Phantogram pair tours with new album: Three

Welcoming Phantogram and opener The Range, Fillmore Charlotte found itself with what had to be a near sell out crowd this night. Many in attendance came out ready to celebrate in costume the official/unofficial Halloween night since this show fell on the Saturday before October 31.

Show opener The Range in costume as a skeleton set the evening off with a set full of rhythm and groove that was a perfect setup for later. Showcasing a mix of songs from his album released earlier this year Potential the set carried a good groove that kept the tempo pretty chill.

The Range kept the crowd immersed beyond the beats and gave some insight to his latest album explaining how he pulled the samples from obscure Youtube clips that had very few views and encouraged the crowd to check out the story behind the album. You can too in a documentary profiling both The Range and the artists sampled on Potential here.

While not much for overall theatrics—the stage was decorated with flags spelling out RANGE and with a minimal set-up of nothing more than a table to hold his machines for mixing and knob twisting—it seemed just right for The Range, but this was soon to change with the headliner.

As Phantogram has evolved so has their stage show. When they last visited Charlotte back in 2014 the band utilized a large but refined array of lights to great effect, but this time around they have added many components beyond just lighting.

Taking the stage behind a thin curtain the band was able to broadcast silhouettes with opening track Funeral Pyre, also the opener from their new album Three, and then switching over to abstract visuals for a few remaining songs before dropping the curtain to reveal the full stage. With members Sarah Barthel and Josh Carter joined in support on drums by Chris Carhart and multi-instrumentalist Nicholas Shelestak the set found it’s stride as they continued with songs from their previous albums Voices, and Eyelid Movies.

The bouncing energy between Barthel and Carter drives their performance as much as their sound but they were far from done with the stage show. Returning to the stage after a brief pause wearing a cape it was easy to think that singer Sarah Barthel had simply decided to accessorize, after all she is known for bold fashion choices. However in this instance it was a bit more than a fashion statement. Taking stand upon a riser center stage and with flame graphics broadcasting on the screen behind, smoke began to rise through and out the cape enveloping Barthel as she sang. It was an impressive site to see and was another demonstration of how, as the band has evolved, their attention to detail especially their stage show has grown. The curtain returned near the end of their set as it turned a bit more solemn and the projections seeming more personal. After only a song or two this time the curtain fell once more as they closed out the set on a more up-tempo note and delighted the crowd with their latest single “You Don’t Get Me High Anymore”. The set on whole was proof that Phantogram as a band are on top of their game. Expanding their sound through involvement in side projects like Big Grams and continuing a regular schedule of album releases demonstrates their love for making music and their creative mindset. Seeing the joy they exude on stage you just know they have a lot more up their sleeves in the years to come.