The 36-year-old Canadian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Mac DeMarco returns to Italy for three concerts this summer, with Milan hosting the final date at the Parco della Musica stage, conveniently located near Linate Airport!
This is an opportunity not to be missed, as his last visit to these shores was seven years ago. Since then, his musical output has increased significantly, culminating in last year’s excellent album, Guitar—arguably even more lo-fi than any of his previous releases, which is saying something.
DeMarco’s pop sensibilities, interwoven with his stripped-back, languid, psychedelic arrangements and his brazenly direct, intensely personal production style, are utterly captivating. Add to that his cool, understated lyrics about love and life and, voilà, songs that completely enchant and engage the listener.
Although the vibe is entirely different, I see DeMarco as a millennial equivalent of 1970s Neil Young and George Harrison in many ways. Like those two artists during that era, he seems to create entirely on his own terms, with little concern for commercial trends or passing fads. Indeed, like Neil and George then, I respond to and immensely enjoy virtually everything Mac has released, and I feel an affinity with the guy on a soulful level somehow.
Releasing everything through his own label, Mac’s Record Label, has allowed him to remain unequivocally true to himself and his artistic vision, making each new album feel like a special event. He often accompanies his releases with demo versions that are, more often than not, exquisite in their own right.
Italy, like much of the rest of Europe, has been experiencing an intense heatwave, so the ridiculously expensive cups of beer (€7.80), Spritz (€10.80) and plain water (€2.80) have, for various reasons, been flowing freely among the punters. I had no idea what to expect in terms of attendance for the Milan gig. Every time I’ve tried to buy Mac DeMarco vinyl in record shops or at record fairs, many of the sellers haven’t even heard of him, let alone his catalogue. And yet I’m expected to believe that hundreds of people will descend on the rather bleak, asphalt-and-grass-covered Parco della Musica!
Well, there must be about 2,500–3,000, I reckon (who can tell?). Lots of millennials and Gen Z fans make up the numbers, as well as quite a few mosquitoes. With the ticket, parking (€10) and drink prices, it’s not a cheap affair to be standing around in the heat, but maybe we’re also paying for the spectacle of Boeing 737s flying over the main stage, which must be a pretty uncommon sight for standard gig-goers. “We are but sheep,” as Cassius uttered in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar.
Mac has a four-piece band with him on stage:
Alec Meen – keyboards, guitar, percussion and backing vocals
Pedro Martins – electric guitar and backing vocals
Daryl Johns – electric bass and backing vocals
Philippe Melanson – drums and backing vocals
Mac now and then picks up a guitar for certain songs but mainly leaves it to these guys to create a delicate rhythmic groove where harmonics and dynamics are the core elements of the sound created. It is all rather bewitching and captivating but, as many songs are short, it’s hard to build momentum with the unruly crowd.
As the sun goes down, Mac brings on Ryan Paris, who is unknown to the younger folk and, indeed, is met with little applause, but he was a big Italian ‘80s Europop star in his day. Mac DeMarco collaborated with him in 2023 and they play “Still What I’m Looking For”, which is an OK song, but somehow the pastiche of it all has a galvanising effect on the crowd, who seem prepared to join in more generally.
The last hour is superb and fun, full of great songs like “Heart to Heart”, “Ode to Viceroy”, the really groovy “Turn My TV On”, and then “Freaking Out the Neighborhood”, which turns the crowd into a frenzy. Mac has fun start-stopping the song, getting everyone engaged by an en masse lowering onto their haunches before jumping back up as the track restarts.
A couple of my absolute favourite tracks weren’t on the setlist, but the closers, “Moonlight on the River” and “Chamber of Reflection”, were, and they are magnificent in their majesty and scale.
The encores included the lovely “My Kind of Woman”, the classic Ryan Paris song “Dolce Vita”, and then Michael Jackson’s “Human Nature”, which was a most welcome surprise.
Just over two hours all in all, it was a most pleasurable, indeed memorable, time spent, where the clarity of the sound, the luscious melodies and Mac’s wonderful falsetto make you crave human contact and love.
He really does have something going on and, though I might not be able to find any vinyl, Spotify tells me he is the 413th most-listened-to artist. Wow… may his aura continue to grow and make this world more transcendental.
