Photo by Coley Brown / Pitch Perfect PR
Wednesday night, Mac DeMarco performed a sold-out show at Marathon Music Works to inarguably one of the most excited crowds that’s graced the venue in a long while.
Opening up for DeMarco were two members of his touring band — brothers, in fact — called TONSTARTSSBANDHT. This duo had the on-stage chemistry only found in sibling acts, and while not as popular in name as DeMarco, they found favor with the audience. The pair delivered a set filled with psychedelic tracks and lived up to their jam-band reputation.
Shortly after their set ended, they left the stage to later come back with DeMarco in tow. From that point, DeMarco, backed by his band, performed a truly fantastic set, balancing the casualness of his songs with the energy of the crowd.
DeMarco took the stage with a unique tune backing his entrance: a rendition of The Godfather theme. Although most of the crowd sported x’s on their hands and were under 18, they too were impressed by DeMarco’s homage to the cult classic film.
Kicking off with his most popular track “Salad Days,” the audience sang every word in tune with DeMarco and didn’t stop until he sang his last note nearly two hours later. Most impressive was the crowd’s knowledge of DeMarco’s tracks. Even his newest work, only released a few weeks ago, was known by most of the crowd.
Those who have never seen a Mac DeMarco show before might be surprised by the humbleness he presents on stage, something that can be uncommon among artists who have recently made it big. While DeMarco has performed at festivals in the past, in some ways, his newest album “This Old Dog” has made him an overnight sensation, especially for the Nashville crowd.
One of the most remarkable parts of DeMarco’s performance was the undeniable excitement he had at being in Nashville performing. It was obvious how much he loves singing, and he’s truly talented. DeMarco is one of the few musician whose live music sounds just as good — if not better — than recorded versions. Throughout his set, he dropped hints as to where fans could find him in Nashville this weekend, discussing his love of Nashville’s famous hot chicken extensively and poking fun at the vegan trend that’s taken over recently.
One of DeMarco’s last songs was “One More Love Song,” dedicated to his “sweetheart back in Los Angeles.” During this cut, the group of teens pulled out their lighters, swaying in rhythm with DeMarco’s song. For those who didn’t have their honeys with them to cuddle next to during the track, DeMarco left them with this advice: “Think of macaroni and cheese.”
Follow Brinley Hineman on Twitter at @_briiindle.
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