Customer Reviews

Raise The Dead

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Phantom Planet's latest effort, "Raise The Dead," with it's bold title and even bolder sound, has captivated me from the first listen. It's refreshing to see bands like Phantom who are not afraid to step out from their style and try something new (and yes, succeed!). No, it's not "California." The laid back smooth style found in PP's earlier days is pushed aside for a more brazen "in your face" sound.

Imagine mixing in a blender the bold new sound and chaotic guitar riffs of their 2004 self titled album with the catchy hooks of "The Guest." Add a pinch Alex Greenwald's effortlessly beautiful (sometimes even slurred) vocals, and what do you have? A concoction fit for true music lovers.

Of course, like most albums, the first half proves to be a much stronger line-up than the second half. However, I don't think you'll have any troubles listening through the entire album without hitting skip.

With that being said, this album may not be for the 14 year old O.C. fans who bought "The Guest," listens to track one and slides the disc right back next to Backstreet Boys "Never Gone." For everyone else, give it a shot! I think you'll be surprised when you find your voice quivering and cracking as you strain to sing along.

Highlights: Raise The Dead, Dropped, Leader, Do The Panic, Geronimo

4.5 stars out of 5

Having heard nothing of these guys other than "California", I picked up this album based on the great review it got in Entertainment Weekly (where it garnered a B+). As a fan of indy old school garage rock in particular, I was very pleased by this constantly moving album. Yes, the retro stylings will feel familiar, but don't toss this album into the generic "garage rock" genre just yet. This album brings a lot of soul to the table, and Phantom Planet's brilliance can not be ignored.

By constantly moving, I mean that the pace and tone changes are subtle enough to keep you listening from beginning to end. Raise the Dead (the track and the album) starts off slow but builds to a crescendo.

Track 2 remakes the old American Breed Lyric of "bend me shape me any way you want me" and turns it into "Tell me that you want me, tell me that you need me, tell me 'cuz I want to know". As with most of this album, they take a genre old enough to need dusting, yet take it in a new and fresh direction.

Track 3 takes you down to the dark side of the album's psyche, which constantly seems to want to come out. While the catchy tune uses a chorus with kids and SOUNDS cheerful, the lyrics are all about what happens when one joins a cult. I'd read there was some inspiration by the Manson band on this album and have to assume this song is the homage.

Do the Panic (track 4) is the most radio friendly tune on this album. Again mixing the concept of darkness and light, the song presents a lighthearted approach to Armageddon. Heavy stuff, but handled with finesse by these amazing rockers. Shucks, the video even features them all coming back to life after getting the chop in some cabin in the woods...

The guitar riffs on "Lost at Sea" at first reminded me of "taking care of business", but the song departs from there and gets addictive by the end. Demon Daughters has a psychedelic sound, but the breaks keep you from tripping. Much like the first track on the album, Geronimo starts slow but builds to a rocking crescendo like you've never felt.

The last three tracks off this album are so catchy that you'll want to hit "repeat" and listen to it all over again. Confess sounds somehow familiar, but breaks its own territory. Leave yourself for Somebody Else isn't quite the standout of the three, but it reminds me so much of the Hives and Franz Ferdinand that I can't help but love the tune. Finally, the album ends with a song that reminds me of the Beatles. I Don't Mind is the final piece of addiction here. This song feels so familiar, and part of me doesn't want to figure out why. This tune is haunting, beautiful, and yet invites this sense of nostalgia I can't place a finger on.

Overall, I recommend this spectacular album to fans of the following bands: Brian Jonestown Massacre, the Hives, The Rolling Stones, Franz Ferdinand, the Beatles, the Out Crowd, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and the Strokes.

Ok, I'm a huge Phantom Planet fan. Been with them since I heard "The Guest". Yes, "California" was the first track I heard, however it was on the radio almost a year before The OC aired so when I say I'm a fan it isn't because of some commercial vehicle they attached themselves to. I even somewhat enjoyed the self-titled album they put out. It was different, but it worked in my opinion to bring together a type of ordered chaos.

With that said, this album is just weird. I'm not really sure where they wanted to go or even where they are heading. "Phantom Planet is Missing" is the closest thing this album resembles, but even that would be pretty innacurate.

It seems that they took a bunch of songs that should have been on "The Guest" and added in some old school flavor to create this amalgom of a sound. It isn't bad by any means, but it is a pretty draastic departure in terms of the sound. Like I said before, the lyrics are actually more along the line of "The Guest" rather than the self-titled and that is a good thing since the self-titled was a little shallow in terms of writing.

Overall though, the album is just really hard to classify and being a fan of their older stuff really doesn't help all that much here. I would honestly recommend this to fans of bands like JET or Panic! At the Disco rather than older Phantom Planet fans. Those folks will probably get more out of it.

There are a few good songs here, but not much to get excited about. I guess this album dropped silently because of that fact. Or maybe it was because they left Epic and went to Fueled by Ramen where they do blend quite well along side the new Panic! album. As much as I would like to Highly Recommend this album, I can't.

Two and a half stars.

This rock band has two prior releases: a self-titled release in 2004 and The Guest in 2002, both bringing you alternative power pop rock that sounded like most of the bands in that genre and time. Now they bring you Raise the Dead. It's in the same vein of rock as they have done with their prior releases. They rock with their certain style of pop-post punk infused songs like "Dropped" (a la The Jam) and "You Can Be My Ship" that adds horns. So if you take the Jam mixed with the Clash, then add some songs that change style slightly you have this record, which is why I was more fond of this release, than their others

The title track Raise the Dead has a nice intro of acoustic guitars giving a more moody vibe with the percussions, then comes together in a big way with Alex Greenwald singing with full force. Then you have "Quarantine" a more mellow type of a song and "Leader" which is a favorite on the album, due to it's more deep, thought provoking lyrics. So if you weren't a fan in the past, they were okay, you might want to check this release out because they do put out way more substantial tracks.

