Review: Mannequin Pussy at Rosemount Hotel

Mannequin Pussy at Rosemount Hotel
w/ Smol Fish
Tuesday, December 3, 2024

For this female reviewer with a penchant for punk and raucous sounds, it’s an unfortunate long-running joke to survey a crowd, turn to a friend, and sigh, ‘It’s another sausage fest…’. What a delight then, to be part of the diverse group gathered to see Mannequin Pussy’s first-ever show in Australia. Led by core member Missy Dabice, there’s no doubt that diversity is on the Mannequin Pussy agenda. No fiercer case could be made that art is all the better when we are all invited to the table.

It’s been a huge 2024 for Mannequin Pussy. They’ve released a contender for one of the top albums of the year, had a 90-odd show run across the States, and finally landed on our shores for the first time in their 15-year history. Not to mention the trail blazed by hit I Got Heaven with one of the most polarising and blasphemic yet empowering teases of the year: “What if Jesus himself ate my fucking snatch?!” On this occasion, we weren’t rolling our eyes at the sausage fest—we held our breath witnessing Pussy in its prime.

New fans and old were treated to a range of tracks as far back as 2016’s Romantic, but I Got Heaven was the focus of the night with eight of its nine tracks on show. Luring the crowd in with huge distortion and fuzz, I Don’t Know You kicked the set off, followed quickly by Sometimes: a fine display of Mannequin Pussy’s masterful shift between delicacy and abrupt aggression. Missy’s raw-throated cries seared through the fuzz, the band awash in a magenta glow, a signature pink as fierce as it is feminine. Nothing Like began with smiles of knowing recognition between the band and devotees upfront, and like the openers, it’s abundant in whispers and big-time sensuality.

Mannequin Pussy have seen a number of line-up changes as they’ve forged their path—while title track Patience and Drunk II, from their 2019 pre-COVID iteration, recalled the critically acclaimed album, Missy hinted that the band were tired of these older numbers. Relentless touring could be to blame, though the residue of abusive relationships that linger in these songs signals Mannequin Pussy’s growth and maturation in their records since. The current line-up appears bonded and resilient, their purpose clarified as they forge ahead from cathartic ruins, projecting their sexuality unequivocally.

Missy was clearly in her element—between the haunting whispers and rock chick posturing, upturned lip and hair clenched in her despairing fists. The head-bobbing crowd were firmly in her grasp, hollering her cries right back at her in as much unison as a bunch of misfits can offer. In the lead-up to Loud Bark, she delivered a sultry lament on the contradiction of America’s violence and puritanism, tempting all the “boys and men” in the room to shout “Pussy!” together…only to be toyed with in a sing-song voice: “Pathetic…” she chastised.

A swift follow-up invited everyone to scream it again with abandon, bonding the crowd less in taboo than with celebration. Loud Bark and I Got Heaven resonated around the room, Missy devoting herself physically to her followers and bounding around the stage. Perth didn’t need the memo that would otherwise be delivered to US ‘Christian’ audiences; this was a church of her own making.

The band whipped through their notoriously short tunes in rapid succession. Of Her from the current record, Anything and Everything paired together from Romantic and a bolshy Perfect were highlights, though by this point of the night we were all eating Pussy out of Missy’s hand regardless. After telling us that our Australian “brethren” advised against touring Perth, Missy salaciously revelled in embracing the opportunity to go to places we are told not to go, inciting the crowd to reject expectations and brutality and define strength through compassion. A second primal scream of the night ran straight into the tail end of the set, with Clams, OK? OK! OK? OK! and Pigs Is Pigs heightening the tension in preparation for Mannequin Pussy classics Emotional High and Romantic.

In what was a great night for the girls, Smol Fish did a fine job in setting the tone for cheek, whimsy, and having your smol voice heard (still powerful, if a little twee in comparison to the sex and grit of Mannequin Pussy). A cute callout to the crowd asking if anyone had come along tonight to get over something gave us the new tune Get Over It, fit with energetic builds and shrill squeals, and far less ‘sad girl starter pack’ than their Crocodile Tears EP might have you believe.

Less soapbox than preaching from the pulpit, Mannequin Pussy relished in their first show in Australia. Folks might have trouble with the word ‘pussy’ the world over, but there was no trouble sharing the good word at all for these Pussies in Perth.

CAT LANDRO

Photos by Linda Dunjey