ALBUM REVIEW: The Phantom Band – Fears Trending

Released: 26th January 2015

Chemikal Underground

Having taken a four-year gap between 2010’s The Wants and Strange Friend earlier this year, The Phantom Band make a much speedier return with their fourth album Fears Trending. Recorded during the same sessions as Strange Friend, it works as a handy companion record that might even eclipse its sibling. If the material of Strange Friend aimed to put a more accessible spin on The Phantom Band’s diverse sound, then Fears Trending is all about embracing their weirder side. The jazzy motorik of Denise Hopper and the ominous pulse of Dark Tape make for a fine mid-album duo, while the spindly rhythms of lead track Tender Castle prove quickly infectious. Fears Trending proves that The Phantom Band at their most free-flowing is them at their best.