God Save the Animals by Alex G
BY CARTER STARKEY
As the guitar strums me into “God Save the Animals,” the overwhelming feeling I have is that I’m about to experience something that I may not fully understand right away, something that needs time and space, but there is a sense of starting a journey on the title track “After All.” This has been called the most polished Alex G album to date. The farthest removed from his DIY roots. For me, it couldn’t matter any less how this album relates to the others. I’m focused on how it makes me feel here and now.
This project is grounding for me. In a life that is endlessly confusing and feels to be pulling me in all different directions, well, I turn to music like this. Since its release as a single in June, “Runner” has been doing just that, keeping my feet on the ground. With a catchy folk-rock flow, this song is able to lift the sense of hardship right off my shoulders. It heals me.
Later on in the record, songs like “Mission” and “Miracles” are standouts in the same vein. They so delicately take on the feelings that you go through as you age past the dreams you once held. There is an undeniable religious theme to the album, which also does not go unnoticed.
Intertwined with these soft, introspective songs are elements that dip into other genres. Songs that depart from the central themes of the album while maintaining the instrumental palette we're used to getting from Alex G. I'd be remiss, not to mention the hyper-pop elements of the latter half of "No Bitterness," which are executed well.
In the end, I'm thankful for what this album has done for me and what it will continue to do for me.