By Cass Hyde
Photography: Georgina Hurdsfield
Since he first started out in 2012, Mac DeMarco has quickly gained a cult following from his slacker persona, wild stage banter and his own style of jangle pop. No one at his Manchester show just likes him and his music. They love it!
So, understandably, Mac’s biggest hits launched the crowd into a frenzy. ‘Salad Days’, a mid-tempo, nonchalant ode to getting older, became a 2,000-strong singalong. The fast-paced ‘Freaking Out In The Neighbourhood’ caused the crowd to erupt into one giant mosh pit. The now rarely played ‘Let It Go’, Mac’s answer to an upbeat single, led to raucous dancing and celebrations from the audience.
Yet, the show wasn’t without its more intimate moments. ‘This Old Dog’ and ‘Dreams of Yesterday’, added sarcastic jazz piano to slow acoustic ballads. For ‘Dreams of Yesterday’, the stage lights were turned off and Mac asked the audience to pick their lighters/phone lights in the air. All of this took these quirky slow songs to a new high, making a large venue like the Academy seem intimate.
Yet, if there was anything wrong with his performance, it was its length. Performing a full two-hour set, Mac performed many tracks from his new album, This Old Dog, which contains many slow songs. None of the songs performed from the album are bad, per se, but when you have such a high energy atmosphere, it seems strange to add so many slower songs. Tracks performed earlier in the set, such as ‘On The Level’ and ‘For The First Time’, were enjoyable, for sure. But when the seventh and eighth slow songs came around, you could hear the chatter over the music.
Ending the night on ‘Still Together’, the closer for his second album, the album version is barely over three minutes, 30 seconds. Live-wise, Mac stretches this song out, filling it with nonsensical covers and semi-improvised onstage havoc.
This saw Mac strutting around the stage, performing Black Sabbath’s ‘Paranoid’ with all lyrics replaced with lyrics about cheese, ham and sandwiches. Mac’s support, Montero, came on stage to perform 50 Cent’s ‘In Da Club’, with Mac jamming on drums.
At one point, Mac put on a pair of tiny glasses someone threw on stage and launched into a cover of ‘Live Forever’ by Oasis, as Liam Gallagher. Head cocked up to the mic and hands behind his back, the crowd belted out all the words.
Yet, by the time this was all over and done with, 25 minutes had passed. It’s not necessarily a sign of over indulgence on Mac’s parts. Jam sessions tend to always be too long, but this could have easily been ten or 15 minutes.
This was far, far from a bad set. Yet, it could have easily been a tight 90 minutes. Overall, it was pretty good, but not great.
Featured image and gallery: Sam Holmes From Mirfield to Manchester, this Yorkshire-born four-piece bring their funk-interwoven indie rock to a sold-out Gorilla for their biggest headline show to date. Fresh off the back of their new single ‘Watch Life Burn’ and signing their first record deal with This Feeling/ LAB Records, there is already a…
Featured image and photography: Aaron Parsons / Press Haiden Henderson isn’t a name known to many in Manchester, but the Californian rockstar certainly made sure to leave a lasting impression. With sensual and sexy songs, Henderson really knows how to heat up a crowd in more ways than one. Unreleased track ‘Freak For You’ sets a…
Feature image: Press The Manchester Film Festival has wrapped its 12th edition, running over 11 days and showcasing a strong line-up of local and international talent from across the independent film industry. Festival director Neil Jeram-Croft reflected on this year’s programme, filled with a mix of features, shorts and documentaries spanning the cities’ cinema hotspots:…
Featured image: Press Toots and the Maytals return to Manchester for their ‘Reggae Got Soul’ 50th anniversary tour. Following their hugely successful 2025 tour, Toots and the Maytals return to Manchester to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their landmark album, Reggae Got Soul. Fronted for decades by Frederick ‘Toots’ Hibbert – named by Rolling Stone…
Leave a reply