MARIS
Brooklyn Steel, NY
March 19th, 2025
Joining Maude Latour on the Sugar Water tour, MARIS is quickly coming into her own as an electric, must-know, queer-pop icon. For those not yet familiar with her work, she is an artist at heart, best exemplified by her release of a short-film along with her most recent EP, Gravity. Despite being a young musician and her admittance to struggling with confidence issues in her past, she performs like a bonafide veteran. And maybe this should come as no surprise given the time she has spent on the road these last few years – opening for Melt, A R I Z O N A, The Wrecks, and playing festivals like Boston Calling and Missoula Pride. Her opening set in the Sugar Water tour is not one to be missed.
The energy of the venue was high at the start of the show. MARIS ran on stage, and as a nod to the space imagery of Gravity, she donned a white spacesuit decorated with red and blue decals. Her dedicated fans cried out from the barricades as the 80’s-inspired beats from her single Going Yet! Rang out. Then, she and her drummer, Julien “Tiger” Lewis, continued to build the energy by playing False Idol featuring a brief, choreographed dance. After The Fight, MARIS ditched the spacesuit and introduced the crowd to her newest single, Give Me a Sign (feat. Caroline Kingsbury). Fans in the front row called out the name of the song as MARIS said the name of the track she was about to play, and MARIS smiled, nodding in approval. Despite being released just over a week ago, the crowd was familiar enough to sing along.
Between the dynamic song performances, MARIS did not forget to work the crowd. After Chameleon, a slower ballad that encapsulates feelings of insecurity and diffidence, she knew that the mood of the venue shifted. To finish her set with energy and warm the crowd up for Maude Latour, she made sure to engage the audience to bring spirits higher. She told the crowd that it was time for an “exercise” of self-love and positivity, and she instructed everyone to follow her lead. MARIS wrapped her arms around herself, and said “I love you just the way you fucking are, bitch!” Then the crowd echoed back, “I love you just the way you fucking are, bitch!” — every one of them holding themselves the way MARIS was holding herself. After another round of the self-love exercise, spirits were restored, and the show resumed.
The most special part of MARIS’s show is her connection to fans. After her last song, Salt Water Taffy, MARIS told the audience to find her at the merch booth. Each night on tour, MARIS ensures her fans have the opportunity to meet her, and each Instagram recap is almost entirely pictures of fans or pictures with fans. Body parts are autographed, custom signs are shown off, and recently purchased merch is proudly displayed. As her music grows in popularity, MARIS continues to foster a sense of community and love both on and off the stage.
0 comments on “MARIS at Brooklyn Steel”