POSTS BY: PhantasmoJanuary 14th, 2012 by Phantasmo Phantasmo’s Top 11 of 2011
Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds National Skyline – Primitive Parade Greek Fire – Deus Ex Machina Twilight Singers – Dynamite Steps Social Distortion – Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes Charlie Simpson – Young Pilgrim Ivy – All Hours Fair To Midland – Arrows & Anchors Snow Patrol – Fallen Empires DJ Shadow – The Less You Know, The Better The Fuck Off And Dies – Songs In The Key of Fuck
Honorable mentions: Heirlooms of August – Forever The Moon, Francesqa – We Lived, Foo Fighters – Wasting Light, City and Colour – Little Hell, Desertshore – Drawing Of Threes, Glasvegas – Euphoric Heartbreak, You Me At Six – Sinners Never Sleep December 11th, 2011 by Phantasmo FILTER: Live in Anchorage 12.09.11
The first two songs were a bit mid-tempo, with Richard holding the mic stand cautiously and I was curious if things would liven up a bit, and they immediately did. The band kicked into overdrive with ‘The Inevitable Relapse’ as Richard Patrick announced to the crowd, “I feel like crowd surfing!”. As he screamed out the chorus “Drink it, drink it, snort it, smoke it!” he propelled himself into the audience. Standing inches from the stage, I spent the next few minutes holding him up along with a few others. Throughout the show, he did this several times, often looking up at the VERY low ceiling to find a handhold on a pipe, lighting rig, or anything that would carry his weight. At one point, he was singing with the mic in one hand, while his other hand and his two feet grappled around the ceiling fixtures throughout the club – it was pretty damn cool to watch this guy suspended inches above your head while belting out a kick ass rock song. There was quite a bit of stage banter, with the band completely puzzled how they had been to so many foreign places and not Alaska (“How have we been to fuckin’ KUWAIT and never been here?!”). While the band kept a solid tempo and were impressive in their own right, Richard Patrick stole the show. The guy ignited the place and had endless energy. Jumping, leaning out in the crowd to hold him up, the crowd-surfing, he was on fire. At one point during the show, I had my iPhone held up in front of him to snap a photo, when he suddenly grabbed it out of my hand and proceeded to film me, the crowd, himself and the band before handing it back to me – it was shaky as hell, but damn cool to have that happen. The set list was varied with several songs from each album and I was happy to see two of my favorites – “Jurassitol” and “Skinny” – make the cut. They closed the show with a blistering “The Best Things” before returning for a two-song encore – “So I Quit” (with a bit of “War Pigs” added on) and “Hey Man, Nice Shot”, with bassist/Carls Jr. spokesman Phil Buckman taking a shirtless center stage to rock the opening bass line before downing several shots of (requested) Jameson as the chorus kicked in. Planned or not, it was ironically funny. RP absolutely screamed his lungs out as they closed the show and walked off stage, promising to return. The band hung around for a bit, but Richard Patrick was nowhere to be seen afterward… It was a tightly-packed, sweaty little rock show and I had a great time. Filter put on an excellent live show and it’s amazing how Koots can get bands like Filter to play in such a small little area of the bar. I LOVE going to shows there. SETLIST Here’s video of the band performing ‘Skinny’ – sorry I missed the first twenty seconds or so…and be sure to watch in HD. And here’s the 25 seconds of video that Richard Patrick shot on my iPhone… September 27th, 2011 by Phantasmo MuteMath – Live at The Met, Pawtucket, Rhode Island – Sept. 20, 2011By sheer luck, a week-long trip to Boston with some friends coincided with MuteMath’s ‘Odd Soul Introduction Tour’ making its way along the east coast. Thankfully, I received the email announcement with tour dates, did a quick Google search to find a close location and discovered that Pawtucket, Rhode Island was only an hour away from Boston! Ticket purchased, car rented and off I went down I-95 to The Met. In my attempt to beat rush hour traffic, I arrived at The Met several hours before the show started. However, this proved to be perfect timing, as I was able to slip inside the doors of the club, watch the band’s sound check, snap some photos and chat up the band, who were extremely gracious and appreciative of such a long-distance journey. The Met looked to be the perfect venue for a small club tour, with the band slightly elevated on a small stage that was absolutely crammed with every single musical instrument and electronic gadget one could imagine. Showtime was scheduled for 9:00 PM, though it was 9:45 PM and the band was nowhere in sight. Finally, the lights finally dimmed, incense was lit on stage and the band made their entrance – which was well worth the wait. While the entire crowd faced the stage waiting for the band to emerge, the front doors of the club behind the crowd burst open. The band entered from outside the club, each member playing a different percussion instrument like a marching band, parted the audience like the Red Sea, weaving through the cheering, awed crowd and made their way to the stage. Drummer Darren King took to his throne in signature style, instantly strapping his monitor headphones onto his head with duct tape. They wasted no time, blasting into new song Prytania, followed by an electronic, blues-inflected Blood Pressure courtesy of new (and amazing) guitarist Todd Gummerman. I had a perfect spot to watch the show, directly up against the stage and standing close enough to drummer Darren King that I could hand him a drumstick if he happened to drop one while beating the living hell out of his