Harry's Music Reviews

Not many albums can make me feel the way that 2001’s Is This It does. There’s a simplicity yet such a complexity to it. It’s so hard to explain (if you’ll pardon the pun) because it is so, so simple. But it is as close to perfect as any rock album can get.

Widely regarded as one of the best and most influential albums of the 2000s, and for good reason. The album changed rock music and signalled a whole new definition of indie rock.

My personal story, well, I was late to the party, never giving the album a listen in its entirety until late last year, despite having a fondness for Last Nite and Someday. I’d known the album’s reputation, but never got round to listening to it. Fast forward three months and I speak about the album with a wide-eyed fascination and wonder, I have a love for this album that I struggle to articulate. I discovered the album at a time when I needed it, without realising; a time when I was swarming with a variety of emotions, and I found all of them accurately represented on this album. Never before had I heard an album that sounded exactly how I felt, the way that is this it does, from its sweet instrumentation, to Casablancas’ near perfect lyricism.

Musically, the album bounces perfect riffs and guitar interplay with strong rhythms, reminiscent of 70’s garage rock. There are moments on this album which instil such a sense of nostalgia in me, a feeling of sadness, yet utter joy simultaneously, its indescribable. The riff in Someday puts a melancholic smile on my face upon every listen.

Lyrically, the album speaks to me, seemingly knowing me too well. “And all together it went well. We made pretend we were best friends”

The most triumphant moment on the album for me is Hard to Explain. the song perfectly encapsulates the feeling the album had given me earlier. The song reminds me of the first time I’d fallen in love, therefore both it, and those couple of months in my life, hold a very special place in my heart.

The album does have lighthearted moments as well, Last Night and Take It or Leave It for example, and executes them very very well.

Is This It is a very important album, both to me, and to modern rock music, and went on to inspire artists the world over, think Arctic Monkeys etc. It’s an album I think will define this stage in my life, and when I look back in years to come, the soundtrack to my coming of age will be Is This It.

Mac’s maturity shines through on the Canadian’s third record, showing his versatility.

Mac Demarco had made a name for himself on 2012’s 2 and 2014’s Salad Days for making jangly, fun indie guitar pop that never took itself too seriously. From songs about cigarettes (Ode to Viceroy) and kingpins of meth circles (Cooking Up Something Good) to delightful la la las (Salad Days), Mac had developed a reputation for goofy indie songwriting.

This Old Dog subverts our preconceived ideas of a Mac DeMarco album, while still managing to effortlessly retain the spirit and character that makes his songs unmistakably his. Songs like Baby You’re Out still retain that happy-go-lucky feeling that we get from his debut and sophomore records, but with much more personal, almost advice like lyrics. That’s not to say there weren’t more sombre moments on these older records however, Let My Baby Stay for example, however on This Old Dog the whole album has this mature tint.

The album really feels as if Mac has come of age, and this is a spectacular thing. The album deals with themes of personal growth and change, unsuccessful relationships and mortality, specifically in relation to Mac’s Father. The album opens with My Old Man, a lament of the traits of Mac’s absent dad, which he begins to see within himself. It’s a realisation of getting older and the passing of the torch from father to son. It’s a much more profound idea than we have seen from his earlier albums, and is refreshing.

Mac’s father appears again later at the end of the album, the penultimate track Moonlight On The River sees DeMarco coming to terms with his father’s impending death. A powerful wall of sound ending the 7 minute long track helps to encapsulate the grief Mac struggles to feel. The only way Mac can make himself feel better is with the reassuring line “Everybody dies” this all too true fact is Mac’s only consolation, and it’s beautiful.

The following track, Watching Him Fade Away is as equally beautiful as it is haunting. This is DeMarco’s most raw, honest song to date. It details the feelings Mac does or doesn’t have for his dying father. “The thought of him no longer being around,
Well sure it would be sad, but not really different” the ambiguity is melancholic and harrowing, and is one of the few songs as of late to genuinely give me goosebumps upon my first listen.

The album doesn’t lack love songs either, For The First Time and Still Beating show the Canadian to still be a romantic.

The only issue with the album is that some tracks feel slightly too short, and leave us wanting more. However the album is more than ten minutes longer than both his previous efforts each, so perhaps I am asking a little much.

The album is a fantastic effort from DeMarco, and an album I will undoubtedly come back to for advice. Lyrics like “Dreams of greener grass’ll drive you mad” (Baby You’re Out) and “You lose a love, you gain a friend” (One Another) give the album a special holding, and a replayability that is missing from such as Salad Days.

Score:

9/10
A mature, profound album that has a great blend of maturity and catchy-ness. A definite must-listen for everyone.

Is This It: The album I didn’t know I needed.

Mac DeMarco: This Old Dog review

Mac’s maturity shines through on the Canadian’s third record, showing his versatility.