Only a year after the release of the album Salad Days, and a month after Some Other Ones, Canadian singer/songwriter Mac DeMarco brings back his “Pacsun-esque” beach vibes in his latest LP Another One.
Another One fits perfectly with the rest of DeMarco’s collection, embracing his signature relaxed style with swinging guitar riffs and tight percussion on top of laid back, nearly hypnotizing, vocals.
Like DeMarco’s other albums, Another One, will not disappoint in effortlessly bringing the listener to a hammock on a tropical oasis, or perhaps even a hipster coffee shop, where he can drink an iced chai latte.
The first track “The Way You’d Loved Her” sets the standard for the rest of the album with its incredibly catchy guitar riff and exceptional, plunky solo towards the end of the song.
Lyrically, the song illustrates the disheartenment of two people never knowing how the other feels about them and the singer’s ultimate heartbreak over the matter “never really got the change to her, what it really means to love her,” a theme that is reiterated throughout the LP.
From a musical standpoint, the LP is sweet to the ears. However, upon reading the lyrics intently, the songs sound more like a manuscript of the 18th season of a soap opera with a long overdue series finale.
If the singer’s discontentment and frustration over this uphill battle of love isn’t apparent in tracks one through five, then it surely has to be blatant in the LP’s sixth track “I’ve Been Waiting for Her” to which the average listener would likely respond “Yes, yes we know.” If she hasn’t confessed her love to you yet, my friend, I think it may be best to move on.
Thankfully, the LP’s seventh track ‘Without Me” introduces a much needed change of perspective and attitude. The singer reaches a point of acceptance of the inevitable, deciding that everything is fine because he knows she is happy, even if that means being without him.
The grand finale “My House by the Water” reflects just that.
The first two minutes and twenty-four seconds are nothing but the calming sound of ocean waves crashing on a shore mixed with a low organ melody, only to be interrupted by DeMarco reading his New York home address and inviting the listener to stop by for cup of coffee.
When taking the rest of DeMarco’s music and his eccentric reputation into account, the oddity of this last track is nothing to bat an eye at.
As a whole, Another One embodies the relaxed vibe DeMarco is known for while simultaneously masking the overpowering theme of heartbreak with his vocals and upbeat, catchy guitar riffs, taking the listener to a numbing, tranquil state of mind.
Final Verdict: 7/10
Featured Photo Credit: Photo courtesy of Flickr user Side Stage Collective.
Jordan Stovka is a freshman journalism major and can be reached at jstovka@icloud.com.
