E.R. FIGHTMASTER at the Mercury Lounge in New York City – Live Review

Mercury Lounge was the place to be in the last week leading up to NYC’s pride weekend celebrations. E.R. FIGHTMASTER’s NYC show was a late-night show and a weeknight to boot but the room filled quickly. 

Hammydown warmed up the crowd— their singer was super energetic jumping around on stage engaging the audience. Their set ended with the song “outside,” a fast-paced rock track that got the audience ready for FIGHTMASTER’s set. On the topic of this being a pride month show, they thanked the crowd and talked about how special it was to get to play with other gender nonconforming and queer artists like FIGHTMASTER.

FIGHTMASTER’s set was deeply emotional, political, and overall held the audience transfixed. They practically oozed with charisma as they played and bantered with the crowd. They stressed the significance of making intentional space for people to feel seen through their music, sharing that their “favorite thing about queer spaces is we’re good at emoting safely” and encouraging the audience to truly let themselves feel. In this vein, the singer introduced “Bloodshed Baby” saying that “It’s pride month. This song is for the queer kids and the trans kids and all those kids in Palestine.”  FIGHTMASTER’s dedication of “Bloodshed Baby” was poignant, reminding us that pride is more than just a party and the focus should be on kids who have been made unsafe due to their identities and the children victimized in Gaza. They acknowledged that their music can be sad and jokingly (or not) said that “the rule is you have to leave this space and go have sex with each other. Don’t go telling people I made [you] sad.”

The artist encouraged audience participation in several moments— asking us to flip them off and say “oh fuck you” before singing a song about their dad to get them in the right headspace and asking us to scream the lyric “I’m not well right now and neither should you” in BrickXBrick. They even apologized for calling us names, saying “we’re four songs into the set and I’ve already called you fuckers. Okay sweeties.” Their affection for the fans is so apparent.

The set ranged from slower ballads like “Tsunami” to more fast paced pieces. As a musician their voice is incredibly unique and their music spans multiple genres, combining rock with the haunting sounds of country. 

For the encore the audience yelled “Fight, fight, fight” on repeat until they returned to the stage. This was easily my favorite method of requesting an encore I’ve seen before. They discussed playing a pioneering role of a nonbinary doctor on Grey’s Anatomy and explained what that meant to them to get to provide representation. The show was a triumph and an excellent way to end Pride month. 

Check out our favourite photos of the night or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!

FIGHTMASTER

HAMMYDOWN

All Photo Credit: Anya Tucker