Phantom Band - 1984 - Nowhere

Phantom Band

1984

Nowhere

01. Loading Zone 3:50

02. Planned Obsolescence 1:06

03. Mindprobe 2:18

04. Morning Alarm 2:00

05. Weird Love 2:46

06. Neon Man 3:49

07. Positive Day 3:00

08. Nervous Breakdown 4:57

09. The Party 1:31

10. Georgethe Spacemonster 2:30

11. This Is The Rule 2:29

12. Cricket Talk 3:38

13. Nowhere 3:07

Drums – Jaki Liebezeit

Engineer – Holger Czukay

Guitar – Dominik von Senge

Keyboards – Helmut Zerlett

Voice – Sheldon Ancel

Right out of the '70s, Can drummer Jaki Liebezeit formed a new band, Phantom Band, obviously to carry on where a creativity-depleted Can had left. Yes, the group's eponymous debut, released in 1980, has the "Krautrock goes worldbeat in the cold wave" feel found on Can's last two or three records. Phantom Band would make three albums, and this first one is the weakest of them, mostly due to the presence of bassist/singer Rosko Gee. Once a member of Traffic, Gee contributes the blandest pop songs on the album, and his slightly androgynous vocals simply don't fit the dub-ish mood of the music -- however, his bass work does. For this project, Liebezeit recruited (in Cologne) percussionist Olek Gelba, keyboardist Helmut Zerlett, and guitarist Dominik von Senger. Can alumnus Holger Czukay makes an appearance on horn. The drums take center stage; it is obvious that each song has been assigned a carefully designed beat, and Liebezeit is exploring most of his interests in music here, from repetitive Krautrock pummeling to complex Afro-funk and reggae-dub patterns. The arrangements are dark but clear-cut. Liebezeit's songs are the most interesting, from the tense "No More Fooling" (although Gee's falsetto mars it) to the funky vamp of "Absolutely Straight." Zerlett also contributes strong compositions in the spacy "Pulsar" and "I'm the One," the most expansive song of the set at six minutes. The two songs penned by Gee, each opening an LP side, have forgettable melodies and mediocre lyrics (they are also the most dated tracks production-wise). Despite Liebezeit's long and strong experience by 1980, Phantom Band bears all the signs of a debut album by a band that still hasn't gelled. Can fans who diss the group's final albums will definitely not like this one. In any case, skip forward to the group's second effort, Freedom of Speech, a much stronger proposition recorded after Gee's departure.

A combination of spacey electro-pop, dub and dark avant-rock influences, Phantom Band is one of the most authentically weird, essential and yet surprisingly overlooked organisms orbiting the Can universe. This is the third and final album from the project, masterminded by Can drummer Jaki Liebezeit.

I totally dig this album, especially as it features 'Helmut Zerlett' who in his time, has produced some great music on the german ambient label; Recycle Or Die!...projects such as; '9 dream' & 'Baked Beans' just to name a few...are undeniably brilliant...though this project,(phantom band) i feel is targeted at the wrong audience, as people who enjoy 'CAN' probably arent going to get this release at all, however if your from the other side of the genre fence, and have an appreciation for german avant/amb electronica, then the 'Phantom Band' is well worth checking out!