Staff Editor on May 11th, 2019

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Alec Benjamin told a story Friday night about how he used to play outside the El Rey Theatre, handing out his music to people and telling them that maybe he would play the venue one day.

This week, he did — twice, and both shows were sold-out. At Friday’s second night, which closed out his tour, there was no guest appearance by John Mayer like there was the first, but he shared stories and songs that turned into sing-alongs.

Highlights of his set included “Let Me Down Slowly,” “If We Have Each Other,” “Boy In The Bubble” and more from his November mixtape, “Narrated for You.” Plus, he told a story about how his grandmother, at age 90, once climbed a flight of stairs to see him perform. Benjamin said he wished she were at the El Rey on this night.

Alexander23, who had accompanied him on the entire “Outrunning Karma” tour, opened the night.

Set List: Outrunning Karma, If I Killed Someone For You, If We Have Each Other, 1994, Swim, Paper Down, Annabelle’s Homework, I Built A Friend, The Wolf and The Sheep, Water Fountain, Boy in a Bubble, Death of A Hero, Steve, Now She’s Getting Married, Let Me Down Slowly

Photos by Jessica Hanley