July 14, 2024

Michael Marcagi – The Powerstation: July 13, 2024 (13th Floor Concert Review)

Newly-minted Warner Bros solo artist Michael Marcagi made his New Zealand concert debut last night in front of a diverse audience that, for the most part, didn’t really know what to expect.

So, kudos to the adventurous music fans who ventured out to catch Michael’s gig, although not all were unfamiliar with him as a coterie of younger fans were up to speed thanks to his “Tik Tok” hit, Scared To Start.

Maddy Jane:

While not a sell-out, The Powerstation’s downstairs area was filling up nicely when opener Maddy Jane took the stage at 8:30. Armed with just an acoustic guitar and a distinctive voice that betrays her Tasmanian roots, Maddy managed to squeeze a good amount of music into her 30 minutes beginning with Perfection’s A Thing from her 2020 album Not All Bad Or Good.

From the outset it’s clear that Maddy has something to say and a voice…not unlike Courtney Barnett…that gets her message across.

Maddy sang about seasonal depression, talked about coming out, covered Paolo Nutini and presented a new song, Thylacine, a tribute to the Tasmanian Tiger all in her allotted time…definitely one to keep an eye on.

Michael Marcagi:

Michael Marcagi is one that has been getting a lot of attention lately, at least back in The States.

Michael Marcagi Hailing from Cincinnati, Ohio, Marcagi was fronting a band called The Heavy Hours who released two albums until Michael took his manager’s advice and went solo.

Thanks to his viral Tik Tok hit, Scared To Start, Michael signed with Warner Music and has released several more songs, with an album in the works.

So, does the man have the goods to back up the hype?

Well, yeah.

I say that with some reservation as he and his 5-piece band make a sound that will make fans of country-folk-rock happy, but it’s not particularly unique.

Marcagi’s voice reminds me of an American version of Passenger with some Jackson Browne mixed in. Not a bad combo, really.

The band proves to be tight as they burst out of the gate with American Romance, the title track to Michael’s debut EP for Warners, released just this past February…and yes, Bruce would probably approve.

With only a handful of solo songs released, Marcagi dipped into his Heavy Hours back catalogue for a couple of tunes along with previewing several new songs.

All sound good and sturdy…I particularly liked the way they segued from the slow burner A Minute More into the more upbeat Savannah.

The band is: Kyle Emerson (guitar/banjo), A.J. Yorio (mandolin), Steve Voss (drums), Ryan Tullock (bass) and Jacob Thomas Jr (keyboards) and they proved to be the perfect support for Michael’s songs and voice.

Michael Marcagi

Along with his originals, Michael did play a few covers including Harry Styles’ Two Ghosts and Olivia Rodrigo’s Déjà vu. Those choices indicated to me that Marcagi and his crew know who their core audience is and it’s not aging classic rockers like myself.

There was some glad-handing with fans in the front row and talk about how beautiful New Zealand is while attempting to get a grip on rugby…the usual banter for first-timers.

As Michael said himself, I’m trying “not to be a pretentious douche bag”.

A low bar, perhaps, but one that he cleared with no problem…although Detroiters may disagree after he called the Motor City “a terrible place”

Fortunately Michael Marcagi seems to like Auckland and Aucklanders were returning the favour, singing along with Scared To Start and The Other Side as the show came to a close.

With that, Marcagi promised to return with more songs and as a “rugby genius”…we shall see.

Marty Duda

Click on any image to view a photo gallery by Chris Zwaagdyk:

Michael Marcagi: