Mason Proper at the Subterranean in Chicago 3/24/07

One of the most interesting things about getting out to see Michigan bands in Chicago is the differences and similarities between the audience reactions. I saw Mason Proper at the Subterranean last Saturday.



The venue is small, and as Mason Proper was setting up, I started eavesdropping. An embarrassing habit, I know. “I heard this lead singer is, like, crazy,” one guy warned his friend. As the set started, the crowd seemed to get into it; there was plenty of dancing and general enjoyment while the band played for the unruly crowd (even though lead singer Jonathan Visgr lost his glasses sometime during the second song…).



Mason Proper played their re-working of “Life’s Cornucopia,” during which Brian Konicek trades his guitar for some bizarre new instrument, to stunning effect (it looked almost like a dulcimer! Is Mason Proper now employing a dulcimer?!? Amazing…). Post-show, I tried to get some of the crowd’s thoughts on the band. One couple who had just moved from San Francisco was “thrilled on our first night in Chicago.” Another guy applauded “the lead singer’s Frankenstein dancing.”







Overall, Chicago loved Mason Proper.
-Katie Canavan