I first heard of Phosphorescent via a newspaper that I picked up at Rough Trade, and I was glad that I did. These guys have an interesting sound that is taking me more into the realm of country than I would normally like, but so did Johnny Cash, and who can argue with that, although it is a bit surprising that they hail from NYC.
I'm not too familiar with the particulars of the band, i.e. how many members, history, etc., but I thought they were worth mentioning because of my singer-songwriter kick that I have been on lately. These guys are kind of like a cross between Bright Eyes, Bon Iver, too many Nashville songwriters to count. Like Bon Iver there is a kind of front porch feel to their tunes. The recordings are all very warm and have a lo-fi quality to them which increases this closeness. If you close your eyes whilst listening to some of their tunes ("Right Now I'm a Roaming" is a good example), you can almost imagine a fair-haired country lass coming out the door with lemonade, and Rover is sleeping in the shade of the old oak tree. The focus of the group is on melodies, most often carried by a chorus of falsettos, but occasionally by a mandolin or banjo, and this is where their strength lies. The lyrics are neither here nor there, but the atmposphere that Phosphorescent creates does almost glow.
I won't recommend this group to everyone, as my wife is probably shaking her head that I included them at all, as she finds the falsetto a bit too much to bear; but if you like country/folk and are interested in finding something new, check 'em out, you just might like them.
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