By Dakota Parks for Inweekly
If the state of the world ever makes you feel like a feral animal backed in a corner baring your teeth, then Mannequin Pussy has you covered. Formed in 2010, this Philadelphia-based punk band blends thought-provoking lyrics with the raw complexities of love, longing, political unrest and feminine rage. Across four albums, the band—comprised of lead vocalist, songwriter and guitarist Marisa “Missy” Dabice, drummer Kaleen Reading, bassist and vocalist Colins “Bear” Regisford and guitarist Maxine Steen—consistently redefines punk ethos with a sound as bold as it is boundary-breaking.
On tour with their latest album, “I Got Heaven,” Inweekly caught up with Dabice ahead of their show at The Handlebar on Monday, Oct. 21.
INWEEKLY: You’ve been on tour for the new album since April. How has it been so far?
DABICE: It’s been phenomenal and very intense and exhilarating and completely exhausting. We did seven weeks in the U.S., had four days off, went to Europe for five weeks, came back with a few days off, and then did a festival every weekend of July. We ended up canceling a portion of the tour because, as it turns out, the human body has limitations.
INWEEKLY: Talk to me a little about the track “Loud Bark.” That song embodies pure feminine rage. What inspired you to write it?
DABICE: That’s actually my favorite song on the album. It started with that ominous riff that Maxine was playing. It was a menacing feeling, almost felt like something was stalking you from the distance. I’m also really obsessed with comparing myself to a feral animal; that theme comes up a lot in our discography. Maybe I’ll discuss that in therapy one day. It had all the right elements of femininity and rage. I also love a solid, repeating chorus, because there is something very menacing, threatening and kind of loosely psychotic about repeating the same thing over and over and over again.
INWEEKLY: Your music is so vulnerable and raw. What is the songwriting process like for you?
DABICE: It feels like I’m living within the world of the songs, especially when Maxine and I are working together. She’s my closest collaborator, constantly surprising me with riffs that inspire my melodies. When I bring a song to her, I’m excited to see what she adds, and that excitement grows as Bear and Kaleen add their parts. A song often reveals its meaning through the instrumentals. I can’t force it; the song tells me what the feelings and themes are, and then I just excavate the words.
INWEEKLY: I’ve always been struck by how each of your albums can be so musically different from one another, and this new album is no exception. It moves between softer, more intimate tracks and harder, rage-filled songs. What drives that juxtaposition of emotions?
DABICE: I think that juxtaposition reflects the complexity of the human spirit. We’re often expected to be the same person all the time, or to stick to one emotion as if that’s the core of our personality. But I find people more interesting when they allow themselves to experience a range of emotions and really get in touch with them. I used to shy away from my own emotions for a long time, but you reach a point where everything boils over. We also don’t have many spaces where we can truly express ourselves without inviting comments or judgment, but with a song, it’s different.
If I post something online, it invites reactions. A song, however, offers a personal experience—listeners engage with it privately within the confines of their own heads. It becomes a space where I can be completely honest about my feelings. Right now, I feel the most emotionally solid I’ve ever been—oscillating between a deep rage that continues to burn and get stronger as I get older while still experiencing lust, passion, loneliness, disillusionment—all the things that make being alive the experience that it is.
INWEEKLY: Your music often blends the personal and the political. How do you navigate that balance?
DABICE: I studied political science in college, and there was a time I thought I might go into politics because I was so enraged by how broken the system is. You start to realize that a lot of what we’ve been told is a lie, and America itself is built on myths. As you start to break down these systems, you break down too, because it feels like the odds are stacked against you.
I’ve always been angry about the inherent violence in our society, especially under patriarchal systems where strength is equated with violence. To me, real strength is about holding back from saying or doing something hurtful, knowing you could emotionally decimate another person but showing compassion instead.
On top of that, our identities have been politicized—specifically our demographics in the band— because Black bodies, women’s bodies, trans people and queer people are constantly under attack. It’s impossible for us to write music that doesn’t reflect our personal experiences, because we’re still trying to understand why people treat us so badly and where all this brutality and violence comes from. As artists, our job is to take these huge, macro-level problems and focus them through the lens of our personal experiences.
INWEEKLY: I’m glad you mentioned the politicization of identity. Your band is incredibly diverse, featuring queer, trans, women and people of color—all in one band, which feels incredibly unique because you’re all drawing from those vastly different life experiences.
DABICE: We are definitely a unique group who just purely found each other and kind of fell in love with each other—in a creative sense. You know, we’ve shared a lot of experiences with each other out on the road and opened up to each other about the things we’ve seen and been through. So, we’re in a unique position to take those personal experiences and incorporate them in our music. I think that’s why our audiences have become much more diverse too, because they’re experiencing the same things we are.
