Phantom Tails CD Release Where: Hexagon Bar, 2600 27th Ave. S. When: July 9, 9:30 p.m. Cost: Free The name Phantom Tails is either a byproduct of a chin stroking and grass smoking “brainstorming” session (“imagine if a dog’s tail got cut off and he could still feel it, man?”) or a slight misnomer. This psychedelic four-piece does not bring phantom rock ‘n’ roll. They bring the rock, the whole rock and nothing but the rock. The band, all Minneapolitans, play the brand of deranged saloon psychedelia that âÄî joined with Leisure Birds and Velvet Davenport and the suspiciously increasing sightings of women twirling inside hula hoops âÄî constitutes “’60s revival” whispers in our area. “We give a lot of attention to texture and dirtier, grittier things like that. We don’t really hear other bands doing that,” said bassist Dave Dorman “We’ve been playing together for a long time so we’ve pretty much honed the sound that we wanted,” added vocalist/guitarist Orion Treon. Their newest punny-titled, hard-rocking LP “Sounds of the Hunchback Whale” is a far-from-linear slugfest. The 8-bit synth parts pepper over the dancehall electronic drum beats and the hardy basslines, producing the kind of sweaty rock ‘n’ roll that shakes basements and incites head dancing. “”It doesn’t quite reach the point of getting too noisy,” assured beat-maker Logan Kerkhos. The group is innovative and self-sustained with their recording processes. They recorded and mixed the entire thing themselves and even broke into the Social Sciences building because it has “the ultimate stairwell for sound.” “A security guard only came up once and we we’re like ‘Oh it’s for our sound arts project!'” synthist Serge Hernandez said. The release show, or as they are calling it, “unleash show” takes place at the fittingly rugged Hexagon with the hot-as-charcoals hip-hop tandem Bight Club and fellow rockers Fort Wilson Riot and Reckless Ones. To round off the all-encompassing experience will be live painting collective Rogue Citizen. But if that sounds like perfection, check yourself. “There’s always something that could go wrong with our set. Always,” Kerkhos said, alluding only in part to the group’s ’83 Prophet 600 keyboard busting mid-song a couple weekends ago. “That’s rock ‘n’ roll,” Kerkhos said.
Ales, Whales and Phantom Tails
The psychedelic foursome release their debut LP, “The Hunchback Whale” at the Hexagon this Friday.
by Mark Brenden
Published July 7, 2010
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