Concert review: Mac Saturn | 05.26.26, Blueberry Hill Duck Room (with photo gallery)

Photo of Mac Saturn by Laura Jerele

Look, the Duck Room was absolutely stacked for this show and honestly? Good. You know I love to see it because a band like Mac Saturn deserves a full room, and that room deserved every single thing they gave. Detroit sent us something real with these fellas. I covered this band before when they were in a coveted slot opening for The Struts, where they held their own and really grabbed new fans at that show. And after a moment of rebuilding their band and hitting the road again, it was a no brainer that I wanted to catch these guys again! 

Carson Macc is a super fun and energetic frontman with lots of Jagger swagger, all confidence, and was so much fun to watch all night. He’s mesmerizing, but he is not the whole show, he’s part of a stellar band: Mike Moody on lead guitar, Angelo Coppola on drums, and Nicky Barone who gave us loud guitars, riffs, solos, an encore and even a drum solo. I mean, come on! That’s rock and roll 101!

Here’s the thing about Mac Saturn live that I enjoyed more this time around: the songs are better without the keys and synth. Way better. Strip all that away and what you’re left with is this raw, punchy, guitar-driven thing that hits completely differently. The blues comes through harder, the riffs land heavier, and suddenly you’re hearing exactly what makes this band so good in the first place. No fluff. Just rock n’ roll. Their songs are catchy as hell and super melodic. One minute they’ve got a British-like rock swagger that feels almost borrowed from another decade, and the next they break into American blues territory. It’s a wild combination and they make it look effortless, and they are a hell of a lot of fun. We need more bands like Mac Saturn. Loud, real, ridiculously fun, and completely alive. Go see ‘em. | Laura Jerele

Mac Saturn setlist:
Plain Clothes Gentleman
Cash on Delivery
Sleep
Like Another One
Get on the Phone
Tournefortia
Mint Julep
Persian Rugs
Want Me Too
Ain’t Like You
Cheshire Monday
White Walls
Easy
Mr. Cadillac
Takes Time
Junkie