarist Lee Kiernan jumps into the crowd to take some film photos and two young fans takes it upon themselves to jump on stage and finish Kiernan’s job, one singing while the other quickly learns how to play his guitar. A far cry from their native Wales (and England), lead singer Joe Talbot frequently thanks Chicago for welcoming them to our city. 

  • Colossus

  • Never Fight a Man with a Perm

  • Mother

  • Faith in the City

  • Danny Nedelko

  • 1049 Gotho

  • Divide & Conquer

  • I'm Scum

  • Love Song

  • Benzocaine

  • Samaritans

  • Television

  • Rottweiler