If there is anyone that perfectly embodies the term “velvety voice,” it is María Zardoya. The Marías’ front woman’s invigorating and seductive energy make her such an enjoyable and striking performer, as she sings, dances, and interacts with a crowd that will, rightfully, scream at every little thing she does. Supporting the release of their second studio album Submarine, The Marías are bringing their psychedelic indie pop around North America, and the show they’ve managed to put on is really one of a kind. Not only is the stage set up absolutely beautiful, and the setlist perfectly curated, but the quartet’s fans luckily match their energy in a way not all audiences are able to do.

Starting out the night with “Hamptons,” a song that juxtaposes a luxurious lifestyle with a dire love life, the Puerto Rican vocalist was welcomed to one of Toronto’s most iconic stages with a roar. The excitement and loudness of the audience remained at a high as –one of my personal favorites– “Run Your Mouth” played, and it did not get even slightly quieter as the night went on.

Another new song, “Lejos de Ti” was also a highlight of the night, as María addressed all the Spanish speakers in the crowd and asked them to tell her where they are from. Multiple voices from Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, and more could be heard all around the room, as The Marías smiled and said hi to all of them. As a South American (Chilean!) fan, this little moment just had to make my heart flutter, because it gave us all a tiny memory only for ourselves, for the ones that understood her once she switched to Spanish for a bit.

Some throwbacks that got everyone at HISTORY a little nostalgic were “Only In My Dreams” and “Over The Moon,” from the band’s Superclean, Vol. I and Superclean, Vol. II EPs, respectively, as well as a cute and fun mashup of their 2017 song “Ruthless,” The Cardigans’ “Lovefool” and their 2020 single “Care For You”. And, of course, their Bad Bunny collaboration “Otro Atardecer,” one of their biggest songs to date, had everybody losing their minds.

One thing that was clear from the beginning, was how the band’s name truthfully embodies and embraces how this is María’s show. She is a star and a force of nature in so many ways, naturally being able to control and adapt to the energy of both the people on stage with her and those that were there to watch. She seems to have created a perfect mixture of sexy and adorable, transmitting such a charming overall demeanor that I believe can make anyone fall in love with her. This was her night, her stage, and we were just lucky enough to be sharing the same space and breathing the same air.

Throughout the night, she spoke about the different moments and things she went through when writing each song, making the performance feel incredibly intimate, even if it was happening at a place that can hold 2,500 people at once. Her honesty and candidness seemed so natural and genuine, and it made me at least feel like listening to the music now will forever change, as I continue to learn how much it means to her. María invited and reminded us all to live in the moment, to enjoy whatever it is we’re currently going through, and fully turned the night into a celebration of life.

To close out the evening, the band started the encore with a medley of two songs from both Submarine and their debut LP https://open.spotify.com/album/5TkaDC4mYSLBvdG6UrIB0v?si=EIJ7VMCqRJa2Tau8KEkSQg, “Just A Feeling” and “Ride,” a nice way of showing a sort of transition between their two main projects.

And then they finished up the night with two of their older songs, “All I Really Want Is You” and “Cariño,” a pretty bold choice considering both of them are not from the record they are currently promoting. Maybe a little confusing to be fair, but to me that also shows that they wanted to focus on how things would tie together, and looked for a perfect way to wrap it up, one that made sense to them as a band and not just one that made sense to the name of the tour.

Although they’ve been around for a minute now, this still seems to be only the beginning for The Marías. This is indeed a new high for them, but they are clearly only going up, and if their shows are already this amazing… I can’t even imagine what it will be like to watch them live in a couple years from now. They are a true testament to how being authentic and just absolutely loving music can pay off, and how creating your own sound, finding your own voice, is always going to reward you with being able to enjoy your own music the way María seems to do on stage.

If you love beautiful things and particularly enjoy beautiful music, made by beautiful souls, don’t wait too long to catch them live. The Marías will end their North American run at Austin City Limits, before embarking on the European leg of the Submarine Tour.