Last Friday (29 April) in a room filled with every stereotype imaginable, America’s neon-twin children took to the stage of Melbourne’s Prince Bandroom.
Being a new Melburnian, fresh out of Brisbane, I was excited to see what Melbourne had to offer. And what better way to pop my cherry than with MS MR.
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MS MR (pronounced miz mister) consists of the fiery Lizzy Plapinger (lead vocals) and cool-guy partner Max Hershenow (vocals, producer). A fan of their interesting range of songs – from low-key slow and sad to full-on dance anthems – I was excited to see how their amazing album presence translated onto stage.
Image © Callum DorwardIt was more than mind-blowing. With every reaction the crowd gave Lizzy her smile only grew wider, until everyone in the room was scared of it actually leaping off her face and attacking us. It was lovely to see up close an artist be so happy that she was there, rather than it seeming like just another gig they have to attend.
MS MR played a mixture between their first and second album, which is where the interesting part comes in. Their mixtures of songs, being both slow and fast, translated into a continuous rave, rather than a fussy concert where you don't know whether to dance or to cry.
Image © Callum DorwardThe upbeat, dance nature worked quite well for my energy levels. But the people that came to enjoy MS MR's more sombre material might have felt at a bit of a loss. Nevertheless, it seemed that everyone got into it either way. At one point though, Lizzy had to tell us that we may have to slow it down a bit to get our breath back. I know at that point I was thanking her as my stitch was about to rip me in two. (Note to self: pack one of those water backpacks next time)
Before some songs, especially 'No Guilt In Pleasure', we were treated to a little footnote, which were beautifully empowering. For this one, Lizzy talked about how the song represented a safe space in which there is essentially “no guilt in pleasure here”. She talked about how we should just let go, dance however we wanted, not to worry about what anyone thinks and just to be us.
It's hard not to do what she says when you identify so much with the limits that you can sometimes feel at concerts, and how much you don't wanna be perceived as “that crazy dancer that's probably had too many tequilas”.
Image © Callum DorwardThe aesthetics they brought together also resonate extremely well. Rather than being two super-individual band members that have their own thing going, they share similarities and have sides to each other that complement the other. It’s very old-school vintage, a secret diary and a bit of BDSM and latex all mixed together.
It's extremely liberating, and surprisingly not in your face. It's subtle and is incorporated into their music just as well. It sneaks in and next thing you know, you can't stop saying sorry to all the feet you're stepping on from bouncing around too much, gulping down everything MS MR have to give.
Image © Callum DorwardIt was obvious they loved Melbourne, and it made me excited like a stay-at-home mum who's happy their kids are having such a great time. Everyone felt it was genuine and we all felt loved.
It wasn't just a concert, but a veritable playground where the disco balls, and us, came alive.
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