I got hooked on Phantogram after hearing their third album, Three. Sarah’s vocal melodies and Josh’s penchant for old school hip hop beats create this mash up that is unlike anything I had heard before. Ceremony is the next iteration of that sound.

​I’ll be honest, first listen of this album didn’t really click for me. The single, Into Happiness, didn’t resonate and I was afraid that I wasn’t going to like the direction they were headed. But, this album for me was a case of giving it a few more listens and then it clicked. You can hear the growth of the band both musically and lyrically. This is a break up album—or at least parts of it are. At some point between their previous album and this one, Sarah split with her long time boyfriend Shawn White (yes, that Shawn White). Tracks like Pedestal, Love Me Now, Mister Impossible and Glowing give hints towards what went wrong.

The first time I heard the guitar solo on Love Me Now I thought, wow, that sounds so much like solos from Siamese Dream, I wonder if Billy Corgan is involved... look it up and sure enough Billy Corgan is a co-writer on two tracks, and plays the guitar solo on Love Me Now. ​I love the intersection of alternative rock and hip-hop that Phantogram seems to live in. It’s always a fresh sound, and I can’t wait for this band to continue to grow and produce great music.