John Grant - Le Poisson Rouge

While John Grant's new album, Grey Tickles, Black Pressure, is, perhaps, his best yet, his recent performance in New York City only barely did it justice. Aside from a few embellishments with an extra chorus here and there, it felt a bit scant at times. Luckily, his music can more than stand tall on its own. Grant and his band played the majority of GTBP with a nod to 2013's Pale Green Ghosts, and even a handful of tracks from his debut, Queen of Denmark.

Standout moments included "Snug Slacks", "You & Him", "Guess How I Know", "Queen of Denmark", "GMF", and "Glacier", for which Grant brought out Conor O'Brien of the Villagers*, whose added harmony nearly brought the audience to its knees.

There's no argument that Grant is a fantastic artist; his lyrics are some of the best I've heard in years, with a blend of cynicism and sincerity, hope and anger, all simmering in a delectable stew of snide, disdainful intelligence. And his voice is burnished mahogany, it's jaw-droppingly beautiful and haunting and expressive, but, perhaps this wasn't the venue for him. His brand of snarky thunder deserves a grander stage. And if that's the worst thing I can say about this show, then you should probably just ignore me and go see John Grant.

* Tour support for Grant's U.S. leg.