By Kate Richardson

Multi-platinum singer-songwriter David Gray shares his inspirations for his new album, and offers a preview of what audiences can expect during his upcoming U.S. tour.

David Gray recorded his latest album Life in Slow Motion at The Church, a North London studio he bought from Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics. The lilting melodies, haunting lyrics, and lush instrumentation on the project have drawn critical acclaim and multiple comparisons to Van Morrison's 70s masterpiece Astral Weeks. Transitioning from an autobiographical to a third person point of view, Gray expands his poetic approach to see things through other people's eyes. David explains that the album title refers to when something out of the ordinary happens and it doesn't feel real, when everything turns to slow motion.

For Gray, nothing is in slow motion. He has just finished the European leg of his tour and is about to embark on the U.S. portion which begins March 1 in Atlanta and concludes on March 21 at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Los Angeles.

David spoke to Gibson from the English countryside, where he was relaxing with his family.

KR: Do you play a Gibson?

DG: I have an old Hummingbird, which I keep in my studio. I love the sound of it. It just sounds right for certain songs. I have also played a Jumbo in recording sessions.

KR: Who is in your band for this tour?

DG: Tim Bradshaw, keyboards and guitar; Dave Nolte, guitar; Caroline Dale, cello; Rob Malone, bass; and Clune on drums. There are six of us. We're a merry bunch! (laughs)

KR: Is it true you create a different set list each night?

DG: Correct, I put the songs in a different order each night. "Create a different set list" sounds really glamorous. (laughs) I wish I had thousands of songs to draw on. There are probably about 25 to 30 songs that we've played since this record started. We focus on the new record, but I change the song order around. I'll move some songs in and out of the set every night, just to keep an element of surprise.

KR: What can the audience expect to see from you this tour?

DG: Well, I will be looking absolutely ravishing. (laughs)

KR: What will they hear from you?

DG: We've just completed a tour of Europe. It was absolutely great! I don't think we've ever played a better string of shows. It was really, really intense. We were playing in smaller places, 2000 to 3000 seats or standing clubs. It brings you close to the audience. The whole band was really firing on all cylinders. If we can keep that going, we're in for some really good gigs in America!

KR: What is your favorite part of the show?

DG: At the moment it is the song "Lately" and a new song called "Alive." We knew when we came up with "Lately" that it could be a big jam or improvisation. There is a basic song structure, but there is an awful lot of elasticity there. You can stretch it out or slow it down. We used to have the song "Say Hello, Wave Goodbye," which finished off the White Ladder record, that we used to improvise the end of going into various other pieces of music or making something up. It was always a big live favorite that showed a side of our music making that not every song allows you to hear.

"Lately" is our latest edition to that genre, so that has been my favorite thing. It's been getting longer and longer. We've been doing 10 to 12 minute versions of it. Some nights, it has been like going to another planet. When you get back from the end of the song you're like, "where am I?" I love that feeling.

KR: Do I hear your daughters in the background?

DG: Yes, I hope they're not falling down the stairs. (laughs) That's one of my specialties.

KR: How old are they?

DG: The oldest is 3 and a half and the other is just over 1. I think that is her banging very, very loudly on the stair gate.

KR: Has your older daughter been to any of your shows?

DG: No, she came to a sound check, which she thought was a show. She was just a bit freaked-out by the whole thing. I think it was too loud. She didn't like it. She did see me play a few songs in a very small show we did in our studio. She finds it a little bit overwhelming.

KR: Does she have any concept yet that you are a star?

DG: No, I don't think so. She just thinks everyone's daddy is a singer

KR: How has becoming a father affected your music? Have you written any songs for them?

DG: I haven't written any for them. I wrote a song when Ivy, our oldest, was born. It wasn't for her, but it was related to the fact that she'd just been born, which was all a bit stressful. My wife wasn't well. It didn't go very well. I remember coming home and they were both still in the hospital. The imagined lovely drive home with newborn baby and wife was on hold. I sat down at the piano and started to write a song. That was called "A New Day at Midnight." The song wasn't actually on the A New Day at Midnight record.

KR: Have you recorded it?

DG: I have actually and it came out really well, so it will emerge at some point.

KR: The enhanced CD of your new record, Life in Slow Motion, includes a great documentary on the making of the project. It provides an inside glimpse of your recording studio and of your hysterical relationship with your drummer Clune.

DG: There is a sort of sparky relationship there. When I'm playing a show live, I look over to him for a spark. Ever since we started making music, there has been something that just locked together about the way he feels his rhythm and I express the chords and strum. There is some kind of compatibility there. He is my touchstone really. When I'm looking for a bit of musical excitement, I look in his direction and hope he is going to nail it. When I've got a new song, I'm always hoping he's going to say, "Oh great man, I love this! I've got a beat that's going to work."

KR: You are almost like brothers.

DG: Well, we spend a lot of time together! (laughs)

KR: On this record, you greatly expanded the instrumentation you have used in the past. There is harmonium, glockenspiel, and auto harp. Did Dave Stewart really play bass trombone on the record?

DG: Dave Stewart? Is that in the credits?

KR: Is that a joke?

DG: Yeah, I think it must be. (laughing hard) Unless there is another musician named Dave Stewart.

We used all those instruments, the harmonium and the glockenspiel. We used them all the time, and they were just brilliant. I love those things. We've got them on the road with us too. I want a vibraphone now, that's my next objective.

I find you can't go wrong when you buy some crappy toy instrument. They always sound great when you record them. Not that a vibraphone is in that category. I find that it always inspires a wave of new songs. I've just bought a ukulele, so god knows what the next record is going to sound like. A ukulele, vibraphone freak-out-you heard it here first! (laughs)

KR: In the past, you've done most of your own production, but on this project you brought in Marius DeVries [U2, Madonna, David Bowie]. Was it challenging for you to give up the reins?

DG: The time was right. I felt confident and experienced enough to be able to deal with the challenge. I wanted a challenge, someone who was going to try and take things in a different direction. It was great. When it came to things like the big productions, which I knew Marius would excel at, he was totally in his element. One thing I didn't expect was all the backing vocals. He really got us to take it miles further than we'd ever imagined going. He also had a real ear for subtle changes to rhythms and arrangements, which would pay off later in a song-stretching a chord out here or taking a bridge out there. He had a real knack with that. He came up trumps at several points on the record.

KR: Prior to making this record you composed the soundtrack for Amma Assante's film A Way of Life. It seems that the process must have really inspired you, as every cut on this album is like a movie soundtrack on its own. The imagery is amazing.

DG: That is a very nice thing for you to have said. I was thinking in terms of movie soundtracks with the whole record. I think there was something filmic about it. It was a strange mixture of Sigur Ros meets Blade Runner meets Phil Spector. All these things swimming 'round my head. I really wanted something that was going to be a bit mysterious on its own, before the lyrics even started.

KR: Do you hope to do more film work?

DG: Yes, I'd love to. It's just about being offered the right thing at the right time. It's a luck thing. There are not many movies like The Graduate out there. There are an awful lot of romantic comedies that make you gag, so it just depends what you get offered.

KR: When looking for a way to describe the themes on this record, I was drawn to a quote where you said, "Life is not a subtle experience."

DG: (Laughs) Well, no it isn't a lot of the time. Not in its rawest state.

For more information on David Gray visit www.davidgray.com