I Just Read About That…

[DID NOT ATTEND: April 8, 2025] John Grant / Árný Margrét

John Grant is an American singer who lives in Iceland.  He moved there in 2013 and became a citizen in 2022.

He doesn’t play the U.S. very often (last time he played Philly was 2015) and I put him on my “hope to see” list.

I really liked his records from 2013 and 2015 but hadn’t listened to his more recent releases.  But there was something so strangely enchanting about his music–kind of poppy but dark and weird too.  I wasn’t sure what his live shows would be like, but reviews talked about them being really engaging.

I was pretty psyched to get a ticket for this show, but it turned out to be the same night as Mogwai and so I had one of those tough choices–see a band I loved and wanted to see again, or see a guy I liked ok but who never plays here.

In the end the question was moot because my wife had surgery and I wasn’t going anywhere that night.

Árný Margrét is an Icelandic folk singer with a lovely voice.  She plays quiet acoustic guitar and has a delightfully Icelandic-sounding voice.  It makes it seem like the night would have been more mellow than I would have guessed.  But of course I could be wrong about that.