In the dizzying world of Orlando indie-pop artist Marc With a C, new album Please Believe in Yourself, Alright? is the second installment in the opening trilogy of the second phase of MWAC’s career. With this new phase, Marc has dropped the famous longtime persona for a genuine, first-person point of view.
Pretty sure that convoluted intro just sent my copy editor into a meltdown, but it’s actually a relatively tight summation of where things stand with MWAC. And it’s only the reflective surface of Marc’s story of late.
With Marc’s dire, real-life health struggles coloring MWAC’s always-conceptual art, their personal and professional journey has been as heavy as it’s been head-spinning in recent years. Right about now, we — both Marc and the listeners following Marc’s saga alike — could probably use a bit of respite. Well, this new album delivers that needed breath.
Last year’s Thanatophobia, the previous album that momentously launched the new unmasked iteration of MWAC, was an especially ambitious and far-reaching work of moody pop psychedelia. The freshly released Please Believe in Yourself, Alright?, on the other hand, is a brisk and bracing shot of indie-pop that beams with directness and immediacy. Most of the 10 songs here come galloping with wide-eyed vim and sparkling melodies. Rather than the heaviness that’s been filtering into MWAC’s newer music, these songs ring bright and unburdened.
Of course, the subject matter isn’t always as sunny as the tunes that carry it, but that’s always been Marc’s subversive calling card. The enduring appeal of the MWAC act is Marc’s signature way of sugaring the pill of life’s awkward complexities.
Please Believe in Yourself, Alright? is a return to the rousing blend of pith and personality that originally made Marc a cult hero. While this refreshing album may not materially make this unjust world a better place, it does make getting through it a lot nicer.
Please Believe In Yourself, Alright? now streams everywhere, but on Bandcamp, there’s also a very limited run of vinyl available.
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This article appears in Dec 13-19, 2023.