Mac DeMarco at Ulster Hall: a more intimate stop on the "Guitar" tour
Mac DeMarco arrives in Belfast with a concert that fits his current phase well: he relies less on the myth of the scruffy indie prankster from the early 2010s and more on simple arrangements, the warmth of the band and songs that sound as though they were created in the same room where the listener is hearing them for the first time. The performance at Ulster Hall is part of the "Guitar" tour, named after the album released in 2025, his first studio album with new songs since 2019's "Here Comes the Cowboy".
Belfast is a stop in a packed end-of-summer schedule. DeMarco performs in Dublin immediately before Belfast and then continues towards Glasgow and other European cities. Tex Crick, an Australian singer-songwriter and keyboardist connected with DeMarco's record-label circle, has been announced as the support act in Belfast. The Ulster Hall date is currently listed as sold out.
Tickets for this event have been in high demand. If additional places are released later, it is worth acting quickly and checking the current booking status before travelling.
"Guitar" is at the centre of Mac DeMarco's current phase
The album "Guitar" was released on 22 August 2025 and contains 12 songs. DeMarco wrote, played and recorded it himself in his home studio in Los Angeles during a short period at the end of 2024. The result is deliberately stripped back: guitar, bass, simple drums, quiet vocals and melodies remain ahead of production embellishments.
Among the songs that marked the album's presentation are "Home", "Holy", "Phantom" and "Shining". "Guitar" is not a return to DeMarco's early sound in the literal sense. It feels more like a distillation of his signature style: slightly loose chords, melodies on the border between nostalgia and humour, and vocals that rarely try to dominate the space.
At the end of 2025, KEXP released a studio performance of the entire album with DeMarco on vocals and a band that includes bass, additional guitar, drums and keyboards. The recording shows how songs from a home production transfer into a full-band format without becoming any louder than they need to be.
- "Guitar" was released in 2025 and contains 12 songs.
- "Shining", "Sweeter", "Phantom", "Home", "Holy" and "Rooster" appeared in the tour's concert repertoire during 2026.
- The album follows the major release "One Wayne G" and the instrumental project "Five Easy Hot Dogs".
- Tex Crick has been announced alongside DeMarco in Belfast.
What can be expected from the repertoire without inventing a set list
A complete set list for Belfast has not been published in advance, and it should not be assumed that it will be identical to previous dates on the tour. Nevertheless, performances from 2026 provide a good framework for understanding the current approach.
At several concerts on the "Guitar" tour, DeMarco combined newer songs with material from different periods of his career. Titles that appeared include "For the First Time", "On the Level", "Salad Days", "Still Beating", "Passing Out Pieces", "No Other Heart", "Heart to Heart", "Ode to Viceroy", "Another One", "Freaking Out the Neighborhood", "Chamber of Reflection" and "My Kind of Woman". Songs from "Guitar" also occupy an important place, so the concert is not conceived merely as a nostalgic overview of older favourites.
That matters for an audience that knows DeMarco primarily through "Salad Days", "2" or "This Old Dog". The current tour does not discard the songs that made him one of the recognisable names of his generation's indie rock scene, but places them alongside the calmer, more introspective material from the newer album.
The concerts are relaxed, but not unserious
For years, DeMarco's live reputation has rested on an informal relationship with the audience. Reviews of performances from 2026 describe evenings with plenty of spontaneous humour, improvised moments and direct communication between songs, without the need for elaborate stage production. That element has not disappeared, but the musical part of the current shows fits the calmer character of the album "Guitar" well.
During 2026, critics highlighted the contrast between the gentler songs and DeMarco's often absurd humour on stage. That is precisely why his concert is not a conventional singer-songwriter performance, even though many of the new songs are built on simple harmonies and intimate vocals. At one moment the room can be almost silent, and a few minutes later the band and audience are reacting to an improvisation or joke.
For long-time fans, part of the attraction is that the older songs are not treated like museum exhibits. For newer listeners, what matters is the sense that behind the laid-back performance there is a very distinctive songwriting identity.
If additional availability appears for Belfast, it is worth securing tickets in good time. Ulster Hall is exactly the kind of venue in which DeMarco's combination of quiet songs, a band and spontaneous humour can feel immediate.
Why Ulster Hall suits this concert well
Ulster Hall is located in central Belfast, on Bedford Street, very close to City Hall. The hall opened in 1862 and is among the oldest purpose-built concert halls in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Its history includes classical music, political gatherings, boxing and decades of rock concerts. The Rolling Stones, The Who, AC/DC, U2, Thin Lizzy, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Snow Patrol have performed on its stage, and the venue also particularly highlights the fact that Led Zeppelin performed "Stairway to Heaven" there in front of an audience for the first time.
For a DeMarco listener, the present-day layout of the venue matters more than the historical list of names. Ulster Hall has a floor and a balcony, and for this concert the floor is standing. This configuration offers two different ways to experience the show: a more active crowd closer to the stage and a clearer overall view from the balcony. Compared with arenas, a historic concert hall more naturally focuses attention on the band and the details of the performance.
DeMarco's music often depends on small details - a slightly shifted rhythm, a simple guitar phrase, a quiet vocal or a brief improvisation. In a venue without stadium-scale production, those details can become the centre of the evening.