INWEEKLY: Speaking of feminism and politics, I’ve always considered Mannequin Pussy a feminist punk band in the vein of Riot grrrl or Bikini Kill. Feminist punk has a rich history of pushing boundaries. How do you see Mannequin Pussy contributing to that legacy?
DABICE: Just by the very virtue of being ourselves on stage, we contribute to the feminist movement. It’s important to see people like us in these positions of power, reclaiming authority for ourselves. I’ve really embraced my femininity recently. For a long time, I felt that to be powerful, I had to be more masculine.
I’ve enjoyed subverting the expectations of femininity by wearing dresses and outfits that are archetypically feminine, then turning that on its head by screaming at the top of my lungs in a beautiful gown while calling out political oppression. I’m dredging up these antiquated notions of femininity in a modern context and having a lot of fun expressing my identity on my own terms. You don’t need to conform or follow social expectations of what defines womanhood.
INWEEKLY: I think a lot of women, especially queer women, can relate to that reclamation of femininity. We live in a society that often dismisses femininity as powerless, so many find power in more masculine and androgynous presentations.
DABICE: It’s fun to play with gender, obviously, but wouldn’t it be great if we could tap into this feminine energy and still be taken seriously as a dominating, respected force? I’ve been thinking about how creativity embodies feminine energy. To create something is inherently feminine, while destruction is often seen as masculine. This perspective can be limiting, but there’s nothing more feminine than creating music, bringing people together and inspiring them to be exactly who they are.
INWEEKLY: Mannequin Pussy was recently featured on a Destroy Boys’ track “You Hear Yes,” alongside Scowl—creating this powerful, punk anti-harassment anthem. Both Destroy Boys and Scowl are visceral, queer, feminist bands calling out the injustices in the world. How does it feel to work with bands that share such a similar energy?
DABICE: Destroy Boys wrote the song and had this space for me that they wanted to fill. I went into the studio and wrote for my little part. We’ve known each other for three years at this point, and I really admire what they’re doing and how much they’ve grown in the years that we’ve known each other. So, I was really excited and flattered that they wanted me to be part of their song.
INWEEKLY: This new album reminds me a little of my favorite track “Drunk II” and your album “Romantic” with its deep meditations on longing and yearning to be loved. What draws you back to those themes?
DABICE: During the “I Got Heaven” era, I was in a reflective mindset after ending a relationship in 2021. I realized I had spent most of my life being someone’s girlfriend and felt unhappy in most of those relationships. This realization motivated me to stop dating and focus on my creativity and art for the first time as an adult. In my mid-30s, it was eye-opening to see that I had never fully devoted time to my own goals. I’ve been in some toxic relationships with people that don’t really want you to tour, don’t want you to be success and don’t want to share you with other people. Choosing solitude was empowering. In the absence of romantic love came musings on how I would approach relationships differently in the future.
INWEEKLY: That’s a really vulnerable and powerful answer, and I appreciate you sharing it. It serves as a reminder for other women who may feel defined solely by their roles as a girlfriend, wife or mother, often losing sight of their own dreams and aspirations. Many women can relate to the feeling of being valued primarily for what they can do for others rather than for who they are.
DABICE: I really think there is some collective consciousness happening right now, speaking from a place of heteronormativity. I heard something recently that said, “Be wary of a man who wants a wife and a baby; he should want to be a father and a husband.” Women are still seen as property to so many people and as an accessory to other people’s lives. Which makes me question, what value does this person bring to my life, or am I simply expected to serve them and look good for someone else to feel complete? At this point in my life, I’m not interested in fusing with another person, unless it’s going to be creatively, emotionally and spiritually fulfilling. I was just tricked for a long time as to what to accept in relationships, and I’ve done the work to break that down.
INWEEKLY: You can definitely hear those influences in your music as you constantly challenge those social roles. To wrap on a lighter note with a fun question, what is a book that has significantly impacted you?
DABICE: Not to be too intellectual, but I have to mention “A People’s History of the United States” by Howard Zinn. It’s a mind-blowing account of American history stripped of mythology and nationalism, presenting the facts as they are. On the other hand, I also love the poet, Mary Oliver. Her essays and poems deeply resonate with me, especially her appreciation for the natural world. Despite the brutality of life, she highlights the beauty and magic all around us—even in times of grief.
Mannequin Pussy’s “I Got Heaven” Tour
What: Mannequin Pussy with Margaritas Podridas
When: 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 21
Where: The Handlebar, 319 N. Tarragona St.
Cost: $25 in advance, $27 at the door
Details: mannequinpussy.com, thehandlebar850.com