Sondre Lerche threw his fans for a loop with his last record, the jazzy, low-key Duper Sessions. While it was suitably classy and sophisticated, those who had come to love his snappy and intelligent pop songs were left in the lurch. Phantom Punch marks a return to form, but with some interesting alterations. The record's not as arranged as Two Way Monologue, with less instrumentation on hand and no traces of the soft rock (strings, lush vocal harmonies) that softened that album's edges to great effect. For the most part, it's also louder than previous efforts, with spiky guitars pushed to the fore and Lerche almost snarling out his lyrics at times. While this could have been a recipe for disaster, with the songs sounding forced or phony as Lerche strained to "rock out," instead Phantom Punch is a very successful blend of brains and brawn. Part of this is down to Lerche and his band, the Faces Down, knowing exactly what to play at all times; part of it is down to Lerche's songwriting and arranging skill. The album is laid beginning to end with tough, smart, and hooky songs that don't fade on repeated airings, instant classics like "John Let Me Go" and "Say It All" that are like a blueprint for how to construct a good pop song -- interesting chord changes, subtle shifts in dynamics, witty and wistful lyrics, a vocal that's both forceful and nimble, and a rock-solid chorus with a singalong hook. Just about every song on the album follows a rough approximation of this format, which means they are all gems. Only the sweet acoustic allad "Tragic Mirror" and the album-ending "Happy Birthday Girl" deviate from the formula; the latter is an epic-length /p>
oise allad that sounds out of place on the album but also packs a sonic and emotional punch. It also displays Lerche's range; much like his recent tour mate Elvis Costello, you get the feeling that he could do just about anything on his next release and make it work. As for Phantom Punch, it lays down incontrovertible proof that Sondre Lerche can make a convincing and exciting straight-ahead modern ock record.
After a long dry spell, I've started attending live shows again. Not sure why I fell out of the habit of going ... could be any of laziness, cold Canadian winters, moving to Toronto and not being sure what the music scene was like ... I think it's mostly laziness and complacency though. Thankfully I've rediscovered the magic of the live show and have been to 3 gigs recently with a couple more...
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I think it's safe to say Amoeba was a success.Thurston Moore - Psychic HeartsPortugal. The Man - It's Complicated Being a WizardMotion City Soundtrack - Commit This To MemoryBen Folds - Supersunnyspeedgraphic, the lpSome Girls - The DNA Will Have It's SaySonic Youth - The Destroyed Room!!! - Louden Up NowWilly Mason - Where the Humans EatCKY - An Answer Can Be FoundArcade Fire - Neon BibleThund...
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Man, why is it that Grace Note has _Phantom Punch_, the new **Sondre Lerche** album listed under various artist. Someone needs up update that database right quick.Anyhooo, yeah this album. Slated for release February 6, 2007, is crazy great. Leaked to the internet by someone I know, I've had some good times listening to this for over a month now.Here's the thing about this album. It is young. Y...
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Phantom Punch is insanely catchy. And the video for it is cute, but not just because it's a neat concept. It's because one of his guitarists (I've unfortunately forgotten his name!) has this guitar in the video that I desperately want, even though I wouldn't know how to use it at all:
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I just got back from Italia. I love to travel. I've spent the last few years moving and traveling around. I believe we learn me about ourselves, the world we live in and life in general when we travel abroad. The thing I remember most about my travels is the music that connects the places that I've been.In Italia, we took lots of cabs, trains, plans and boats and since I get serious bouts of mo...
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I think it's safe to say Amoeba was a success.Thurston Moore - Psychic HeartsPortugal. The Man - It's Complicated Being a WizardMotion City Soundtrack - Commit This To MemoryBen Folds - Supersunnyspeedgraphic, the lpSome Girls - The DNA Will Have It's SaySonic Youth - The Destroyed Room!!! - Louden Up NowWilly Mason - Where the Humans EatCKY - An Answer Can Be FoundArcade Fire - Neon BibleThund...
More >
After a long dry spell, I've started attending live shows again. Not sure why I fell out of the habit of going ... could be any of laziness, cold Canadian winters, moving to Toronto and not being sure what the music scene was like ... I think it's mostly laziness and complacency though. Thankfully I've rediscovered the magic of the live show and have been to 3 gigs recently with a couple more...
More >
Man, why is it that Grace Note has _Phantom Punch_, the new **Sondre Lerche** album listed under various artist. Someone needs up update that database right quick.Anyhooo, yeah this album. Slated for release February 6, 2007, is crazy great. Leaked to the internet by someone I know, I've had some good times listening to this for over a month now.Here's the thing about this album. It is young. Y...
More >
Phantom Punch is insanely catchy. And the video for it is cute, but not just because it's a neat concept. It's because one of his guitarists (I've unfortunately forgotten his name!) has this guitar in the video that I desperately want, even though I wouldn't know how to use it at all:
More >
| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Airport Taxi Reception |
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| 2 The Tape |
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| 3 Say It All |
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| 4 Phantom Punch |
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| 5 Tragic Mirror |
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| 6 Face the Blood |
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| 7 John, Let Me Go |
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| 8 Well Well Well |
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| 9 After All |
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| 10 She's Fantastic |
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| 11 Happy Birthday Girl |
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 "Phantom Punch")
