This album served as a bit of an eye-opener for me so my opinion of it may be a bit bias. When I first got it, I was more of a hip hop, neo soul, jazz fusion kind of guy so I was caught off guard when Phantom Punch grabbed me upon first listen and never let me go ... even to this day.
Since then, I've opened up my eyes to many more rock and indie acts, such as MGMT, Liam Finn and As Tall As Lions. And not to mention many of Sondre's earlier releases. However, while those albums are all great in their own rights, this album still holds an utmost special place in my heart. Just listen no further than the title track, "Phantom Punch" to see the why: it's exciting, not over processed and the chorus is beyond catchy and memorable. Moreover, it seems Sondre understands the concept of too much of a good thing, so the songs are nicely varied and cover a wide expanse of musical territories.
What I also love about this album and about Sondre himself is that his singing isn't overdone. Sondre doesn't have the strongest voice but he works comfortably in his range. Particularly since I come from more of a soul music background, there is nothing more tragic to my ears than a singer screeching and wailing on in a manner that doesn't suit his/her voice.
Phantom Punch, thank you for opening my eyes to new musical horizons!
I love Sondre Lerche. He's one of my favorite artists, but I just don't find this album to be as charming as Faces Down, Two Way Monologue, or Dan in Real Life.
I loved this CD. I had never heard of Sondre Lerche before this, but I ended up buying several of his CDs. This is my favorite one, although I like Heartbeat Radio a lot as well. I enjoy his lyrics and most of the songs are great fun to listen to and sing along with. I would highly recommend this to someone who wants to try something new and different in pop/light rock.