drums (which happened!). Inches from the band proved to be the ideal position as I was able to get excellent photo and video footage, as well as witness the beast that is Darren King. I had seen video footage of him playing before, but it was nothing compared to seeing him perform live. The man is a MACHINE. Watching him behind the kit was a jaw-dropping experience. Eyes closed, mind focused, he was all over the place – climbing onto the piano with a drum, beating his sticks on the stage post behind him, and dumping a bottle of water on his drums for Reset, soaking everyone and everything around him, including me. Multi-instrumentalist/lead vocalist Paul Meany was a firecracker, pumping the crowd up, doing hand-stands on his piano and offering his keytar to the crowd to play. Bass player Roy Mitchell-Cardenas was incredible, though it’s not fair to simply call him a bass player, as he was as diverse as the rest of the band, jumping behind the drum kit, picking up the guitar, and manipulating all kinds of secret MuteMath electronic instruments that I wouldn’t have the faintest idea how to operate. Todd fit in perfectly with the rest of the band, playing different instruments all over the stage, adding great backing vocals and incredible guitar licks. I couldn’t believe how tight they were, yet also so fluid and loose with their music…it was like the songs were living and breathing as they played. The crowd was definitely into the show, screaming along to older songs (Control, Noticed, Spotlight) and even new songs that sounded just as good (Odd Soul, Blood Pressure). The band powered through a sweat-soaked, hyperactive 75 minute set, culminating with an absolutely face-melting rendition of Typical that seemed to never end, and no one wanted it to! Finally, the band exited the stage, only to return a few minutes later for a 3-song encore, the crowd begging for more. Paul expressed his appreciation to the crowd, and it was nice to get props from the stage as he thanked everyone for travelling to the show, “even as far as Alaska!” which, I have to admit, was pretty rad to hear. They then launched into Chaos (a personal favorite), Break the Same, and Quarantine, finally ending a phenomenal show as Darren was kind enough to hand me back a drumstick as he left the stage. Thanks very much, Darren! 4,581 miles is a long distance to travel for a concert, but I’d go twice that without hesitation to see MuteMath again. This was, without a doubt, the best live show I have ever seen. It wasn’t a concert, it was an experience. I have never seen a band put so much heart, soul and energy into a performance and the intimate venue was certainly a bonus. If you have the opportunity to catch MuteMath on the ‘Odd Soul Introduction Tour’, without a doubt, GO. You will not be disappointed. SETLIST Here’s video of the band performing ‘You Are Mine’ – sorry you can only see the back of Paul’s head. March 18th, 2011 by Phantasmo YUCK!
Currently playing on repeat in my iPod is the self-titled debut album from Yuck. An unfortunately terrible name from a fantastic band. Reminiscent of the 90’s sounds of Pavement, Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr., this four-piece from London takes me back to my high school/college radio days in a beautiful, nostalgic way. Definitely check them out. Here’s one of my favorite album tracks, “Shook Down” December 31st, 2010 by Phantasmo Top 11 of 2010
Deftones ‘Diamond Eyes’ - Hands down, the best release of 2010 and could quite possibly have replaced ‘White Pony’ as the definitive Deftones album. Absolutely un-fucking-believable. Amusement Parks On Fire ‘Road Eyes’ – Often compared to Silversun Pickups, this is a beautiful, modern-day shoegazer masterpiece. Desertshore ‘Drifting Your Majesty’ – Phil Carney (of Red House Painters/Sun Kil Moon fame) offers his first solo instrumental album, full of delicate acoustic work mixed with feedback/effect-drenched atmospheres. Can’t wait to hear more. Manic Street Preachers ‘Postcards From a Young Man’ – Yet another fantastic album from one of my favorite bands. I would love to see them play live someday. Underworld ‘Barking’ – While I wasn’t a huge fan of their last two albums, I was hooked on this album from the first time I heard ‘Birds 1′. A welcomed return to fine form. The Mess ‘Red Skies Ahead’ – I’m not even sure how I even found out about this band… This is their second digital-only release and, while there’s nothing incredibly ground-breaking or new here, it’s just a great electronic pop/rock album from start to finish, and I really dig the vocal style. The Qemists ‘Spirit in the System’ – A dirty, angry, electro-punk album that just kicks ass. This didn’t leave my car for a few months. My Chemical Romance ‘Danger Days’ – Hot Topic darlings MCR come back with an album that may be even better than ‘The Black Parade’, which I thought was brilliant. This is a great, fun, and daring album full of huge guitars and catchy hooks. Danzig ‘Deth Red Sabaoth’ – FINALLY! Glenn Danzig returns after multiple albums of half-assed, lazy crap. ‘Deth Red Sabaoth’ is as heavy as the first Danzig album and just as bluesy as ‘Lucifuge’ (check out Ju Ju Bone and On a Wicked Night). And the limited edition (only 666 made!) porcelain gravestone case that I ordered looks super evil with my other box sets! Greg Laswell ‘Take a Bow’ – One of my favorite singer/songwriter returns with his best album yet. Follow him on twitter – he’s fucking hilarious. Fyfe Dangerfield ‘Fly Yellow Moon’ Guillemots lead singer Fyfe Dangerfield dropped a fantastic solo album earlier this year. While I’m really anticipating the next Guillemots record, Fyfe’s solo joint is a nice departure full of excellent songs. April 15th, 2010 by Phantasmo 1962 – 2010
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