In an industry littered with artists who are clinging to a carefully packaged persona of “effortless cool”, it’s rare to find a musician that’s as kindhearted as MAC DEMARCO. The Canadian West Coast kid has quickly become the lovable goofball of the indie music scene — which you probably knew already (thanks internet) — but he isn’t always making fart jokes with a cigarette stuck between his teeth. The 27-year-old has a lot buried beneath his wacky personality and on This Old Dog (out now on Captured Tracks), he uses an entire album to reflect and step forward with a broader, more mature sound.

For a proper full-length, Mac digs deep. He’s still very much into pranks and classic Simpsons episodes (like “Marge vs. The Monorail”) but on This Old Dog, he spills his guts through lo-fi bedroom rock chunes (“On The Level”, “Still Beating”) and recordings such as “Sister” — a short but sweet ode that finds him comforting his kin (“Turns out not every dog has his day… Wish there were more that I could do”). It’s an unexpected left turn given Mac’s cult-like following of like-minded misfits but his moments of vulnerability translate well because his narratives are real instances of reflection that aren’t fabricated to appeal to a younger audience.

Whether he’s doing adorable interviews with his mother, blessing his subreddit “deadheads” with exclusive releases or belting out Vanessa Carlton covers, Mac is the kind of guy that’s down to talk about pretty much anything — and in this case, that’s exactly what we did.

READ THE INTERVIEW HERE.