This Old Dog

There’s always been an inherent humor surrounding Mac DeMarco’s songs (his cigarette homage “Ode to Viceroy” and the campy “Move Like Mike”), and DeMarco himself, with his big grin and goofy live antics. But then came his breakthrough, Salad Days, which perked the general masses’ ears, shifting attention from DeMarco’s demeanor toward his catchy songwriting. The quirks are still there, but with each release, DeMarco backs off the boisterous frills and relies on his plain-old good songs. This Old Dog is full of all-around smooth, mellow groovers, breaking its silken stride only for brief blips such as the instrumental noise on “Moonlight on the River.” DeMarco’s voice has always maintained a polished air, and it even carries a Paul McCartney Wings-era timbre on the quick interlude, “Sister.” The stand-out moments are few and far between, and there’s nothing funny to be found, but it’s still enticing.