Hot Press meets John Grant

“I hate everything about festivals except being onstage and playing the show,” John Grant reveals. “I wish I could get to that part and disappear immediately afterwards.”
 
The festival merry-go-round reminds Grant of his tortured youth.
“The reason that I hate them is that I don’t want to be around all those people,” he says. “This might be a little embarrassing for me to say but what the fuck, sometimes I go to these festivals and I see all these young beautiful people running around enjoying themselves and it reminds me that I was never able to do that when I was young.
“When I was that young I was scared shitless. I wasn’t running around enjoying myself. I was afraid of being attacked all the time for being myself. I was struggling with my sexuality to such an extent that I didn’t reach out to anyone.”
Surely at a music festival there will be a more tolerant atmosphere?
“I suppose yes, unless you’re at a festival in Moscow,” Grant answers. “It’s mostly an age regression thing. You’re reacting to an experience from the past. It’s also because I’m sober and it’s hard to be in that atmosphere when everyone wants to party. There are great moments at festivals and I have experienced them. The other day I got to hang out with Beth Orton. We taught each other one of the other’s songs. This kind of thing wouldn’t happen anywhere else. My first thing when I go to festivals is, ‘Fuck, here we go again’. I don’t want to deal with the crowds and the logistics of getting onstage. It’s just a real cluster fuck.
 “I’d love to be open to what is going on at festivals. You can’t plan things. I stood onstage and watched Kraftwerk. That’s a pretty fucking amazing day. They try so hard to create an atmosphere for artists and they do it so well.”
The last time Grant visited these shores, in May, his long time musical heroine Sinéad O’Connor performed with him. Sinéad also does a version of Grant’s ‘Queen Of Denmark’ on her current album.
“That’s the only time we’ve done it thus far,” he says. “I hope there will be more but it’s not always easy to be in the same place. There’s not much you can say about it apart from I never thought I would have that happen to me in my life. It’s a huge thing for me. I can’t even explain it. I was listening to her as a teenager from the very first album. I’ve always been a fan. I teared up a bit when I first heard her singing ‘Queen Of Denmark’.”
Queen Of Denmark and its successor Pale Green Ghosts have won Grant worldwide acclaim, with his second album touted as a contender for LP of the year.
“I used to be totally into recording. Now I’m realising that recording can be a nightmare. I prefer to be onstage singing and being in the moment. Maybe I’m not very good at the recording process. I don’t know. There’s always something wrong with the sound. I used to prefer the safety of the studio and having the time to create.
“My first album got a great response,” he continues. “I thought people mightn’t give this one a chance. I was worrying about nothing I guess. I’m delighted that people are enjoying it. I felt like I made the album I wanted to make. I was hoping that people would connect to it. It’s very different but feels strangely ‘me’.”