Grey Tickles, Black Pressure
Grey Tickles, Black Pressure is the third solo album by American musician John Grant. It was released via Bella Union on October 9, 2015.
| Grey Tickles, Black Pressure | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 9, 2015 | |||
| Recorded | 2014–2015 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 57:23 | |||
| Label | Bella Union | |||
| Producer |
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| John Grant chronology | ||||
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Production Edit
The album's title stems from the literal translation of two foreign phrases: "grey tickles" is an Icelandic phrase for approaching middle age, while "black pressure" is the Turkish term for a nightmare.[1] Grant stated that he wanted to get "angrier and moodier" on the album, although he enjoyed the process of making it more than his previous two.[2]
The album's trailer features Grant in the midst of a psychotic break, covered in blood and wielding a croquet mallet as a weapon. He described it as a fantasy of "what [he] would like to do every time somebody calls [him] a faggot".[2] The album features three guests: English singer Tracey Thorn features on the track "Disappointing", American singer Amanda Palmer provides backing vocals on "You & Him", and English drummer Budgie plays the drums on every track. The latter would also go on tour as Grant's drummer.
Reception Edit
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 8.1/10[3] |
| Metacritic | 82/100[4] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | [5] |
| The Guardian | [6] |
| The Independent | [7] |
| The Irish Times | [8] |
| Mojo | [9] |
| The Observer | [10] |
| Q | [11] |
| Record Collector | [12] |
| Rolling Stone | [13] |
| Uncut | 8/10[14] |
The album received acclaim.[4] NME named it "one of the albums of the year" and praised both its personal lyrics and pop melodies.[15] On their own lists of the best albums of the year, The Guardian and Rough Trade respectively placed it at No. 38[16] and No. 11.[17] Time named the 11th track on the album, "Disappointing", as the fifth best song of 2015.[18]
Accolades Edit
| Publication | Accolade | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| The Guardian | The Best Albums of 2015 | 38 |
| Rough Trade | Albums of the Year 2015 | 11 |
Track listing Edit
All tracks are written by John Grant
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Intro" | 1:36 |
| 2. | "Grey Tickles, Black Pressure" | 5:30 |
| 3. | "Snug Slacks" | 4:11 |
| 4. | "Guess How I Know" | 3:34 |
| 5. | "You & Him" | 3:26 |
| 6. | "Down Here" | 4:09 |
| 7. | "Voodoo Doll" | 3:07 |
| 8. | "Global Warming" | 4:04 |
| 9. | "Magma Arrives" | 5:02 |
| 10. | "Black Blizzard" | 4:48 |
| 11. | "Disappointing" | 4:56 |
| 12. | "No More Tangles" | 6:09 |
| 13. | "Geraldine" | 6:22 |
| 14. | "Outro" | 0:30 |
Personnel Edit
Primary musicians
- John Grant – lead vocals, keyboards, synth programming and sequencing
- Pétur Hallgrímsson – guitar
- Jakob Smári Magnússon – bass
- Budgie – drums
Additional musicians
- Amanda Palmer – additional vocals (track 5)
- Tracey Thorn – additional vocals (track 11)
- Fiona Brice – additional vocals, string, brass and vocal arrangements (written and conducted by), violin
- Tierannye Sparks – additional vocals
- Alisa Alexander – additional vocals
- Bobby Sparks – keyboards
- John Congleton – synth programming and sequencing, drum programming and sequencing
- David Monsch – bass clarinet
- Matt Milewski – violin
- Natalie Floyd – violin
- Sarah Carmichael – violin
- Buffi Jacobs – cello
- Debbie Brooks – cello
- Keith Jourdan – trumpet
- Peter Clagett – trumpet
- David Pierce – trombone
- Carl Murr – trombone
- Simon Willats – tuba
- Heather Test – French horn
- Wes Baggaley – spoken word (track 1)
- Olafur Darri Olafsson – spoken word (track 1)
- Petra Hallberg – spoken word (track 1)
- Jeppe Kjellberg – spoken word (track 1)
- Billy Novik – spoken word (track 1)
- Karl Neukauf – spoken word (track 1)
- Carys Connolly – spoken word (track 14)
Charts Edit
| Chart (2015) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[19] | 46 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[20] | 87 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[21] | 34 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[22] | 122 |
| Irish Albums (IRMA)[23] | 3 |
| Italian Albums (FIMI)[24] | 99 |
| New Zealand Albums (Recorded Music NZ)[25] | 27 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[26] | 21 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[27] | 5 |
| US Top Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[28] | 20 |
References Edit
- ^ "John Grant announces third solo album". Bella Union. Retrieved June 23, 2015.
- ^ a b "Why Is John Grant So Bloody Upset". Out. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
- ^ "Grey Tickles, Black Pressure by John Grant reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
- ^ a b "Reviews for Grey Tickles, Black Pressure by John Grant". Metacritic. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
- ^ Phares, Heather. "Grey Tickles, Black Pressure – John Grant". AllMusic. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- ^ Petridis, Alexis (October 1, 2015). "John Grant: Grey Tickles, Black Pressure review – trauma, jokes and joy". The Guardian. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
- ^ Gill, Andy (October 9, 2015). . The Independent. Archived from the original on October 11, 2015. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
- ^ Murphy, Lauren (October 9, 2015). "John Grant: Grey Tickles, Black Pressure | Album of the Week". The Irish Times. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- ^ Trynka, Paul (October 2, 2015). "John Grant – Grey Tickles, Black Pressure". Mojo. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
- ^ Empire, Kitty (October 4, 2015). "John Grant: Grey Tickles, Black Pressure review – the most chipper of Grant's solo works". The Observer. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- ^ "John Grant: Grey Tickles, Black Pressure". Q (352): 110. November 2015.
- ^ Kennedy, Jake (November 2015). "John Grant – Grey Tickles, Black Pressure". Record Collector (446). Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- ^ Walters, Barry (October 6, 2015). "Grey Tickles, Black Pressure". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- ^ "John Grant: Grey Tickles, Black Pressure". Uncut (222): 70. November 2015.
- ^ Grey Tickles, Black Pressure - review. NME. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
- ^ "The Best Albums of 2015". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. December 2, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
- ^ . roughtrade.com. 2015-11-25. Archived from the original on 2015-12-05. Retrieved 2015-12-10.
- ^ "Best Songs of 2015". Time. 3 December 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – John Grant – Grey Tickles, Black Pressure" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – John Grant – Grey Tickles, Black Pressure" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – John Grant – Grey Tickles, Black Pressure" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – John Grant – Grey Tickles, Black Pressure". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 18, 2015.
- ^ . Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
- ^ "Italiancharts.com – John Grant – Grey Tickles, Black Pressure". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
- ^ "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – John Grant – Grey Tickles, Black Pressure". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
- ^ "John Grant – Chart history (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 23, 2015.