Last night, Cordero alternated between brooding, Latin ballads and alt-country punk for a handful of people backstage at the Black Cat. Cordero’s charismatic, hybrid sound could have converted skeptics into fans, particularly those who gravitate toward the genres that include Calexico and X’s side project, the Knitters.

Unfortunately for the band and the audience, walking into the Black Cat backstage was like a psych class experiment. Since there were maybe fifteen people there for the opening song, once someone passed through the door, they had a mini anxiety attack as to where they should stand. Since the backstage bar wasn’t open, they couldn’t even drift there to buy a drink and position themselves. The crowd’s shyness made lead singer and guitarist Ani Cordero a little shy, too, despite her bold animal print dress and shit-kicker boots. She joked with the crowd ringed around the room, no one in the center, “You’re so quiet. Why isn’t anyone in the center of the room? I know it’s Sunday and all, but still!” It also made her a little nervous. “Did you notice that no one in here is smoking?” she asked toward the end of their show.

If you aren’t familiar with Cordero, you likely know their friends. Ani, who grew up in a bilingual Puerto Rican family in Atlanta, moved from Georgia to Tucson, eventually collaborating with Joey Burns, among others in Calexico. Though she plays guitar and sings in both English and Spanish in Cordero, previously Ani played drums with Moe Tucker, formerly of the Velvet Underground, as well as Luna rock nerd, Dean Wareham.