On one of downtown St. Pete's busiest First Fridays of the year, local denizen strolling the sidewalks along Beach Drive and 5th Avenue North were serenaded (or really, dance rocked and rolled) by NYC-spawned alt pop outfit MS MR, the pulsing and pounding sounds soaring from the Vinoy Renaissance Resort's scenic front lawn into the crisp night air while saturated lights in greens, blues, purples and reds filtered onto the curious onlookers milling outside.
It was definitely an unexpected and rather thrilling sight to behold, The Vinoy transformed into a music venue. The stage was framed by giant palm trees and backed by the resort's stately pink bell tower, with a few hundred people gathered in grooving and swaying clusters before it or lounging in comfy seating areas (replete with couches, chairs and coffee tables) scattered around the lawn's perimeter amid booths featuring local businesses serving food and drink or hawking wares and information.
The synthy New York outfit co-led by sultry-voiced singer Lizzy Plapinger and producer/keyboardist Max Hershenow held the few hundred attendees rapt. Plapinger owned the stage with ease, working the crowd like it was any other (and not situated in front of downtown's finest luxury hotel), and flipping her head in arching sweeps of long orange hair as she pranced and danced with aerobic energy in a full body catsuit, somehow managing to avoid any camel toe moments amid her gyrations. Their live sound was far more compelling, loud and propulsive than you might imagine from their recorded output, which also proved a pleasant surprise, and while there wasn't an encore, MS MR did make sure to perform their most popular single, the dark-vibing heart-aching "Hurricane," before taking a bow and calling it a night.
MS MR came to town as part of The Navigator Live Series. Presented by cable/satellite network AXS TV in collaboration with Renaissance Hotels, it's one part concert event, one part television program that brings rising indie groups to stay and play at various Renaissance properties around the world and invites guests staying at these properties along with the surrounding community to attend. The idea is to "explore different cities through via eyes of touring musicians," who spend much of their time on the road and have a unique perspective on travel. Each episode includes live performance footage taken from the hotel-hosted concerts plus interviews with the artists and clips that find them enjoying the food, drink and unique pursuits of the Renaissance city in question. Full episodes only air in-room at Renaissance properties, however, highlight clips are available on the Renaissance Hotels YouTube page, and you can find a clip from the MS MR episode there once it's complete. I can't wait to see what MS MR gets into while hanging in downtown St. Pete …
This article appears in Dec 3-9, 2015.
