Patrick James Grossi (born May 28, 1983), better known by his stage name Active Child, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. His debut album, ''You Are All I See'', was released in 2011 and produced by Ariel Rechtshaid, and garnered substantial reviews from media outlets like
Pitchfork Media
''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered Alternative rock, alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres includin ...
and Drowned in Sound. In 2011, Active Child opened for British musician James Blake and for the French synthpop band M83. In 2012, his song, " Hanging On," was covered by English pop artist Ellie Goulding and later included on her second album, '' Halcyon''.
Early life
Grossi was born May 28, 1983, in
Elizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabeth is a City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New Order and at the age of 9 he started singing with the Philadelphia Boys Choir. Grossi, at a very young age, began touring with the Philly Boys Choir in Europe, South Africa and Australia, performing at
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...
,
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue Performing arts center, performing arts centre in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive b ...
and singing with a choir in South Africa. As a teenager, he listened to a lot of early ’90s gangster rap and focused on sports and education. During his college days in Colorado, the local arts landscape influenced him to pick up guitar and harp and rediscover his musical talent. He combined elements learned as a child and during his time with Philly Boys Choir, with his falsetto, live harp, and evocative lyrics and debuted in 2010 as Active Child.
Career
2010: Career beginnings
Grossi's first release was ''Sun Rooms'', a cassette put out on January 14, 2010, by Mirror Universe Tapes. That same year, came a 7" vinyl single, ''She Was A Vision'', which was released in February 2010 via Transparent. The record includes the single She Was A Vision and b-side Voice of an Old Friend. His first official EP, ''Curtis Lane EP'' was released in June 2010, ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' remarked how the sombre young man creates glacial and gloomy music, and how the songs have a sort of spiritual quality.
Pitchfork
A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials.
The term is also applie ...
wrote, Grossi seems to have pushed the cosmic, stately side of these tracks to the forefront.
2011–present
Grossi released his debut LP, ''You Are All I See'' in August 2011, featuring tracks such as ''Hanging On'' and ''Johnny Belinda''. Drowned in Sound remarked, "You Are All I See is all about the shimmer, Grossi's touch is so deft, and the sound so seemingly in tune with the natural world, he somehow is able to play with light." By 2013, he released albums and EPs for labels including
Vagrant
Vagrancy is the condition of wandering homelessness without regular employment or income. Vagrants usually live in poverty and support themselves by travelling while engaging in begging, scavenging, or petty theft. In Western countries, ...
, Spunk, Plancha and others. Several of his tracks have appeared on compilations and in multiple films including ''Divergent'' and ''The Host''.
In August 2011, Active Child appeared on NPR Music Mondays and in 2012, he appeared on a mixtape, ''I Like Boys Who Cry'' with
Charli XCX
Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is a British singer and songwriter. She began posting songs on Myspace in 2008 before entering the London rave scene. Signing a recording contract with Asylum Re ...
. Later in the year, he appeared in a compilation, ''The Singles'' with
Lana Del Rey
Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Lana Del Rey discography, Her music is noted for its melancholic exploration of Glamour (presentation), glamor and Romanc ...
, ''PRAY'' with Gilbere Forte and Classixx debut album ''Hanging Gardens''. His second single album, ''Mercy'' was released in June 2015 by Vagrant and produced by Van Rivers. Spin magazine described the album as "heartbreaking and luxurious " with Pitchfork remarking that his vocals on the record are "astonishing, like a rising updraft". His track "Painted Staircase" was featured in the official trailer of the Apple TV+ series, ''Defending Jacob'' (2020).
Tours
Around 2010, Grossi embarked on his first support tour with White Rabbits playing shows throughout the UK and Europe. In 2011 Grossi announced he would be undertaking another American tour in November with M83. He announced tour dates to support U.K. electronic musician James Blake; in May 2011, the tour included a stop at Chicago's Lincoln Hall and New York's Bowery Ballroom. The ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' described his live performance as "one of the most original and ambitious sounds in Los Angeles". In February 2012, he announced a headline spring tour where after jaunting across the UK and Europe in February and March, Grossi landed stateside for a series of shows running from April 27 in Pomona, CA to May 22 in Salt Lake City, UT. Grossi was supported for the U.S. leg by alt-singer Balam Acab. In May 2015, he again toured United States, at Lighting in a Bottle Festival opening at Bradley, CA, the tour was completed in nearly two months at The Cathedral Sanctuary at Immanuel Presbyterian in Los Angeles, CA.
Major festivals
Since 2010, Grossi has been touring consistently in the States as well as overseas, including performances at the Latitude Festival in 2010, Fun Fun Fun Fest in 2011 and Montreux Jazz Festival in 2012. Some of his major live performances at the festivals are
*
Latitude
In geography, latitude is a geographic coordinate system, geographic coordinate that specifies the north-south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from −90° at t ...
Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records is an American record label based in California. It was founded in 1995 by Rich Egan and Jon Cohen. The label focuses on rock music, rock, but features artists in a variety of other genres including folk music, folk, soul music, so ...
)
''Mercy'' (2015,
Vagrant Records
Vagrant Records is an American record label based in California. It was founded in 1995 by Rich Egan and Jon Cohen. The label focuses on rock music, rock, but features artists in a variety of other genres including folk music, folk, soul music, so ...
)
''In Another Life'' (2020,
Sony Music
Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...
Lana Del Rey
Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Lana Del Rey discography, Her music is noted for its melancholic exploration of Glamour (presentation), glamor and Romanc ...
– ''Ride''
Compilations
* ''Molotov Cocktail: A Spunk Sampler'', 2010
* ''LSTN #10'', 2010
* ''Adult Swim Singles Program 2011'' (2011, Williams Street Productions) features " Hanging On"
* ''#99'', 2011
* ''Triple J's Like a Version Eight'', 2012
* ''Un automne'', 2012
* ''Cyclonic Footsteps: Spunk Sampler'' 2013
* '' LUXE'' (2017, Williams Street Productions) features "Cruel World"