Voices
In the years after the synth-pop duo Phantogram released their beloved 2011 debut, *Eyelid Movies*, members Josh Carter and Sarah Barthel toured the globe, played every big festival, released a few well-received EPs, and built a large, devoted following—and yet 2014\'s *Voices* is their major-label debut. It\'s a testament to the multitasking duo\'s ability to sound bigger than they are. Recorded in L.A. with producer John Hill (Shakira, Mayer Hawthorne), the album develops, without drastically changing, the ethereal synth-pop sound the act is known for. Barthel\'s breathy coo remains the star, floating above undulating waves of midtempo drums and swelling keys. \"Bill Murray\" channels Beach House for a languid bit of swaying shoegaze, \"Howling at the Moon\" picks up the tempo with a skittering beat, and \"My Only Friend\" is a hauntingly appropriate closer that nods to M83. The album is anchored by \"Fall in Love,\" a sultry pop groove that wouldn\'t sound out of place on a Beyoncé album.
On their second full-length, synth-pop outfit Phantogram look to graduate from the subliminal to the substantial. It's a quintessential, 1990s-style major-label debut: more heavy-handed and more expensive-sounding, and also exceedingly self-aware of its mission to deliver the goods at this crucial juncture in the band’s career.
Although Phantogram’s 2009 debut full-length Eyelid Movies was sonically fearless—influences included everything from quaint trip-hop and fuzzy hip-hop to fragile synthpop—it also felt somewhat disjointed. The duo behind the album (vocalist/keyboardist Sarah Barthel and vocalist/guitarist Josh Carter) clearly had a…
The New York two-piece summon a leviathan beast that, while a little overproduced, is glorious and thoroughly devastating because of it.
Despite some bright moments, the album drifts by rather aimlessly without hitting its mark or leaving much of a lasting impression.
A fearless, hands-on approach to the rebirth of trip-hop through the eyes of two New Yorkers.
After making some noise with their debut album, Eyelid Movies, which straddled the line between trip-hop and shoegaze with the skill of an acrobat, Phantogram have refined and expanded their sound in really interesting ways.
Voices is Phantogram's full-length follow up to 2009's Eyelid Movies (EPs have been released in the interim), and the Saratoga Springs duo stays true to its layered, beat-driven, ambient method.
The Brooklyn duo evoke everything from Bauhaus to Phil Spector in an audacious second album, writes <strong>Paul Mardles</strong>
Voices rarely has a chance to establish any momentum before getting tripped up by its own inconsistency.
Review Of "Voices" By Phantogram. The album comes out 2/18 on Republic Records. The band's third single singles from "Voices" "Fall In Love" is now out.