I thought “he does it himself and he sounds like a professional, I’m doing it myself so I could make something like that.” Through that process I sorta ripped off his sound, with the double vocals, double guitars, double everything. I loved his music and I was looking him up and saw that he recorded albums himself, so I would try to duplicate that style of recording. I think especially the way I record was influenced by him. I liked Modest Mouse a ton, I was non-stop listening to them. When I was younger I used to really dive into stuff. I listen to music pretty casually now, so it’s hard to say what my influences are at the moment. During the writing process, the last thing I’m thinking about is “I want to be like this, I want to sound like this.” I’m trying to be better about it now, but because of that I think I end up more blatantly lifting stuff from other people, because I’m making an effort not to be conscious with it but just go with what feels in the moment.
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When I’m writing I really don’t consider any influences, although they bleed through obviously. When listening to your music there are many moments that feel reminiscent of several artists-like Elliot Smith, for example-but your music is also very distinctively “Alex G.” Who do you feel are your main influences? How much do you feel that what you listen to influences your music? I just kinda did what I always do, which is go into it without much thought, just guided by what feels right as I’m making the stuff, you know? That’s the boring answer but that’s the more honest one. I think I just thought it’d make some good interview material. To be totally honest, I don’t even know why I said that. When talking about House of Sugar you’ve said that you “wanted to make a sex, drugs, and rock and roll album from Hell.” Did you set out with the intention of writing a whole album with this concept, or did it start coming out that way once you started writing the songs? He talked with us about his writing process, the progression of his career, being mistaken for Beto O’Rourke by right-wing Twitter and how he still uses Garageband for everything.
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Featuring brilliant melodies carried through acoustic guitars, violins, effect-heavy vocals, synths and pretty much anything else that excites him, this record is one of Alex G’s finest works to date.Īmerican Songwriter sat down with Alex G in October at a tour stop in Atlanta.
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A darling of the lo-fi community, he put out his eighth studio album, House of Sugar, this past September. Since hitting the scene at the beginning of the decade, (Sandy) Alex G has become known for his eclectic musical sensibilities, his ingenious writing and his DIY recording style. (Sandy) Alex G backstage at Terminal West in Atlanta.