Two of the three singles that Alex Giannascoli has released from his forthcoming LP as (Sandy) Alex G, Rocket, have been wistfully acoustic, leading with fiddles and harmonies and box pianos. “Bobby” is a gentle standout, its dual harmonies upfront and banjo-picks buried beneath; “Proud” is jauntier with its whistle-along melodies and every bit as country. The only outlier is “Witch,” a winding, soft-sinister track that would have sounded at home on DSU or Beach Music. It’s proof that Giannascoli isn’t going to pull a single sonic thread through Rocket—he’s swarmed by too many ideas, always has been.
This morning, he released two new singles from Rocket in “Sportstar” and “Brick,” both of which turn as far away from the country aesthetic as possible. The former, with its auto-pitched vocals, lush keys, heartbeat guitars, could have been borrowed from one of the Endless sessions that Frank Ocean invited Giannascoli to play on. The latter is an abrasive, industrial clash of hip-hop beats and hardcore grunts; it sounds like a B L A C K I E track played underwater.
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Listen to both tracks below. Rocket is out May 19 on Domino.
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