"You are where dreams go to die, and I regret the day your lovely carcass caught my eye."
John Grant, the figurehead of the criminally underrated (and now defunct) Denver band The Czars, has a big voice and a penchant for dour nostalgia painted in noirish hues (he could be the roving troubadour of Twin Peaks). On his first post-Czars solo album, Grant is joined by morose Texas soft-psychers Midlake, and while they prove to be a capable backdrop for Grant's breathtaking vocals, lending Queen of Denmark a noticeably warmer and more eclectic sound than what was typical of Grant's former band, they lack the disconcertingly dark and sumptuous Indie-lounge accents that made The Czars so distinctive. This turns out to be both a blessing and a curse, for while Grant's voice is pushed into some new and interesting contexts, he seems to have traded some of his black licorice for cotton-candy (though definitely poison-laced). Nevertheless, Czars fans will find a lot to love on Queen of Denmark, and those unfamiliar with this band and Grant's voice now have a revelation sitting on their doorstep. Knock-knock.
