Chicano Batman Share How They Came Together on ‘Invisible People’

To complete the new record, Invisible People, the Los Angeles-based four-piece rock band, Chicano Batman, had to learn to trust one another again. Together since 2008, like many partnerships, the members needed to address some simmering issues regarding the quartet’s communication and creative processes. In fact, bassist Eduardo Arenas, who had been going to therapy for a few years, helped to apply some of the tools he’s learned there to the band. It worked. The result was a breakthrough in the group’s relationship and a signature LP, which Chicano Batman released on May 1st. 

Chicano Batman has been a band for twelve years. The group has enjoyed critical and popular success (including gigs with Jack White), to be sure, but with that comes new worries. If one is to devote a life to music – to writing, recording, collaborating, touring, playing late night gigs – pressures of success and repeated success come hand-in-hand. Ten years in can feel like a lifetime with a mortgage over one’s head. Going into the recording of Invisible People, as a result, there was a push to make the album perfectly polished. This, however, doomed the initial days of recording.