Phantom Planet
Phantom Planet Is missing !

"Mmm..the Phantom Planet..wait, aren't they the ones from California?! Well yeah, I know them!" ;

Error #1

"Yes! The Phantom Planet from O.C.! The video is super cool, brushing teeth with Jack Daniel's, they are truly a Sex, drugs & R'n'Roll on the Road band!" ;

Error #2

Listen, have you ever heard "Phantom Planet Is Missing"?

It was 1998, we are in Los Angeles and these guys, just about twenty, after spending 4 years in a room playing and composing, sign with Geffen who decides to release an album for them. I mean, not a bad start! The compositional skills of these guys, for their age, really leave me speechless!

Let me explain; Phantom Planet is a Band. Period. 

When I listen to this record, I can hear the rehearsals, the synergy, and above all the energy and enthusiasm of the composition that only a tight-knit band has, and there's no doubt about it! If you don't have at least a bit of musical culture, forget it, you might remember the melodies perhaps, but you won't fully understand them.

The band’s music has r'n'roll influences from the '60s to today ...

Do you want proof?

Alright, let's see, how can I put it.. Oh yes!

60s - Beatles-like choirs, Animals, Beach Boys! Harmonies in 3rds and 6ths everywhere.

70s - The harmonic progressions of that era, the song construction, the guitar effects, the distortions!

80s - The keyboards, the drum tempos, the "pop", England.

90s - If you are familiar with The Juliana Theory, a certain emo (don't comment guys, come on, don't embarrass yourselves!) and of course the garage and punk-rock.

As a guitarist, I can say that Darren Robinson is cool and when I think about Alex Greenwald singing and playing rhythm guitar, I can't help but think "How cool are these guys?!?”

If you are looking for a band that knows how to play, indeed knows how to play, with top-notch production quality and songs you don't often hear on the radio, listen to Phantom Planet! If you like Beach Boys-style harmonies, harmonized and very rock 'n' roll brash and defiant guitars, listen to this record! But listen to it well! The lyrics are as they should be, adolescent, direct, and emotional.. Think about it.. They were just twenty years old!

Doing a more.. How to say.. Theoretical analysis, this album once again surprises for the maturity of the arrangements, while maintaining an absolute unapologetically adolescent freshness and yes.. Californian goddamn! In all eleven tracks of the album at least three guitars are recorded, one often acoustic rhythm (mmmh..) plus two electrics harmonizing the solos (who the heck always does that?!!) maybe one harmonizes in sixths while the other rumbles in the background... The harmonic progressions come directly from the Beatles etc., and you can hear it... You can hear the typical 60's Maj/Min alternation or the 7min chords and especially the famous "Beatles descents" often descending or with chromatic passages making you say "Oh wow!”

The melodies are very catchy at first listen and pleasing, but with a deeper listen, you can hear that the arrangements are well thought out, and the guys had a lot of fun diving into the arrangements, the live performances are fairly faithful, and check them out on YouTube to see that even live they know what they're doing! For all romantics, this is a great album.. fresh like the Get Up Kids and with a decidedly cool old-style taste.. I’m telling you the album starts with a piece that says "I give up, I step aside" and continues with a lunar track with a heart-wrenching Beach Boys ending and concludes with the splendid Sleeping Machine, a ballad that, ladies, says goodnight in a...wow way!

The guitars with tremolo and various delays create such an atmosphere.. along with voices coming from an old dusty radio and our Alex says that "something isn't right, every night I need you more and more take something from me, but I need you to help me forget this loss of light, I need you.. goodnight.

THE END

This was the first album released under Geffen by Phantom Planet, 1998

The second album "The Guest", 2002, is just as cool, perhaps more pop, certainly more mature but with great guitars and vocals.. oh yes, it contains "California"..

After the worldwide success starting from 2003, they released a more experimental, more garage and less catchy self-titled album in '04... Tired of doing the usual stuff for sure, but alas, it loses a lot and the debut album remains their album for me. In 2008, they released "Raise the Dead", leaving aside the experiments and returning to rock 'n' roll with beautiful melodies and great tracks... unfortunately, the band decided to take a break (..I don’t use the word breakup, it would be too much for me!) for a period of pause... I’ll wait for them at the turn... meanwhile, I’m going out to buy Phantom Planet Is Missing (if I find it) and The Guest... Just to cheer myself up..

Guys, if you don’t understand them like I do, leave it... continue with the Strokes if you like them more  

GO VEGAN !

a.