Consistently, I find myself wanting to hear tempos and rhythm in music that are hard hitting and loud; alongside, I have days where I want to sing along with a song and experience it fully.  Phantogram’s new album Voices does just that.   It was released this past March and I’ve been listening to it non-stop without tire. 
                My introduction to Phantogram is brand new, or so I thought.  With Voices, Phantogram has developed a substantial album that moved them from out of this background.  The underrating was strong.  This album continues to carry out that repetitive tempo that Phantogram brought forward, but with a much more assertive approach.  It’s, now, coupled with harmonic vocalization that matches the distinct, in-your-face sound.  Sarah Barthel, one of the two that is Phantogram, responds to this undulating yet repetitive sound with vocals to match.
                The track Black Out Days is the perfect example of this back and forth between harmonizing and synthetic sound.  Phantogram creates moments: moments of domination between sounds and moments of uncertainty.  Black Out Days has both.  The vocals blend into the beat, the vocals are the beat.   All of these moments exist in this one song.  That’s not to say that Barthel carries the band with her voice; the Phantogram duo exist together to make a bolder move with mechanical tempos and “street beat” sound.  Voices has moved away from the quiet indie representation of Phantogram and has put them in the foreground; it’s not easily forgettable.