Thoughts are fleeting. The rich narrative that builds in my head during any given show is usually gone within 24 hours. Like spring snow melting down to nothing more than wet spots reflecting the sun, the details of any given performance dissolve down to nothing more than flashing lights and snippets of feelings that have long since past. That is why it was so disappointing when this blog experienced an outage the day after Phantogram sold-out the Ogden Theatre. Almost a week was lost before I could get things working again, and by that point I figured I wouldn’t have anything left to say about this show, but as I sat down to review The Knife show from last night, I realized that I couldn’t move on until I’d at least tried to get something down about what will likely be one of the best shows of the year.

Phantogram are a duo from Greenwich, New York made up of Sarah Barthel and Josh Carter. They have been creating their own style of synthpop for almost seven years now, but it wasn’t until a couple years ago when a friend of mine introduced me to them after seeing them perform at a music festival in Iceland. I gave them a shot back then, but Eyelid Movies came across as a less intense Sleigh Bells and less sexy The xx — leaving me a little unimpressed. My apathy toward their music caused me to decline an offer to see them at the Gothic Theatre last year. The show was the same day as the Great American Beer Festival and I figured I wouldn’t be in any shape to catch their set anyway. As it turns out, I was right. Future Islands were added to the bill late in the game and there was no way I was going to miss seeing Sam in action, so I bought tickets. I attended GABF, went home and drank more instead of napping, had my wife drive us to the show, kept it together through Future Island’s incredible set, and then hit a wall…

All I remember about Phantogram’s set that night was volume and lights. They were so much louder than I had expected them to be. The mellow sounds on their album were amplified into something almost unrecognizable — in a good way. The pulsating strobe lights brought to mind a Crystal Castles show, but the music was much more melodic and inviting. But at the end of the day, I had crossed the line of controlled intoxication and I was unable to focus on the performance. I don’t remember leaving the show, and the details are fuzzy past Future Island’s set, but I do remember waking up the next morning with a level of regret buried under a debilitating headache. I remembered just enough to know that I had missed out on something special.

So it was, seven months later, that I found myself in a much better state-of-mind at the Ogden Theatre, waiting for Barthel and Carter to help me repair those alcoholic cracks in my short-term memory. I’d be lying if I said my anticipation wasn’t making me a little nervous though. I knew it would be a good show (how else could the band sell out two shows within months of each other), but even with the release of Voices, I wasn’t sold on their recorded material. But my nerves were set at ease (and then turned inside out) as Phantogram (as a full band) took the stage and went directly into “Nothing But Trouble”. The familiar strobe lights and venue-shaking volume were there, but there was a personality and preciseness to the performance that was lost on me last time around. Barthel’s voice was every bit as powerful as Alexis Krauss, but the attraction came from her level of control, rather than her love of chaos. It’s not often that I see a vocalist, or a band, achieve a level of perfection without losing personality. With so many moving parts on that stage, it was nothing less than amazing to see how razor-sharp they kept everything, while still allowing for improvisation when it came to audience engagement.

I realize I am using extremely broad strokes to paint this picture, but Phantogram are a band that have to be seen live to really appreciate. I know there are plenty of people who enjoy their albums, and I have to say I do enjoy them more after seeing the songs performed, but the live experience is really the way to go. The only negative thing I can say about this show is that Carter should stick to the guitar. His vocals are pretty generic, and when you have Barthel’s voice at your disposal, it’s a disservice to ever put it on the back burner.

There was a whole group of us that attended the show last week — longtime fans of the band, people who had never heard them, and those on the fence — and we all left the venue with the same satisfaction. The set was perfectly balanced with dance tracks, bass-heavy bangers, chill sessions and straight-up electro-rock songs. It was a performance worthy of its sold-out status. I’m guessing that even those who paid a premium for scalper tickets had no regrets about the night…as long as they weren’t too intoxicated to remember it.

Setlist:
Intro
Nothing But Trouble
Running From The Cops
As Far As I Can See
Black Out Days
Turning Into Stone
Bad Dreams
Don’t Move
The Day You Died
Bill Murray
I Don’t Blame You
Fall in Love
Howling At The Moon
When I’m Small

Mouthful of Diamonds
Celebrating Nothing
Futuristic Casket