Phantom Planet is an LA (Los Angeles) based band formed in 1994 with Guitarest Darren Robinson and ex-band member Jason Schwartzman. The band members are Lead Vocals-Alex Greenwald, Bass-Sam Farrar, Guitar-Darren Robinson, and Drums-Jeff Conrad. History Phantom Planet played their first show in 1995 at The Dragonfly in Hollywood. Most of their friends could not attend because they were still in high school, while the Dragonfly only serves customers that are 21 and over. Two of the songs they played are featured on the bonus material of the Chicago, Chicagogoing, Chicagogone DVD. Among the songs performed were "My Friend Liz's Dad" (misprinted as "My Friend Liz Is Dead" on the DVD) and a cover of the Beastie Boys 1994 song "Sabotage".The band is named after the theme song of a 1961 B-movie called The Phantom Planet. They decided on the name in 1994 in a Pizza Hut.[citation needed]Phantom Planet released their debut album, Phantom Planet is Missing in 1997. It is largely a collection of surf-rock inspired tunes reminiscent of The Beach Boys. It was after the band's second album, The Guest in 2002 that the band found mainstream success. It produced the highly popular song, "California". The Guest continued to forge the pop-rock sound the band introduced in their debut.The band's eponymous third album in 2004 marked a significant change in both the band's sound and lineup. Ditching their radio-friendly pop-rock, the band moved towards a more garage rock sound that was popular at the time. Lead singer Alex Greenwald has been very clear that he wants the band to change their sound on almost every record. "I love rock 'n' roll music," Greenwald said. "I especially loved bands, like The Beatles, that changed with every single record they made. That's been our plan from the get-go. We want our records to be like experiments. We want to have fun with the music. People can hear when you're not having fun. They discover you're bored and you're boring."[1] However, in the middle of recording the album, founding member and drummer Jason Schwartzman abruptly left the band to focus on his acting career. He was replaced by Jeff Conrad, who helped record the remainder of the album. Phantom Planet was released to mixed reviews from critics. Shortly after the album's release, guitarist Jacques Brautbar left the band to pursue a career in photography.Raise the Dead Early on in the recording process Phantom Planet's contract with Epic Records expired, which left them searching for a new record label. Soon after this, they signed to Fueled by Ramen, which produces bands such as Fall Out Boy, Paramore, Panic at the Disco, The Hush Sound and The Academy Is....On January 20, 2008, Phantom Planet posted a bulletin on their Myspace page that stated that the album will officially be finished by the January 24, and that the official release date would be April 15, 2008. Fueled By Ramen re-released a teaser trailer and stated that the first single from the album will be a reworking of "Do The Panic".In an interview with RaggedMag, Alex stated that "all bands are kind of their own cult, you know, but we want to take it to a new level. We really like the show Lost, and even though it’s totally fiction, there’s this air of mystery that’s lacking in a lot entertainment these days. I really like mystery in things, and what a little bit of enigma brings out of people and their imaginations...a band is about community, and within itself it is a brotherhood; it’s companionship. But a band can’t be anything without the people to love it. Our goal will be to recruit and befriend as many people as possible with our message."When describing the new record, Alex said that "the next record is a concept record. If the Beatles had Sgt. Pepper's and the Rolling Stones had Their Satanic Majesties Request, we have our “Leader.†We’re concocting it, but at the same time we’re following it."In the same interview, bassist Sam Farrar descibed the new logo. Which is a circular graphic of piano keys that seem to morph into a shirt sleeve with a hand emerging from the cuff. He said, "The idea is that we’re going to sell a lot of these sweatshirts and all the kids will show up in them so the entire audience looks just like us." Alex followed this up by saying that "The "Leader" is the hand. He is the hand that plays the notes we sing to. It’s in the beginning stages still; we’re just chipping away at the stone."The new song "Leader", is about Alex's fictional or metaphorical experience with a cult. For the definitive recording of the song, Phantom Planet brought in children from Kenter Canyon Elementary School to sing the chorus, the video for which can be seen on their YouTube site.The album, titled Raise the Dead, was released as scheduled on April 15, 2008.Other appearances The band has opened for many well-known artists, including Guns N' Roses, Sting, Elvis Costello, Incubus, Guided by Voices, The Zombies, The Hives, American Hi-Fi, Maroon 5, Ludacris and Panic at the Disco.Phantom Planet has appeared on the television programs Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, performing "So I Fall Again", and "American Dreams", playing British rock band The Zombies. They have appeared in the 2005 remake Bad News Bears, playing a band called The Bloodfarts. In 2005, they covered the CSNY track "Our House" for the movie The Chumscrubber. Phantom Planet also performed a cover of Jackson Browne's "Somebody's Baby" for Not Another Teen Movie. "Big Brat" was also introduced in the soundtrack to the video game Driv3r. Alex Greenwald, the band's vocalist, sang a fusion jazz cover of Radiohead's "Just" for the 2006 compilation Exit Music: Songs with Radio Heads. Sam Farrar also contributed to the Hanson album, Underneath, on the song Lost Without Each Other.They will appear on the 2008 Honda Civic Tour, along with labelmates Panic at the Disco and The Hush Sound, and Motion City Soundtrack. info found at www.wikipeda.org
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