I first stumbled upon Phantom Planet while waiting to get my haircut in a pretentious San Diego spa, near highway 8, during my freshman year of college. While waiting in the lobby for my albino - Masonic hair stylist (that’s a story for another time) I flipped through an artsy ‘hair book’ featuring new LA bands. One of the highlighted bands was Phantom Planet. The lead singer, Alex Greenwald, was quoted saying “one looks best with the same hairstyle as they had when they were 5 years old.” This rule has stuck with me to this day.

Since my initial acquaintance with Phantom Planet, and the self-titled album ‘Phantom Planet‘ released in 2004, I’ve caught many of their shows - from the Troubadour in LA to outdoor festivals in San Diego, Indio and Seattle to a venue called Paradise Rock Club in Boston. At every show they were consistently good; poppy, refreshing and didn’t take themselves too seriously.

Phantom Planet recently parted ways with their old label, Epic, and signed with Fueled by Ramen records (home to Fall Out Boy and Panic at the Disco); and recently released their new album titled ‘Raise The Dead.’ The songs ‘Do the Panic’, ‘Leader’ and ‘Raise the Dead’ are sure to make a great soundtrack to the summer.

I had a chance to sit down with Jeff Conrad, the drummer of Phantom Planet, to discuss his thoughts on the new label, album, touring, songs and most importantly 5 year old hair cuts . Below are excerpts from our conversation….

Me: What are your thoughts on the new label?

Jeff: Working with Fueled by Ramen is a dream.
Before we signed with them, we seriously considered
putting out the record on our own - I’m so glad we didn’t.
Fueled by Ramen brought an enthusiasm
that we had been lacking from our label in the past,
and an intelligence in terms of marketing and reaching
our fans. On top of that, they’re actually cool people
and I enjoy hanging out with them. Like I said, it’s a dream.

Me: What inspired the title of the new album?

Jeff: Raise the Dead was a song that Alex wrote about halfway
through the recording process that the band immediately
embraced. It felt like a call to arms
when we needed it the most. I think we were a little lost
and this song united us and brought focus to the album.

Me: What do you most look forward to when on tour?

Jeff: On tour, I look forward to little moments. Meeting a new fan
that is 7 years old and this is their first concert.
The possibility that you’ve just made a fan for life
is an exciting moment, the birth of a relationship. We’ve
been meeting our fans every night on this tour which keeps us centered, reminds you why you do this night after night.

Me: What’s your favorite song on the new album?

Jeff: My favorite song on the new album…it’s hard to choose.
Can I say 2? Leader is one - it’s written from the perspective
of a cult leader. The lyrics
have a lot of leeway, so it’s open to interpretation - so one
time you can hear it in a positive light, the next time you
can hear dark undertones - I like songs like that, with
different layers of meaning, it makes you want to listen again.
I also love “Leave Yourself For Somebody Else” - it feels
like an old 60’s song, like “Ruby Tuesday” played by the Who.
I knew as soon as Alex wrote this song that it was my chance to
do my best Keith Moon impersonation on the drums. It’s
a really fun song for me to play.

Me: Do you sport the same haircut as you did when you were 5 years old?

Jeff: Sadly, I do not sport the same haircut that I did as a kid…but maybe I should go back to it. I believe I had a bowl cut.
I think I can actually remember my Mom getting the bowl out.
Why do I feel like this makes me a child of the 60’s?
Well, who knows maybe the bowl cut will come back in style.
I suppose it’s sort of close to a Beatles haircut.
I do get people occasionally telling me I look like a Beatle.
Actually sometimes they say I look like “The Beatles”
as in, you look like all of the Beatles put together.
I wish.

No matter where you are (in the U.S. and Canada that is), you can see Phantom Planet live! Comprised of drummer Jeff Conrad, guitarist Darren Robinson, bassist Sam Farrar and lead singer Alex Greenwald the band will be touring on the Honda Civic Tour playing with Panic at the Disco, Motion City Soundtrack and The Hush Sound. Go check them out and make sure to rock your 5 year old hairstyle (or bowl cut), keep it simple and enjoy their timeless sound…I’m sure they wouldn’t want it any other way.

Phantom Planet - Raise The Dead

Phantom Planet - Leader

Phantom Planet - Phantom Planet
Phantom Planet - Raise The Dead