Alex G - God Save The Animals

“How many more songs am I supposed to write before I should turn it off and say good night?” asks Alex Giannascoli, best-known as Alex G, on ‘Miracles’. “… I have fears that I have not addressed.” It’s a good question. On ‘God Save the Animals,’ the Philadelphia-based songwriter’s ninth album to date, he philosophises on the mythic entity that is ‘God’ itself, as less a religious entity and more of a school of personal thought, with questions about the enduring nature of existence and what it means to create art within it. Alex took a different approach to production this time, deciding to take it to a professional studio, but his change in method doesn’t make the album feel more expansive, or far-reaching; instead, it sees him looking inward, asking questions of himself and those close to him. Sonically, the album shares some qualities with previous full-length, ‘House of Sugar’, in its haunting and strange nature. Tracks like ‘Runner’ are growers; highlight ‘No Bitterness’ morphs abruptly into hyperpop mid-track. ‘Blessing’ is a nightmare in audio form, sounding like a cut taken off of his score from the recent indie-horror film We’re All Going to the World’s Fair. It’s a testament to his talents that he can produce an album that encapsulates his weird and beautiful world, which is full of more questions than answers.