In his 11 year career thus far, Mac DeMarco has frequently begged the question, how freaky can one musician get while staying popular with the masses? The answer, in his case, pretty freaky. Mac remains indie music's beloved weirdo with tunes to spare, and his captivating theatricality is no more on display than in his live show. Thursday night (7/20), Mac wrapped up a three-night-stand at Webster Hall, part of a dozen-show tour supporting his 2023 instrumental LP Five Easy Hot Dogs. Fittingly, the first part of his set was entirely instrumental, with Mac performing interludes and monologues in a sort of trans-Atlantic accent and bantering with the band and crowd in his normal voice between songs. "What is Five Easy Hot Dogs? I don't fuckin' know… we're trying to do something new and that's cool," he said early in the show.
Mac DeMarco played for over two hours without a break; that stretch began with Five Easy Hot Dogs in its entirety, ending with "Rockaway," to the crowd's delight. Named after the neighborhood where Mac lived for years (and invited fans in on "My House By The Water"), Mac introduced "Rockaway" with credit to his old roommate Matt Voles for all of the eclectic decor onstage. He spent the night playing acoustic guitar on a swiveling stool (which he stood up on for vocal songs), accompanied by bass, keys, and drums, and surrounded by ephemera: a giant teal horse, rugs, lamps, dried flowers, and a New York Lottery neon sign at center stage. Behind the band were lightly psychedelic visuals, 8-bit smiley faces and vaporwave-ish stock video, designed by Dan McNeil.
Following the easy-listening folk-rock of Five Easy Hot Dogs, Mac launched into the hits, beginning with early favorite "Salad Days." The back half included selections from his other 2023 project One Wayne G -- "Proud True Toyota," "She Want The Sandwich," "Scarecrow," and more. The crowd sang and cheered thunderously throughout the set, particularly for "Another One" (for which Mac demanded waving flashlights), "Still Beating," and viral hit "Chamber Of Reflection," the first of two encore songs. In fact, taking the stage after a spare 30-second gap, Mac joked, "What a load of horse shit, encores. We're gonna play two more and then we're gonna leave." He finished the evening with a jammy, solo-filled rendition of "Still Together," flexing the band's musical prowess beyond quirky, jazz-flecked indie-folk.
Regardless of the song, of its lyrical content or tempo, the room shook with applause after every track throughout the night. Mac DeMarco remains a stalwart indie weirdo, and he's nothing short of loved for it. Check out fan-shot photos and videos from the Webster Hall run, and setlists from the first two nights, below.