Headlights captures Alex G's innovative artistry while introducing elements like banjo and accordion to expand indie rock's sound. The album holds a thematic connection to fatherhood, expressing concerns of life changes without direct references. Opening with reflective lyrics, it deals with nostalgia, hinting at the generational gap in music appreciation. Although it resonates with influences from iconic bands, the clarity of the album's purpose stands out more than its sonic fidelity.
The polish doesn't constrict or corrupt Headlights; everything that might appear as an indulgence only expands the range of an artist who's basically a genre unto himself at this point.
In sound and spirit, Headlights might be described as present-day "dad rock." Alex G is playing with new toys that make records sound both more organic and expensive.
Still, the fidelity of Headlights is nowhere near as startling as the clarity of purpose. At the climax of God Save the Animals, Alex G sang about children and faith as the most exciting things that the future could hold.
Headlights doesn't address fatherhood directly, but rather the concerns that emerge when fatherhood cleaves your life into "before" and "after."
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