Horsegirl

Within Chicago’s independent music scene, Horsegirl has been developing a guitar‑based rock since the late 2010s that intersects shoegaze, noise rock and post‑punk. Formed by Penelope Lowenstein, Nora Cheng and Gigi Reece, the trio initially built its profile through DIY venue shows and small‑scale digital releases, while remaining tied to a local all‑ages concert circuit. Horsegirl’s compositions rely on highly textured guitars, fragmented melodic motifs and shared vocals that alternate between clear singing, unison and more spoken passages — an aesthetic that recalls certain 1990s indie‑rock touchstones without being confined to them. Signed to Matador Records, Horsegirl released the album Versions of Modern Performance in 2022, which formalizes this blend of noisy tension, spare basslines and angular rhythmic arrangements. Since then the band has extended its activity beyond Chicago, touring North America and Europe and plugging into a network of alternative groups with whom it regularly shares bills.