Canadian singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist/producer, jizz-jazzer and slacker rocker Mac DeMarco's latest music video for "This Old Dog" (the title track of his upcoming third studio album) is set in Los Angeles - where he relocated to from Queens, New York. The eccentricity of the video - which features two actors in three-dimensional canine masks ambling through LA's Chinatown, kissing, hiking, admiring a statue of Bruce Lee and caressing a statue of Winnie the Pooh - contrasts to the song's slow-burning pyschological realism in a way that reminds me of his 2014 single "Passing Out Pieces".
The instrumentation is languid and evenly paced, relying on sporadic guitar picks and a dragging beat for momentum. Its sonic minimalism appears to be representative of DeMarco's claims that this is his most acoustic album yet, with a majority of songs composed solely with an acoustic guitar and a synthesizer, and occasional use of a drum machine and an electric guitar.
DeMarco's concise and contemplative lyrics amount to a tender ode which uses 'man's best friend' as a metaphor for constant and enduring love; one DeMarco is not personally familiar with: "Actually, I’ve never had a dog in my life. I’ve had a lot of cats, and “This Old Cat” doesn’t really ring the same way" (). Simple yet evocative, the chorus' reassuring proclaimations of undying loyalty and devotion are prefaced with realistic disclaimers:
'Sometimes my love may be put on holdSometimes my heart may seem awful coldThese times come and these times goAs long as I live, all you need to know isThis old dog ain't about to forgetAll we've hadAnd all that's next'Long as my heart's beating in my chestThis old dog ain't about to forgetOften a heart tends to change its mindA new day decides on a new designA new day gets set on another wayAs long as I live, all I've got to say is'
Lyrics: Genius
