ALEXSUCKS BRINGS GARAGE ROCK BACK TO SEATTLE
BY CALLIE SOLBERG AND SOPHIA KINGSLEYALEXSUCKS rode into Seattle this past Wednesday, putting on an electric show for fans packing the dimly lit basement level at Madame Lou’s. The alternative indie-rock band made it clear from the onset of their performance why they’ve continued to captivate fans and make marks in the music industry.
I spoke with lead singer Alex Alvarez about the tour and the band’s success in signing with Warner Records.
“I think what we’re making (now) is the best stuff we’ve ever made so far. At first, there was no pressure, and we were just some kids in a garage, but now we’re signed to Warner Records, and this is our full-time job, and the pressure’s on, so it’s a whole new thing.”
How does the band navigate that pressure while touring and finding sources for their creativity? Alex said it’s the reassurance from fans. “Playing in every city in America, damn near, and hearing kids sing our words back gives me a little more confidence to push through the uncertainty of finishing an album.”
The band said they find inspiration from skating too, a prominent pastime of the group which was also the foundation of their origin story. Alex met Garrett through skateboarding - the two shot skating photos at a local Seattle DIY park prior to the show. “Skateboarding is the biggest influence, and it’s the only thing that matters outside of music, really. At its core, that’s what inspired a lot of the music and the stories and the lifestyle. That whole world is what brought me into rock music”, said Alex.
After waiting in line under rainy Seattle skies, the audience was more than ready for the show to kick off after doors opened. Opener Max Diaz brought an impressive stage presence and vocals to the venue, immediately hyping up the crowd and raising the room’s energy. Decked out in Western wear and complete with a cowboy hat, the singer screamed into the mic with so much passion, the audience couldn’t help but lean in fully to the artist's performance and dance along.
Several fans expressed that they’d been waiting months for the show, and had been following the band since they first dropped their debut EP in 2021, “Angsty Teen”. It was clear that ALEXSUCKS has and will continue to capture a dedicated fanbase.
Under red and blue stage lights, the band took the stage to whooping and cheering from an ecstatic crowd. It was their fourth time touring in Seattle, and their collective style, presence, and music fit right in to the city. They launched straight into their most recent release, “Worm in the Sun”. Despite the song only being dropped at the start of the month, the crowd sang all the words back to the artists, setting the tone for a fully engaged show.
The band’s creative process had expanded immensely since their early start, when they were thrown together after Alex moved to L.A. from Denver and found his way into the music scene. Their first album together, “The Gutter”, has nine songs, “the first nine songs we made together”, Alex says. “We’ve made 100 songs for this next album. It’s a whole new world. We’re really inspired to take it to that next level.”
The band took their performance to the next level too, running through some of their most popular songs like “Can We Forget” and “Talk To You”, which the crowd continued to dance and chant along to.
The band treated the crowd to a taste of an unreleased song titled “Song After Go.” Alex stood on a speaker at the front of the stage, dancing in time with the leading chords and instructing the crowd to clear the floor for a mosh pit, before yelling “Go!” as the song kicked off and the crowd rushed back in.
The band described the contrast between playing smaller venues like Madame Lou’s to bigger shows, such as their performance at the Kia Forum, opening for the Red Hot Chili Peppers in March of 2024. “I love being in the face of people and watching them scream the lyrics to me. A smaller stage is really cool because we’re only two or three feet higher than everyone else.”
The crowd interaction was some of the best I’ve seen, with the whole crew offering shoutouts to especially enthusiastic audience members and the band’s bassist Garret (aka DJ Topgun) even accepting a few rounds of drinks from generous fans.
Stage lights bathed drummer Jonny Ransom in black and white as he carefully followed the cues of guitarist John Luther and the rest of the band. Alex and Garret swirled around the stage, laughing and riffing together. “6 Pack and Cigarettes” was another crowd favorite, and the collective chanting for an encore brought the band back out for a rendition of their most popular song, “What’re We Doing Here” to close out the night.
The band’s currently running with a new tagline: “We think we suck, but if you think we suck, fuck you.”
Tickets are on sale now for the remainder of the group’s tour, which extends until early April.
