Phantom Planet
Spaceland, 3/29/05

Another late night at Spaceland and I’m watching another frontman called Alex -- this time the Alex in question belongs to Phantom Planet, you know, the OC band.  I hate calling them that but it seems they may have become trapped by the “theme song” syndrome, consequently it seems as though a sizable part of the crowd just wants to hear this song then leave, some actually do. The quality I enjoy the most about a PP show is their moments of disheveled energy, where things sound rough and above all, live. Tonight though, they take disheveled to a whole other level, in many ways I feel like I’m witnessing a rehearsal.  Alex works hard, nowadays he’s the lead axeman as well as the lead voice.  Sound problems meant you could hardly hear the rhythm guitar of Darren and the gig was plagued with weird pops and microphone gremlins, though it was cool to see and hear how Sam (the bass player) locks it all down while adding some nice flourishes.

Mostly concentrating on their criminally overlooked self-titled third album meant that we got "Making a Killing", "Big Brat", and a stunning version of "By the Bed". My high point of the night was hearing the gorgeous "Wishing Well" and the way it washed into brand new song "Geronimo" which, as we speak, I am trying in vain to find on Limewire.  They then surprised everyone with a punked up version of Devo’s "Uncontrollable Urge".  After the guys left the stage Alex and drummer Jeff returned to play old song "Galleria" on a teeny handheld Casio synth, even inviting a few fans onstage to help him out with the words.  It was a strange ending to a strange gig, but the majority of people left happy.  -Glen

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