Who might especially enjoy this performance
This is not a concert only for an audience that has followed Mac DeMarco since the albums "2" and "Salad Days". The current repertoire brings together several generations of listeners. Some come for the songs that defined the indie scene of the 2010s, others for "This Old Dog", while part of the audience discovered him through the later online life of songs such as "Heart to Heart".
The concert could especially suit listeners of indie rock, lo-fi pop, soft rock and singer-songwriter music without excessively polished production. DeMarco has enough melodic songs to appeal even to an audience that does not follow the indie scene closely, but his humour, unpredictable live digressions and deliberately laid-back performance remain an important part of the experience.
It is not necessary to know the entire discography. If you are familiar with "Chamber of Reflection", "My Kind of Woman", "Freaking Out the Neighborhood" or "Heart to Heart", the current repertoire provides a good bridge towards the newer material. If you already know "Guitar", it is interesting to hear how songs from an almost entirely home-made production take on a broader full-band form.
Getting to Ulster Hall and moving around central Belfast
The venue's address is 34 Bedford Street, Belfast. The location is convenient for visitors arriving in the city without a car because it is right in the centre, close to City Hall, hotels, restaurants and the main pedestrian streets. For arrivals at Belfast Grand Central Station, Translink states that City Hall is less than a ten-minute walk away, and Ulster Hall is then very close to that city-centre hub.
For those arriving by car, the venue lists on-street parking and private car parks nearby, including Dublin Road on Hardcastle Street and Great Northern Carpark on Great Victoria Street. Since availability can vary from event to event, it is useful to check opening hours before setting off.
For visitors arriving earlier, the central location makes it easy to plan time before the concert without additional transport. City Hall and the surrounding streets are a short walk away, and much of central Belfast can be explored on foot.
- Location: Ulster Hall, Bedford Street, Belfast.
- The floor area for this event has an age restriction of 16+.
- On the balcony, people under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
- There is no cloakroom at the venue.
- Bags larger than a laptop bag may be refused at the entrance.
- Payments for tickets, catering and merchandise at the venue are cashless.
Entry times, support and what to check immediately before the concert
Although the concert date is confirmed for 31 August 2026, the detailed schedule for entry, the start of the support act and the finish is not listed on the current performance-times page. Ulster Hall warns that such schedules are sometimes published only the day before the event and that times may change. It is therefore wiser to check the latest schedule immediately before arrival than to rely on timings from other concerts on the tour.
On event evenings, the venue's customer service desk opens 60 minutes before the scheduled start of the performance. This does not mean that the doors for the audience necessarily open at the same time. Visitors should arrive early enough for security screening, finding their place on the balcony or a position on the standing floor, and Tex Crick's performance.
It is also worth paying attention to the bag rules. Since there is no cloakroom, a large backpack or travel bag may create a problem at the entrance. For travellers arriving from another city, it is more practical to leave luggage at their accommodation before heading towards Bedford Street.
Accessibility and choice of place
Ulster Hall has street-level access, lifts to different levels of the building and designated spaces for wheelchair users. The venue also lists a Mobile Connect system for hearing assistance, which allows the sound of the performance to be transmitted to a personal mobile device and headphones or compatible hearing aids.
Visitors who need additional support are advised to arrange it in advance because accessible spaces and companion tickets are limited by the available capacity. For a concert with sold-out status, this is particularly important.
For other visitors, choosing between the standing floor and the balcony significantly changes the experience. The floor suits those who want to be part of a more compact crowd and closer to the stage, while the balcony provides a more stable view and a calmer way of following the band.
How to prepare for the evening
The most useful approach is to arrive expecting that the concert will not behave like a strictly choreographed pop show. The current tour has a recognisable backbone, but DeMarco leaves room for changes in the repertoire, improvisation and humour. Previous set lists are useful only as an indication of the breadth of the catalogue, not as a promise of what will be played in Belfast.
Before setting off, check your own ticket, the age rules for the area you are using and the venue's latest schedule. If you are arriving with a larger bag, arrange where it will be left because there is no cloakroom. If you arrive by train or bus at Belfast Grand Central Station, the centre is compact enough for the rest of the journey towards Ulster Hall to be straightforward on foot.
Tickets for this event were in very high demand and the date is currently listed as sold out. If new availability appears, securing a place in good time makes sense, while holders of existing tickets should monitor any changes to the schedule and entry conditions before arrival.
Sources:
- Ulster Hall - concert date and venue, information about the album "Guitar", rules for the floor and balcony, and basic event information.
- Panache - tour schedule, Tex Crick as support in Belfast and the status of the date.
- Mac DeMarco Bandcamp and Apple Music - release date of the album "Guitar", number of songs and track listing.
- KEXP - live performance of the album "Guitar" with a backing band, recorded in 2025.
- Setlist.fm - set lists from the "Guitar" tour in 2026, used as an overview of the repertoire pattern, not as a prediction of the set list in Belfast.
- Ulster Hall - history of the venue, location, parking, bag rules, customer service hours and accessibility.
- Translink - current context for arrival at Belfast Grand Central Station and pedestrian access to central Belfast.