Free of any hip genre-signifiers, 2 sees DeMarco find his home in an endless jangle, humming down the Main Street of your brain with a guitar slung over his shoulder.
He's still not entirely upfront, but he has a knack for building songs where the realness of his subject matter lies just below the surface.
There is something unique about Mac DeMarco in 2012, his sound is very traditional in both form and style but there is a very refreshing quality at the heart of 2.
What '2' makes clear, quickly, is that DeMarco is a skilful songwriter.
Compared to Rock and Roll Night Club, 2 is a more polished and refined take on his brand of minimalist rock, structured around his keen songwriting.
As it is, DeMarco shape-shifts with impunity; 2 deals in lugubrious late-night lyricism, and equals Kurt Vile and Cass McCombs for warmly melodic meanderings that beguile rather than baffle.
The whole thing is breezy and effortless – just pretty little nuggets of melody and ennui.
In an era of indie rock that’s very much about mixing and matching precisely chosen influences, there’s some thrilling about the way Mac DeMarco’s best work sounds like no one but Mac DeMarco.
Mac DeMarco may assume a trashy façade, but beneath that lies a genuinely talented songwriter who writes what he knows and keeps us entertained while he does it.
2 just goes down easy, even if DeMarco makes the emotional life of a young man in Montreal sometimes seem kind of rough in its listless sort of way ... These are songs that sound natural, and warm, and a little disheveled, but are also full of life.
Every song is fascinating in that no matter how much the meaning of each track seems obvious, there will be something new to consider or understand after every listen.
He owns these songs of slackerhood completely, delivering a lean collection of 11 that concisely communicate the nature of the 20-something daydreamer – no more, no less.
DeMarco is still a befuddling character, but the compressed landscape of 2 takes steps away from his cartoonish beginnings toward something equally strange, but possibly more grown up.
It angers and delights in equal measures, and without the try-hard imagery the record wouldn’t stand out quite as much.
It manages to sound refreshing, perhaps because the ground covered here is so far off rock's current beaten track.
This album reminds me of home.
In New Zealand, at lest with my family and friends, one of the highlights of any get together or meeting or hangout or whatever is the 'Beach BBQ'. This is a pretty self explanatory, it's just a good ole BBQ that we happen to have on the beach. It's not a complicated thing to wrap your head around, yet there is this specific vibe to the whole event that I've never pinned down. It's an extremely wholesome event, with good food, great company and a lovely vibe. But ... read more
Recorded and released in 2012, ‘2’ is the debut album by the Canadian singer-songwriter, Mac DeMarco. Though the album was slow to reach its eventual stardom, 2 was quickly an album to be heavily praised by critics. 2 is an album that I personally had never truly enjoyed up until very recently. The slower melancholic singing and the overall soft atmosphere of the record used to have me push it off as boring or lifeless. However, I now see that these qualities are what makes 2 ... read more
The best summer album of all time. Mac has had a huge influence in my life and I honestly wish every album could sound like this. Nothing beats his signature tone and voice, and blasting this album with the windows down is the only right way to do it.
1 | Cooking Up Something Good 2:41 | 84 |
2 | Dreaming 2:27 | 86 |
3 | Freaking Out the Neighborhood 2:53 | 93 |
4 | Annie 3:10 | 81 |
5 | Ode to Viceroy 3:53 | 89 |
6 | Robson Girl 2:56 | 79 |
7 | The Stars Keep On Calling My Name 2:22 | 82 |
8 | My Kind of Woman 3:10 | 93 |
9 | Boe Zaah 1:41 | 73 |
10 | Sherrill 2:29 | 78 |
11 | Still Together 3:39 | 76 |
#10 | / | Time Out London |
#12 | / | Obscure Sound |
#20 | / | Beats Per Minute |
#21 | / | Complex |
#26 | / | Urban Outfitters |
#29 | / | NME |
#30 | / | Spinner |
#37 | / | Treble |
#43 | / | Pitchfork |
#68 | / | Crack Magazine |