Album Review: Phantom – Smoke and Mirrors
Phantom are Johnny Martin and Canadian former journalist and MusiquePlus TV presenter Elsie Martins. An experimental sonic landscape, made up of a mixture of the usual organs, pianos, drums and everyday sounds like ringing bells, footsteps and flapping letterboxes, Smoke and Mirrors is their debut album which includes the earlier single release ‘Great Pretender’.
Smoke and Mirrors is split into two 22 minute parts, the first containing 4 tracks and the second 5 tracks, all merging seamlessly into one. It’s not until second track ‘We Float’, which is ushered in with ringing bells, that we hear Elsie’s vocals, slightly reminiscent of Hazel O’Connor, which complements the atmospheric soundtrack perfectly. Of the two parts, the tracks on part two are slightly more conventional, with current single ‘Voodoo Romantic’ probably being most accessible track on the album.
Kicking against convention (and potential profit) Phantom have made the unusual decision to make Smoke and Mirrors available as a download from Itunes and 7Digital for a ridiculously cheap £1.79. An unusual but compelling album, Smoke & Mirrors is at times lush, atmospheric and intense and occasionally slightly disturbing. To get the most out of this I’d recommend listening with headphones in a darkened room! 4/5
www.myspace.com/thisisphantomuk
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