Mannequin Pussy @ Zanzabar - Louisville
October 18th, 2024: Mannequin Pussy with Margaritas Podridas @ Zanzabar - Louisville KY
Beloved Philadelphia punk/indie rock band Mannequin Pussy made a stop recently at Zanzabar on the second leg of their I Got Heaven Tour of the US. In their 14 years as a band, they have garnered a devoted following of fans, as showcased by their sold out show this evening. Zanzabar is also a bar, restaurant, and arcade, giving people plenty to do while they waited, with the stage/performance space being off the bar area in a separate room. Many fans lined up in the bar area before doors this evening (myself included), with the venue filling up quickly once doors opened. From front to back and side to side, there were fans filling every inch of the performance space with a fun and electric energy. The band released their latest album, I Got Heaven, this year and started off their set with “I Don’t Know You” from the album. As the band took the stage, the crowd went wild with enthusiasm and excitement-a long awaited moment for many finally happening! I could hear some people standing next to me talking about how it was their first time seeing the band and how happy they were, jumping up and down and singing and dancing as the band started playing.
The band is comprised of Marisa “Missy” Dabice (singer/guitar/bass/keys), Kaleen Reading (drums), Colins “Bear” Regisford (bass/vocals), Maxine Steen (guitar), and touring member Carolyn Haynes (keys/guitar/backing vocals). Dabice is a force to be reckoned with on stage, dancing, screaming, and engaging heavily with the crowd. She early on told the crowd that despite the stereotypes about KY, some of the most beautiful and creative people she had ever met were from KY and that she never judged people here by our political representatives (giving a big FU to Mitch McConnell). There were several moments during the show when she would lean into the crowd and sing with the fans, or hold the mic out for her fans to sing parts of songs, much to their delight. She talked quite a bit about many topics, from religion and how it is often used as a way to control people, to reproductive rights, to freeing Palestine, to the negativity surrounding the word pussy (and having everyone scream it). She talked also about how, despite all that is happening in the world, people are supposed to just swallow their anger and their rage, but how it’s not healthy to let it fester and sometimes you just have to let it out and scream. She then, in a very cathartic moment, directed everyone to scream as loud as they could! Towards the end of the set, Regisford gave a shout out to all of the Black and Brown members of the audience and their struggles, criticizing the poiice and saying how someday maybe we will all be free. Performing several songs from their new album, they also performed several older tracks such as “Denial”, “Anything”, “Everything”, “Emotional High”, and “Romantic”, which they ended their set with. It was clear after the last song that the crowd wasn’t ready to say goodnight, and a fan next to me was giddy with excitement when Dabice handed him set list that had her lipstick on it from where she had kissed it before the set started. Mannequin Pussy always put on a show filled with a fun and a furious energy that has everyone feeling good!
Opening the show was Margaritas Podridas, from Hermosillo, Mexico. They quickly got the crowd warmed up and dancing. Despite singing in Spanish, the music spoke for itself, blending the sounds of shoegaze, college rock, punk, and grunge. With driving guitar riffs from guitarist Esli Meuly, soft, yet powerful vocals from Carolina Enriquez, and pounding drums from Rafael Armenta, the band released their debut album Porcelain Mannequin in 2018, followed by their self-titled second album in 2021. They definitely received a warm welcome in Louisville this evening.
Margaritas Podridas
