Phoenix
It’s safe to say that French pop artists Phoenix had a good year. In 2009, they had sold out concerts worldwide, songs on movie trailers and commercials galore, performances on every single late night TV show (including the ever-prestigious SNL spot), over 200K albums sold, and a Grammy nod just for kicks, all on the back of their fourth album, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. It may seem a bit presumptuous for Phoenix to insert their name into that of history’s most famous classical composer and child prodigy, but the band has proved they can live up to even the highest of expectations. Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is what all pop albums should aspire to, a collection of brilliantly engaging songs with gloriously crisp production and never any shortage of hooks.
Within the first few seconds of the opening track, “Lisztomania”, you’re immersed in the deliriously exciting world of Phoenix’s vibrant, full-bodied compositions and ultra-tight performances. The track is everything a good pop song should be, dazzling, spirited, and astonishingly catchy. Every aspect of this song, the vivacious drumming, the crisp production, the irresistible guitar, and Thomas Mars electrifying vocals all come together to make something extraordinary (and that isn’t even to mention that beyond amazing “it’s showtime” bridge).
The video for “Lisztomania” features the band romping about Bayreuth, Germany following the footsteps of the song’s namesake, Frank Liszt. The retro-cool clip does a great job of capturing the nostalgia and timelessness of the remarkable track and nicely parallels the hysterical fame achieved by the mid-19th century composer to the thrill of a modern rock band. Like all the songs on this album, this is one that deserves to be poured over, squeezing out all the rich pop goodness. One hopes that like the classical artists of which the band takes it’s inspiration, Phoenix will be remembered for years to come for their exceptional contributions to pop music.
