Phantogram live in Vancouver, BC at Venue

* photographed by Chelsea Chernobyl

The duo that make up the ghostly, psychedelic, electro pop/rock group, Phantogram, along with their tour drummer, finished off the last leg of their first full Canadian tour last night with a punchy yet intimate performance at Venue in Vancouver, BC. For people who admittedly sleep in a tour van and eat canned sardines, it was impressive.

Sometime in the middle of the show, guitarist Josh reached down to grab a female fan’s hand and have a few brief words with her as she frantically reached up and ran her infatuated mouth. To my knowledge, and surprise, she was the only one who reached for him during the show. I suppose I missed my chance unfortunately. The handsome bearded fellow didn’t say much of anything last night aside from doing his part in vocals, and gave a somewhat introverted performance. He was in his own space, feeling his music, however, his use of the area made for great stage presence.
 
The audience was involved throughout the show, many were dancing in unique ways I have never witnessed before. However, there was an apparent disconnection at one particular point. As Sarah began the keyboard intro and beautifully soft vocals for “10,000 Claps”, the sound of intoxicated people talking to their friends challenged what was happening on stage. As I turned around from my prime center-front spot, I was almost angered that very few were even looking at the band.
 
Done up like an indie-queen was Sarah, wearing a fitted tailored blazor with sharp shoulders, black riding pant leggings, and sexy heeled boots.  From seeing this beauty before show time, I am confident that her incredible fashion choices were her own. If only she were my older sister so I could’ve stolen from her closet while growing up. Unfortunately, I think she would’ve unintentionally stolen my boyfriends as well. Her jerky, arousing dance moves throughout the night only added to her already mysterious aura. I would be amazed if Josh wasn’t secretly in love with her. The way he looked at her throughout the evening concurred with my theory.
 
Funnily enough, the song that stole the show was their new one, “This Is The Future”. The energy sky-rocketed on stage, from the speakers, and in the audience. It left me with the feeling of wanting more. The fact that they will be releasing a new EP in a few months gives me hope.
 
The crowd, which was made up of an extremely varied group of people, favored the performances of “Mouthful of Diamonds”, which was played third in the set, and “When I’m Small”, which came near the end. Considering the majority of the audience didn’t strike me as die hard fans, it was understandable that most only knew the lyrics to these two songs. This allowed our ears to have the hearing to appreciate the bones of the other songs that were played.
 
The hauntingly high energy beats of Phantogram made for an engaging performance. One that progressed from the start to where they finished. As I left the venue, I started to feel somewhat numb; not my body, but that emotionally numb state where you’re not sure how you feel. Maybe it was the lyrics. All I know is that I’d love to see them play in an excessively small venue someday. An acoustic set in a seated auditorium would sooth this craving, I’m sure. Here’s to hoping.