#MAC DEMARCO THIS OLD DOG REVIEW MAC#

“Daddy’s in the basement, cooking up something fine / While Rick’s out on the pavement, flipping it for dimes / If there’s anything redeeming, I haven’t seen it yet / And I’m still up at midnight, chewing nicorette.” A thin blanket of melancholy rests just over some of his best work, like a layer black ice on a sidewalk that’s invisible and ready to bust your ass if you stumble into it unprepared.Īs early as “Cookin’ Up Somethin’ Good” on his breakthrough album 2, DeMarco was singing about a dysfunctional home life, but with a rubbery cheeriness as if he was in “The Brady Bunch”. He is, by his own admission, a regular guy who likes to sing about regular stuff.Įxcept, beyond the surface-level shenanigans that have come to define him to many, there have always been hints that there is more to the man than his stage presence. He’s charming, in a goofy, off-kilter, gap-toothed kind of way. His live sets are littered with inside jokes, he’s liable to play a jangly AC/DC cover at any moment, and he looks like he just climbed out of sleeping bag in a cave.

#MAC DEMARCO THIS OLD DOG REVIEW MAC#

The impeccable songwriting, vocal performance, instrumentals and most of all the themes of loneliness, abandonment, introspection and forgiveness make this album a thoroughly enjoyable listen.You could argue that Mac DeMarco has made a career for himself through the intimacy he’s developed with his fans more than any other factor. His charm is still there as he continues to grow musically. It did not feel significant when looked at as part of a personal album.ĭespite these issues, this is arguably Mac DeMarco’s best album yet. Also, the track Sister (written for his half-sister Holly) could have gone on for more than a verse. Maybe recall memories of his mother’s suffering as a single-parent or his own during his childhood. I wanted him to look at his father’s absence from a different perspective. While I thoroughly enjoyed this album, there were a few things I would have liked Mac to touch on. My favourite, however, is the mellow ballad One More Love Song backed with acoustic instrumentals and DeMarco’s weary, warming vocals. Tracks like For the First Time and One Another are highlights.

Mac’s ability to write an awkward yet adorable love song is shown on this album. Despite the conflicting emotions, he seems to give in to the feeling of loss of a loved one. Why should Mac even acknowledge his existence in his final days? Nonetheless, it still hurts him that his father is dying.

After all, his father didn’t care for him or his mother for all those years. He isn’t even sure whether he wants to call him or just watch him slowly die. He isn’t sure whether he loves him despite his unforgivable past mistakes or whether his life will change at all when he dies. His feelings towards his dying father aren’t clear.

The closing two tracks (Moonlight on the River and Watching Him Fade Away) also cover the same theme. The two opening tracks ( My Old Man and This Old Dog) explicitly discuss Mac’s father the former talks about how he is slowly becoming like him in some ways, the latter condemns his father for abandoning him at a young age. With This Old Dog however, Mac introspects both his family-life and his love-life. With Salad Days (and also his debut album 2), he delivered feel-good, funky tracks that one can either sing along or sit down and contemplate to. Canadian singer/songwriter Mac DeMarco returns with a set of mellow, well-written, comforting tracks on his third full-length LP, where his relationship with his recently cancer-diagnosed absent father is at the forefront.įollowing the release of his highly-acclaimed previous studio album Salad Days, Mac has built an impressive fanbase that enjoys his anti-celebrity corky personality and obviously his music.

Mac demarco this old dog review