
Photographs by Sean Chin.
Mac DeMarco is a lazy prodigy. His laid back music and his slacked up image are beloved by many, especially within his home country of Canada. At Yonge Dundas Square, there were thousands of people waiting for DeMarco, where every mention of his name resulted in a roar of applause and cheers. DeMarco, again being the guy who doesn’t give too much of a care about appearances, performed his own soundcheck and that alone was a massive treat to the fans. The fans came for DeMarco alone, but what they got was a much bigger treat with a set that was so unpredictable that his soothing tracks united all that were having a blast with his onstage antics.
DeMarco made a new best friend that day named Luke. DeMarco near the start of his set told security to bring Luke, in his red hawaiian shirt, onto the stage where he introduced him to all of Toronto. Luke danced around for many songs as DeMarco, similar to Danny Brown’s priorities within his own respective set, played his songs professionally reminding us that his trucker hat and Simpsons t-shirt are only who he is on the surface (whereas deep down DeMarco is a very talented songwriter). DeMarco and Luke took part in a number of activities between songs, such as sharing a bra that was tossed onstage as a hat, sharing pictures and water, and even the surprising moment where DeMarco kissed Luke right on the lips (with such a big fan, it’s surprising that it wasn’t the other way around). Luke jumped into the crowd and crowd surfed his way into obscurity, where his fifteen minutes of fame were now a signature moment of his life and a testament to Demarco’s no-strings-attached mentality on life.
With every song being introduced and every time in between full of banter, DeMarco’s set was both fun and intimate. He played many songs off of his sterling album Salad Days, as well as some older favorites, as Yonge Dundas Square turned into a party and an easy Saturday afternoon. The layers found on album sounded great live, with every instrument clearly distinct. The sun was shining, the audience was thrilled to be there, and Mac DeMarco, the biggest current example that anyone can make it if they try, played one of the most fun sets at NXNE.