Pressing “play” on new London band Phantom feels like unleashing a ghost into the room. Elsie Martins, lead singer of the trio, possesses probably one of the most powerful voices in music. She echoes above expertly-penned tracks, and seems like she’d be at home bouncing these songs off the walls of a candlelit cathedral. Indeed, it seems like Phantom were influenced in equal measure by The Smiths and the city they live in.
Debut single “The Great Pretender” showcases an energetic and vibrant band, pushing forward Martins’ gothic voice, and resulting in a sound which both pulls the listener apart and excels in its own originality. On “We Float”, the signature ghostly vocals swim in and out above a steady, thumping heartbeat of sound; the kind of pulse you might experience were you to suffer the misfortune of finding a body floating in the Thames on a misty winter morning. “Fever”, meanwhile, presents a haunting moral message about the capital’s greedy residents. Again, the Kate Bush-esque vocals have a quality of fragility and vulnerability when set against their musical strength, until she fires out the chorus with absolute ferocity, leaving the listener completely spellbound.
Fans of The Strokes or Sons and Daughters should be more than interested in this force from London; in fact, I recommend this band to anyone who reminisces of a time when finding new genres was a unique, and devastating, experience.
Phantom’s first single, “The Great Pretender” (and the b-side “Voodoo Romantic”) are released on Parallax Sounds on 28th September.
Track // “We Float” (mp3)
Articles our internet goblins think may interest you...
Joni Langdale is an Edinburgh-based graphic design student. 
Recent Comments