The more I listen to this record the more I feel Phantom Planet is the most chaotic confusing band ever. The guitar solos are awesome on this record compared to their others, the vocals are more slurred than ever before, the guitar riffs are completely different than I've heard from them before and the synths replace their usual sound.

The pace and songwriting of this record reminds me of "The Guest" but the overall sound is like their self-titled.

They seem to want to pack too much into the tunes and at times I forget this is the same band that put out "The Guest" and self-titled.

This being said, this is still a rockin' album but not as good as the ones before it.

Recommended songs: Raise the Dead / Leader / Do The Panic / Demon Daughters / Geronimo / Too Much Too Often /

I bought this CD a year ago because Phantom Planet was going to be the opening band for a concert I was going to. I wasn't expecting to like them, but I wanted to at least be able to sing along a little. I loved this album so much, I ran out and bought all of their other CDs. I like the other ones as well, but they do not hold a candle to this masterpiece of an album.

I purchased this album over one year ago and I'm still listening to it on a regular basis. For me this is by far the most underrated release of 2008. The first four tracks are amazing. Phantom Planet has successfully made three very different, but very good albums. I'm a huge fan of the last self-titled effort, but Raise the Dead is a satisfying addition to the Phantom Planet catalog.

The standout tracks on the album are "I Don't Mind," "Dropped," "Raise the Dead," and "Leader." I also highly recommend the bonus track "Ivory Daggers" which should have been on the standard release of the album. Phantom Planted have entered an "indefinite hiatus" earlier this year but hopefully they keep making music. Alex Greenwald has a knack for writing catchy songs. I can't wait to hear more.

Phantom Planet has once again displayed their excellent musicianship and song crafting abilities in flying colors (Tonal colors literally do fly all over the place here). Overall, Raise the Dead is a much more consistent, and confident album than their last self-titled foray. Drawing from a host of fail-safe influences (ranging from David Bowie, Blur, Led Zeppelin and The Allman Brothers to The Beatles & Talking Heads no less!) there are more ear catching melodies floating in this sauce than can be reasonably be consumed in less than a few listens. Luckily, with the production value of the recording, the lush, smart arrangements and modest 43:12 playing time this turns out to be quite an engaging experience.

Like others have noted before me, this album sees them balancing their saccharine pop tendencies with their wish to live up to the old rock greats grit and grime. With only a few minor exceptions, they have managed to weave all these influences together in a surprising collage of sounds. For anyone who doesn't believe that the boys who wrote "California" could possibly lay down the big beat, check out track 8, "Geronimo" and you may be as impressed as I was with it's giant riffs that feel like a throwback to some of the best heavy rock from the 70s. Elsewhere on the disc, you can hear the quirkiness of Bowie's album "Heroes" creep in, especially on the track "Ship Lost At Sea" which includes a jagged rhythm enhanced with some wild drum machine effects sprinkled on top of the songs circus-like meanderings. "Do The Panic"s main hook has managed to be so infectious that I had to stop listening to the record for a while to clean my brains slate for fear of going insane. I suppose that me being a sucker for a good motown beat may be a factor, but that's besides the point! Definitely one of the highlights on this disc.

I can't really find much to fault on this album, almost all the songs are engaging from start to finish with the only possible exception being "Too Much Too Often" (I must also say this song has finally grown on me and I can now thoroughly enjoy it without much to pick at). What a nice balance they managed to achieve on this record, apparently due to an extensive pre-production process they went through, proof-reading and dropping more than 100 songs to arrive at the golden 12 offered here. Hopefully their recently announced hiatus won't result in them never releasing an album again, yet if this is the way they have to go out, Phantom Planet certainly can feel proud for ending on such a creatively high note and for having such an intriguing recording career, something many artists could only wish and hope for.

*This is really more a 4.5/5.0 to be fair, but I don't feel the 5 mark is too far off.

I have to disagree with other people and say that this album is most excellent. It is a much better than their last self titled album. Their last album lacked any real melodies and wasn't mixed well. This is a much better effort. Their last two cds, including this one, have a MUCH different sound than The Guest. I think people that really liked the guest and were hoping for the same sound, would be disappointed with this cd.

I think that this album brings a new sound and new ideas to a beat-to-death genre. I have to say that this is their most creative effort and comes off really well. Already, this is my favorite album of the year. Each song brings something new and pulls me into the cd even farther. They hit you with some really grungy rock sound, then turn into a poppy upbeat song, then hit you with a nice acoustic light hearted song. It's put together well and there isn't a song that I don't like on this cd. The melodies are very strong and the songs can easily be sung along with (unlike their last cd). I think they have stuck to their sound well. I know people will disagree with me there, but I have to keep saying that this album is excellent and is very upbeat. I would recommend this to anybody that likes the grungy garage sound and just wants a nice upbeat album to listen too.

This would be a great album for many bands but it is simply mediocre for Phantom Planet. After a four year wait I was expecting a truly phenomenal album in line with those previously released (even the self titled effort is brilliant in it's own ways) but Raise the Dead is simply adequate in every sense of the word....for Phantom Planet.

Don't get me wrong, there are some great songs on here---The title track, I Don't Mind, and Ship Lost at Sea are all excellent songs but they just don't hold a flame to the other albums.

Buy this album if you're looking for a great alt/pop/grunge/rock amalgam album. But if you are a die-hard Phantom Planet fan it will ultimately come as a disappointment. They had the right idea by trying to combined the dark sound of the Self Titled album with the pop sensibility of their earlier works...could've been an amazing result, but it just didn't come out quite right.

Here's to hoping they stick around to get it right.