John Grant | |
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John Grant performing live at Jena, Kulturarena, July 24, 2014.
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Background information | |
Birth name | John Grant |
Born |
Buchanan, Michigan, U.S. |
July 25, 1968
Origin | Parker, Colorado, U.S. |
Genres | Folk, alternative rock, indie rock, electronic rock, synthpop, new wave, soft rock |
Instruments | Vocals, piano |
Labels | Bella Union, Partisan, USA, Sena Iceland |
Associated acts | The Czars, Midlake |
Website | johngrantmusic |
John Grant (born July 25, 1968) is an American singer-songwriter. Formerly associated with the Denver-based alternative rock band The Czars in the 1990s and early 2000s, he launched a career as a solo artist in 2010.
In 2015, his third solo studio album, Grey Tickles, Black Pressure was received with critical acclaim.
Grant was born in Buchanan, Michigan and raised in Parker, Colorado. He studied languages in Germany and after The Czars split up in 2006, based himself in New York, London, Berlin and Reykjavik.
Following The Czars, Grant took some time off from making music and returned to recording and performing in 2010 with his debut solo album Queen of Denmark. Released in April 2010, it had been recorded in collaboration with the American folk-rock band Midlake and released on Bella Union. Described as a deeply personal album about his past struggles with alcohol and drug addiction and coming to terms with being gay, it was chosen as Best Album of 2010 by the British music magazine Mojo.
Grant is currently living in Reykjavík, Iceland, where he worked throughout 2012 on his second solo album Pale Green Ghosts with Birgir Þórarinsson, a.k.a. Biggi Veira of Iceland's electronic pioneers Gus Gus.
Pale Green Ghosts was released in March 2013. It was the Rough Trade Records 2013 Album of the Year. Grant was nominated for a Q Award in the category of Q Best Solo Artist. He was also nominated as Best International Male Solo Artist at the BRITS 2014 and Attitude Magazine's Man of the Year.