DSU

A great snippet of 2010s Bandcamp indie rock. The guitar sounds, vocals, and lyricism are all great at creating a mood. This is likely Alex's best record as a single experience, and that's mostly how I enjoy it.

As a long time Alex G fan, though, this isn't my favorite. The individual songwriting feels weaker compared to the rest of his work, and it's more bloated than normal. Definitely enjoyable, and it's definitely not 'bad' compared to the rest of his discography either.

The only track that's a true winner for me is Boy, the outro. It feels the most focused and complete, and the vocals/lyrics also seem to be at their best. This one has stuck with me ever since the beginning of me being an Alex G fan.

After Boy, I have a couple of other standouts, but to a lesser extent:
- After Ur Gone is a really solid intro. Killer riff and great lyrics.
- Harvey is very cute, and while normally tracks like this annoy me, it manages to work. I'd also argue it has some of the best production and instrumentation here.
- Black Hair feels like an anchor track within this record -- sounds a lot like the rest of his discography at this time, yet also definitely within the world of DSU. I'd probably recommend this track as a starting point if you aren't sure if you want to listen to the full thing (along with Boy).
- Skipper is a weirdly outstanding track that took me a lot of time to get around to. In my earlier listening years I would tend to write tracks like this off for being aimless and unnecessary interludes, so it completely missed my radar for years. However, on relisten, this is beautiful and somehow catchy.
- Axesteel is another weird one, and also really great. The layered heavy guitars and chopped up electronic screams create a vibe uniquely Alex.
- Hollow is a more straightforward, melancholic rock tune. It's good.

The rest of the tracks I could go with or without. Like mentioned above, these tracks are what I'd consider the bloat, though they do overall add to the album experience.

If you're an Alex G fan, I'd definitely give this a listen. If you're on the fence about his work or a new listener, I'd look elsewhere. House of Sugar and God Save The Animals would be my picks.

Favorite Tracks: Boy, Skipper, Axesteel
Least Favorite Tracks: Icehead, Tripper