Josh Carter’s and Sarah Barthel’s rise as “street beat, psych pop” act Phantogram has been rapid, but the longtime friends have followed their own muse with minimal compromise since forming in Greenwich, New York in 2007. With latest album Three scheduled for release in October and Phantogram’s profile about to ascend into the A-list stratosphere, Las Vegas Magazine’s Matt Kelemen spoke with Carter in a phone interview as he and Barthel enjoyed some quiet before the coming career storm.
You just played pre- and post-parties for MTV’s Video Music Awards and your tour starts in Las Vegas at the Brooklyn Bowl Sept. 29. How are you using your time leading up to the tour?
We’re going to be rehearsing and working on different songs from the album with our players, and I guess mentally preparing ourselves for a long tour cycle and hopefully a great, exciting journey on this new album.
Yeah, is seems like you’re on the verge of a new level and a brave new chapter for the band. Does it feel like that? Is there a lot of anticipation?
Yeah, I mean it’s hard to say if it really feels that way. I mean, it’s been a lot of fun, so yeah, we’re definitely really excited about the future. We’ve grown as far as the music and we have more fans. But it’s always been, with the way that we’ve formed and played as a band, very organic and grass roots. We’ve gone from five people at a show to 50 to now tens of thousands. I’m mostly looking forward to gaining new fans and playing new material.
Phantogram has had a very organic evolution. Do you think that will continue to be a hallmark of the band?
I do, I do. We’ve looked at it since we started that it’s not a race. It’s a marathon. We don’t make music for instant fame or fortune or anything like that.
Going to the VMAs must have been a surreal experience. I saw footage of Sarah dancing in the front row during Beyonce, which seems to alienate some fans. Do you feel like you’re about to widen the circle and you’re going to go through that phase where the base feels like, “You’re not our band anymore”?
We listen to all kinds of music. If our fans are disappointed that Sarah’s watching Beyonce at the VMAs maybe they should … it’s music. The choice is not doing music, or make music our way. That’s how we’ve always been.
Your last album Voices reached No. 11 on the Top 200, so the reality that this album will be in the Top Ten is looming. I’d be surprised if the earlier fans didn’t want to ride there with you.
Yeah, well the mentality people have is certainly something I haven’t been exempt from in my past. You become snobbish or whatever. Bands change, or now more people like them, so I don’t like them as much. It’s kind of ridiculous if you think about it. If your best friend got a raise in his job, wouldn’t you be happy for him?
How are audiences responding to the new material so far? You got to play “You're Mine” and “Cruel World” in Chicago (at Lollapalooza) and I think you played “You Don’t Get Me High Anymore,” which for me is the album highlight.
From what I gathered from playing, people seem to really dig it. It’s exciting. It’s really exciting to play new material as well. Our fans like it.
You’ve said before that one of the elements affecting the recording of Voices was the experience of expanding and growing as a live act. Was there a factor like that influencing the recording of Three?
Oh, most definitely. When me made Three, especially after touring with our new player Chris, we modified the recording process as far as who plays what and how we would designate roles instrumentally within the band.
So it’s almost like you’re taking on the role of conductor.
Yeah, that makes sense. I hadn’t really thought about it that way, but yeah, in a way we’re the maestros. We’re lucky to have such talented players with us.
In the earlier albums you can hear influences and inspirations, but they are weaved tightly together. On this album the tapestry being weaved really pushes your identity forward. Does it feel that way to you?
Personally, it doesn’t feel that way, but it makes sense hearing it from somebody else. I think when we created this album it was in the same way we’ve always done it. We make music that we want to hear, and that’s creative and continues to push our boundaries.
You get asked a lot about your songwriting process, but is your radar always up for sampling? Are you always receptive to ideas for sampling or do you have periods when you’re sample-minded and start looking for things?
Oh man, my antennas are always up. It’s kind of weird. That’s what I love about sampling. It’s introduced me to a lot of different music that I might not have been introduced to had I not gotten into making beats and hip-hop music, sampling, stuff like that. Even if it’s a song that I don’t quite like … I’m always listening. You never know what kind of sliver of sound or little nugget you can find.
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