Mac Demarco

A multi-instrumentalist and multi-media musician, Canadian Mac DeMarco became an unlikely star as a performer turned successful recording artist. Originally from Duncan, British Columbia, the artist—real name Vernor Winfield McBriare Smith IV—was raised in Edmonton, Alberta and first got into music playing in high school indie bands. After graduation he moved to Vancouver and released his self-produced debut album Heat Wave in 2009. He started working on video projects and joined forces with Alex Calder and Jen Clement and toured with Vancouver band Japandroids. He moved to Montreal in an attempt to launch his solo career, but after struggling to raise any interest in his work, he eventually released a partly experimental mini-LP Rock and Roll Night Club in 2012; it did well enough to persuade the record label Captured Tracks to invest in his first full-length album, 2. Two years later, he embarked on his second album, Salad Days and, helped by the success of lead single "Passing Out Pieces," the record broadened his appeal considerably and was even shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize. He went on to release an instrumental record, fully utilising his love of effects, lo-fi production and atmospheric soundscapes. In 2017 his reputation was enhanced further with the release of his third album This Old Dog, recorded following his move to Los Angeles. His fourth album, Here Comes the Cowboy, followed in 2019 led by the single "Nobody." A tenth-anniversary edition of Salad Days was released in 2024.