Phantom Planet

Raise The Dead

Fueled By Ramen

Kate Harper (CHARTattack)

04/22/2008 3:46pm

Phantom Planet will unfortunately always be known for two things. The first is that annoying (yet strangely catchy) song of theirs which became the theme to that even more annoying train wreck of a show about pampered, rich white kids from coastal California. The second is former drummer Jason Schwartzman, star of films like Rushmore, who's long since left the band. Raise The Dead proves there's a bit more to the group than both those things. "Geronimo" tries too hard to break out from Phantom Planet's typical garage pop fare and gets caught up in its weird pseudo-prog noodlings. "Dropped," with its weird combination of singer/guitarist Alex Greenwald's Will Sheff-y nasal drawl and Queen-y instrumentation, shouldn't work, but does. "Do The Panic" is a more mature version of the pop found on the band's first three records. While none of these songs are particularly groundbreaking for Greenwald and company, Raise The Dead is a decent update from a band that have been very hit and miss.