It’s a journey that’s taken him from his birthplace in Buchanan, Michigan to be raised in Parker, Colorado, studying languages in Germany and, after his band The Czars split up, basing himself in New York, London, Berlin and, most recently, Iceland, where the bulk of Pale Green Ghosts was recorded. It’s also been a journey from The Czars’ folk/country noir to the lush ’70s FM alchemy of Queen Of Denmark to the fusion of sounds from Pale Green Ghosts.

If Queen Of Denmark is Grant’s ’70s album, channeling the spirits of Karen Carpenter and Bread, then Pale Green Ghosts is his ’80s album. Of the electronic tracks, the title track is a panoramic, brooding classic, while “Sensitive New Age Guy” and “Black Belt” are the tracks that you might dance to in new wave clubs. “You Don’t Have To” is a classic example of Grant’s influences blending together, in a reworked arrangement of a track unveiled during concert tours in 2011. It also features the distinct spacey Moog sounds that are familiar to lovers of Queen Of Denmark, while McKenzie and Alexander play on “Vietnam” and “It Doesn’t Matter To Him.” Grant’s touring partner, keyboardist Chris Pemberton, plays the  piano coda on the album’s tumultuous finale “Glacier.”

Besides producer Birgir Þórarinsson, a.k.a. Biggi Veira, of Iceland’s electronic pioneers Gus Gus, the album features a range of Icelandic musicians, including saxophonist Óskar Gudjónsson on “Ernest Borgine,” named after the legendary American film/TV actor. On an album of typically caustic revelations and scabrous humor, including sex, sexuality and the pitfalls of growing up in an era, and a particularly religious environment, that ostracized gay men, “Ernest Borgnine” combines all these strands with the admission that Grant is HIV positive.

Grant has also never shied away from discussing depression, and Pale Green Ghosts is a show of strength and survival, of moving on with life, on what will continue to be an incredible journey. “Moving to Reykjavik, at the age of 43, was incredibly risky and scary,” says Grant. “I didn’t know anyone here, but I’ve built up a life here, and recorded an album I’m really proud of, that distills what I’m about down to its most essential components, better than ever before. And this was during the middle of health issues. It means I’m trying to take the bull by the horns, and to live.”

Tour Dates w/ Elbow
5/11 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
5/12 – Boston, MA – Royale
5/13 – Philadelphia, PA – Electric Factory
5/16 – New York, NY – Webster Hall
5/17 – Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall
5/19 – Chicago, IL – House of Blues
5/20 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
5/23 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore Ballroom
5/24 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
5/25 – Quincy, WA – Sasquatch Festival
5/27 – Oakland, CA – The Fox Theatre
5/28 – Los Angeles, CA – The Wiltern

http://johngrantmusic.com/