When I entered the Paradise Rock Club on Tuesday night I felt shocked by the emptiness of the venue. It was about 7:30 and it was less than a fourth filled. So naturally, I took my place directly in front of what I thought was Alex G’s mic, but unfortunately was not. I should have know that the mic with all the girls cluttered in front of it was going to his. It seemed like all the people that bothered to get there that early were only there for Alex G. The hardest core Built to Spill fans lined the stage, but the Alex G fans were right on their tails. Alex and his band filed down the stairs and serenely took the stage and wordlessly started playing. They played an almost 30 minute set of songs from Beach Music, DSU, Trick, and other releases. As a newer Alex G fan, I was surprised by how many of the songs I knew considering his expansive catalog. I was afraid I wasn’t going to recognize anything. Out of the 60+ songs on his Bandcamp, there was about 3 I really wanted to see live (“Kute”, “Mary”, “Bug”), and he played all of them. His vocals are much harsher live and the music is sped up. He screamed and he sang and he yelled. The bassist danced and the other guitarist harmonized. Alex G swayed heavily, and his face showed a solemness I am only going to interpret as focus. His backing band looks like his friend group decided to pick up instruments for a night to support their buddy. Alex G’s music is perpetually coming of age. My soul couldn’t help but swoon whenever he made eye contact with me through his blanket of black bangs. His soft vocals and strange guitar patterns shed of the barrier of lo-fi recordings and feel more omnipresent live. He wordlessly got through the set and only gave his thank you’s and mumbled something about hating Built to Spill before the last song. By the end of his set, the Paradise was pretty much full. My gaze was so transfixed on Alex G the whole time, I didn’t notice the crowd’s growth until I tried to leave the stage. Almost immediately after the set, he went back upstairs and did not come back down. I always forget that the artist have somewhere to go, besides behind the merch table, at bigger venues.