Devastator

In 2008, Phantom Planet went on an amicable hiatus to allow themselves to live their separate lives for a change. At first glance, the LA rockers’ fifth studio album—and first in 12 years—doesn’t immediately suggest the most welcoming gathering of old friends by album title alone. But once “BALISONG” kicks off the album with its scuzzy yet melodic sound, it’s evident that the band picked up right where they left off from their last LP, *Raise the Dead*. Take the swaggering “Party Animal,” where singer Alex Greenwald looks for a pick-me-up to take his mind off things—combining Spoon’s offbeat fuzz with a heavy glam-rock riff. Songs like “Dear Dead End” and “Time Moves On” ease into crisp, sunny hooks as he copes with the aftermath of a breakup (the latter inspired by his broken engagement with actor Brie Larson). Greenwald gives in to the euphoria of finding someone, or something, that you love on the optimistic “Only One,” going for a breezy, California pop sound reminiscent of their 2002 single “Lonely Day.”

Phantom Planet's first album in over a decade, 2020's Tony Berg-produced Devastator, is a buoyant yet lyrically acidic production that finds them balancing the effusive '70s-style AM and power pop of their early work with their more angular post-punk leanings.

The first album in 12 years from Phantom Planet, who have been around for so long that this marks the fruit of their second reformation, is a minor triumph. Especially, as the band didn’t really need to add to the legacy they left fans with after a long