You can leave it to Alex G

Surely, you or someone you know went to the Alex G concert in SF. The event, held Oct. 19 at The Fillmore on a chilly fall Wednesday night, mothered something other than the usually-disquieted Alex G, thanks to the grace and earnestness of themes from his recently released album God Save the Animals (2022).  

Alexander Giannascoli, known on stage simply as Alex G, both writes and produces much of his own music, making lines like “naked in my innocence” from his track “S.D.O.S.”, “I have done a couple bad things” from “Runner,” and “Forgive yesterday, I choose today” from “Forgive” all the more confessional. God, although notable, isn’t the central reference in this album, but rather the religious-like experience of growing into a new version of yourself and the values you either carry with you or leave behind in the process. Example enough is the album’s opening track “After All” where Giannascoli sings about being patient while life runs its course, even as people and things come and go. In the end, he tells a story of love and time healing wounds of lost innocence. 

Design and Photography by Div Buccieri

Opening singer for the night, Hatchie—stage name for Australia-based Harriette Pilbeam—delivered a heart-aching introduction, lit-up with dream pop and shoegazing bangers. Giannascoli began his set with “S.D.O.S.,” guitar in hand, greasy-haired and fitted in a white skull print long sleeve. Amidst many other songs from God Save the Animals performed later that night, Giannascoli revisited tracks like “Black Hair” (2014), “Bobby” (2017), “Gretel” (2019) and “After Ur Gone” (2014) with the newfound clarity of a studio-recorded artist. Each one of these Alex G classics mesmerized a crowd filled with fans of all ages and demographics.

Auto-tuned harmonies and mystic folk-rock melodies encircle stories of recurring characters—children, sinners and animals, too—created by Alex G’s eerie alt-country tonality, reminding fans of a timeless authenticity which he brings to his music through narration. He pays tribute to Elliot Smith in tracks like “Ain’t it Easy” and “Blessing” by adopting a whispery, multi-layered style, reminiscent of infamous early recording sessions held in his bedroom on a $90 mic for albums like DSU (2014) and Beach Music (2015). In a hesitant transition away from the typical independent production of Alex G, God Save the Animals is the first of his 10 albums that employs the expertise of sound engineers to offer a sharper sweetness to his tormented tunes. Transitions from charming acoustic guitar to energetic hyperpop on songs like “No Bitterness” were no less than magical to see in-person amidst the wave of sweaty bodies—half moshing, half in their feels—at The Fillmore. While I was expecting a squeaky, deconstructed version of Alex G, Giannascoli’s voice rang clear and unreserved through the crowd, in a performance that was nothing less than captivating and tinged with the emotions of a maturing musician facing forward beyond his 20s. 

I can write whatever I want about my impression of Alex G but truthfully speaking, Giannascoli’s music is unable to be labeled and categorized without taking away from his original ingenuity. And honestly, that ingenuity comes from throwing words together in an abstract, less than serious manner to create something that sounds cool but ultimately holds no particular spiritual meaning at least according to interviews with Giannascoli. But therein lies the blessing of his music to us all: we can pull whatever meaning calls to us when we listen to his music and, according to Giannascoli, he thinks that’s pretty cool.

Article and Design by Div Buccieri