Latest news with #JuneGuitar
Sydney Morning Herald
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Indie rock's favourite songwriter keeps it real on his major label debut
Alex G, Headlights Contradictions? Alex G, full name Alex Giannascoli, has a bunch of them. The Philadelphia musician-producer shuns social media, but The Fader once called him 'the internet's secret best songwriter' as he made his name online via word-of-mouth blogs and message boards, self-releasing albums and EPs on Bandcamp. He's got a lot to say on record – he's only 32, and Headlights is his 10th album – but many interviewers have found that trying to get him to talk about himself or his music is like pulling teeth, and his stage presence was once described in a live review as 'almost shockingly dull', with that summation coming from a critic who declared Alex G was his favourite musician of the last decade. Although he's often compared to '90s indie acts, including Elliott Smith, Built to Spill and Modest Mouse, he's possibly better known to general pop audiences for contributing to eight tracks on Halsey's The Great Impersonator and for writing and singing on Frank Ocean's Blonde and Endless, and also playing in his touring band. Headlights marks a shift from indie label Domino to major label RCA, not that you'll notice a huge difference in Giannascoli's approach. June Guitar opens proceedings, not with any fanfare but with a feather-light touch, on a gauzy, meditative song that hugs a lane close to Tracy Chapman's Fast Car. First single Afterlife wears its country-folk influences on its sleeve, from the sparkling mandolins and acoustic guitar to the video set at a square dance, as Giannascoli recounts a revelation of some sort, singing 'when the light came, big and bright, I began another life'. A couple of tracks push the meter into the red – Louisiana offsets dreamy Auto-Tuned vocals with sledgehammer drums; Bounce Boy has octave-leaping bass, fuzzy synth and an electro-clap beat.
The Age
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Age
Indie rock's favourite songwriter keeps it real on his major label debut
Alex G, Headlights Contradictions? Alex G, full name Alex Giannascoli, has a bunch of them. The Philadelphia musician-producer shuns social media, but The Fader once called him 'the internet's secret best songwriter' as he made his name online via word-of-mouth blogs and message boards, self-releasing albums and EPs on Bandcamp. He's got a lot to say on record – he's only 32, and Headlights is his 10th album – but many interviewers have found that trying to get him to talk about himself or his music is like pulling teeth, and his stage presence was once described in a live review as 'almost shockingly dull', with that summation coming from a critic who declared Alex G was his favourite musician of the last decade. Although he's often compared to '90s indie acts, including Elliott Smith, Built to Spill and Modest Mouse, he's possibly better known to general pop audiences for contributing to eight tracks on Halsey's The Great Impersonator and for writing and singing on Frank Ocean's Blonde and Endless, and also playing in his touring band. Headlights marks a shift from indie label Domino to major label RCA, not that you'll notice a huge difference in Giannascoli's approach. June Guitar opens proceedings, not with any fanfare but with a feather-light touch, on a gauzy, meditative song that hugs a lane close to Tracy Chapman's Fast Car. First single Afterlife wears its country-folk influences on its sleeve, from the sparkling mandolins and acoustic guitar to the video set at a square dance, as Giannascoli recounts a revelation of some sort, singing 'when the light came, big and bright, I began another life'. A couple of tracks push the meter into the red – Louisiana offsets dreamy Auto-Tuned vocals with sledgehammer drums; Bounce Boy has octave-leaping bass, fuzzy synth and an electro-clap beat.
