Mac DeMarco
– THE ALBERT HALL, MANCHESTER –
Sporting an Everton shirt and accompanied by a girl who had a fucking jewel glued to her forehead I venture to the ever eventful city of Manchester with great anticipation of who I’m going to witness this evening. The effortlessly cool and entertaining Mac Demarco graces the stage of Albert Hall’s beautiful interior, which is hidden delicately behind stain glass windows and a certain dilapidated quality which leads you nicely into the intimately inclined space. In a word, fuckingstrangeandunexpected… (Yes that is a word I swear)
QUICK SIDENOTE: Mac’s headline performance was preceded by some fantastic sets from really good artists featuring Spring King and Kevin Morby who are part of the Beacons Metro Series. For me however, these acts where never gonna out do Mac. But none the less they were very entertaining, and if I were to see each act separately (the others being Horsebeach and The Big Moon) then I’m sure I’d have nothing but praise for them all.
But anyway, that’s enough bollocks and foreplay. Mac is wonderful. Like I mentioned earlier, his skills of working and entertaining a crowd are second to none. But that’s not surprising when a crowd’s enthusiasm is on an inter-galactic level of excitement and joy. It’s no wonder Demarco laps it up, it only builds the atmosphere when he throws it back right in your face with his humour and charming stage presence.
Passionate for his quirky love songs and ballads of young life, like a football chant the people shout “MAC! MAC! MAC!” It is fucking boss. It makes me feel like I am part of something special, and oh golly is the set one to remember.
Belting out tune after tune via his already marvellous back catalogue of songs from the likes of ‘Salad Days’ (2014), ‘2’ (2012) and the more recent ‘Another One’ (2015), Mac pitches an invigorating selection. Personal highlights of the night include “Ode to Viceroy”, “Cooking Up Something Good” and his opening rendition of “The Way You’d Love Her”.
As the night wears on, the stage goes from solely being filled with Mac and his band to a mess of shoes, bras, hats and other items which are relentlessly being tossed on stage. It’s like a gig at a charity shop, shit clothes and hipster teens everywhere!
After around 90 minutes play in a set which features other songs such as “The Stars Keep on Calling My Name”, “Freakin’ out the Neighbourhood” and “Chamber of Reflection” he closes regulation time with the beautiful and somewhat epic “Still Together”. He then proceeds to stage dive and surf like he typically does, which is always a crowd pleaser and some may say a cheap trick. But regardless it adds to the fun factor which drenches the audience all evening, so it’ very much a plus in my eyes.
The word ‘legend’ would be an understatement in my opinion, when it comes to describing this man’s talents at least. A skilled guitarist who isn’t too flashy, yet still offers something new and interesting to sink your teeth into. Someone who doesn’t shy from expressing humility and gratitude to his fans, a trait unfortunately for me not too often found in many new bands these days, who think they’re gods fucking gift to the planet, but actually spout a load of shite and ultimately produce boring stuff. A fantastic song writer with simple yet emotive words, and a personality which is almost impossible not to like. To be honest, it’s always a recipe for success despite my fears of being let down because my expectations where so high beforehand. But thankfully, it was more than I could have imagined.
Overall, if you manage to convince someone to dress up as MJ and prance around on stage while you [Mac] plunge head first into a pool of Mancunian flesh and god awful sweat, then that’s a winner in my eyes. Boss crowd, boss band, boss songs, boss man, boss Mac. It was fucking boss lad.
MAC DEMARCO Facebook | Twitter | Bandcamp
Liverpool born music writer with passion for punk and Everton FC
