Rating: 2.5/5 stars
Self-described “accidental recording artist” Rob Grant released his debut single “Setting Sail On A Distant Horizon” on Feb. 24.
According to his Spotify profile, Rob Grant is an oddity in the music industry because despite not knowing how to read sheet music or having any formal music training, he can apparently play piano as “the notes flow from him.”
There is one significant detail that the profile lacks: Grant is the father of singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey (“A&W”).
Grant is a rare example of reverse nepotism. Grant is not like Billy Ray Cyrus (“Old Town Road (Remix)”) or Pebe Sebert (“Hard Times Ahead”), who gained a revived fanbase from their children’s careers. No, Grant was indeed never a musician but a copywriter for Grey Group.
But what of his music? Does it compare to his daughter’s acclaimed songwriting? Nevermind his past, who is Grant as an artist?
Well, he is not much. This song must be an instrumental teaser rather than a proper debut, since it has no lyrics nor any stunning moments. It is just a standard piano refrain of arpeggio plus chord, the sort of etude from an elementary piano class. He does play pretty well, better than some amateurs do for their weekly quizzes, but the profile promises an elderly prodigy when instead we get an elderly amateur.
The bareness of the piece obscures any evocation or “feels.” The piece sounds more somber than it does liberating. The title “Setting Sail On A Distant Horizon” sounds more like a poetic description of death when one pairs it with the dark, simple piano keys.
So, Grant is a decent pianist for a wedding soundtrack. What is the punchline? Is it that Grant is posing on the album cover like his daughter did on “NFR!”? Is it that the title sounds straight from a Porchfest songwriter’s self-produced CD? Is it that Grant looks uncannily similar to Jimmy Buffet (“Songs You Don’t Know By Heart”)?
No, the punchline is that acclaimed pop music auteur Jack Antonoff (“Midnights”) produced this. He does not actually do much, other than some quiet strings at one point and a reverb effect. A minute and a half in there is a mixing error. Given how busy he is with Del Rey’s upcoming album, this might have been part of the contract or possibly charity work. Australian composer Luke Howard (“Agatha”) also lends a production credit. What exactly he adds is unclear; it is suspicious that Grant’s song even involved one tenured producer, let alone two.
Does this count as punching down? Grant surely has the money and industry backing, but he was not ever actually dishonest about his music. He presents himself as a newcomer and that is what we get from this song.
It is hard to tell exactly what we should expect from Grant. His initial streams are certainly coming from curious Del Rey fans and maybe some relatives. Del Rey’s upcoming album features seemingly family-inspired songs titled “The Grants” and “Grandfather Please Stand on the Shoulders of My Father While He’s Deep-Sea Fishing.” Grant may possibly make a session appearance on Del Rey’s album and his budding music career is an advertisement in disguise.
Or not. We should allow Grant to make and release music whether he is Lana Del Rey’s dad or not. The fact that he is her father should not push him to make a masterpiece. Check out the track if you stan Del Rey enough to care, but if you do not, then how did you even find out about this?
Image from Rob Grant via Twitter
