The charmer of smoking viceroy cigarettes and cooking up something good, Mac DeMarco, settled down on Australian soil for yet another rendition of simplistic love songs and a boogie. After the release of his fourth studio album “This Old Dog”, featuring hit tracks “On The Level” and “My Old Man”, the 27 year old set out on tour over the US, UK including a headline show at the 2018 Laneway Festival. Luckily enough, fans who weren’t able to attend the festival were greeted with sideshows in Sydney and Melbourne.
Selling out his Melbourne show, held at the Forum Theatre, the experience lived widely up to its expectations, captivating fans with it’s midnight sky decor and outstanding architecture. Performing last in Melbourne at the beginning of 2015 at the 170 Russell, the choice of venue was one Mac commented on himself during his performance. Alongside special guest and longtime friend Kirin J Callinan, guests made themselves comfortable prior to Macs entrance later on in the evening as if they were just as thrilled to see Callinan as they were to see Mac. Burning up the stage with guitar tricks and eccentricity, Callinan gave the forefront to the expectations for the evening – and boy, were fans in for a treat.
Whether your a fan of Mac’s dorky nature or not, Mac’s audience were ready to follow the singers every command when Mac instructed his fans to “make yourself at home & smile at your neighbours.” Notoriously known for sitting his crowd down for a quiet lullaby, Mac charmed his crowd with hit songs from all four of his studio albums including “Salad Days”, “Cooking Up Something Good”, “Another One” and “This Old Dog”. Mac gave fans a once in a life time experience, hitting the stage for a straight two hour set of mischief, story time and most importantly a good crowd surf.
Performing tracks Mac described as “too upbeat for Laneway”, fans were spoiled with choice and given the freedom to jump around and fill the venue with smoke – most likely inspired by Mac’s addiction and love for cigarettes and vapes. Performing a cover of Seal’s “Kiss From a Rose” and even performing the theme song to a Japanese store called “Hard Off”, every minute was one not to miss.
After performing the track as his last song since his first studio album, Mac ended with “Still Together”, a love song dedication to his sweet girlfriend Kiki (Kiera McNally). Never failing to disappoint, the waiting game for another studio album is in the works as fans wait for what’s next from Mac and his wicked thoughts.
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The reviewer attended this show on February 7th.
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