Phantom Handshakes - Sirens At Golden Hour (2024)

Phantom Handshakes is a lo-fi, dream pop collaboration between Federica Tassano and Matt Sklar who i`m led to believe are based in two different cities, New York and New Orleans. Their latest album `Sirens At Golden Hour` is released this month.

The album opens with `Good Intentions` a dreamy number that explores how, “despite our best intentions, we sometimes fall short of achieving the goals we set out for ourselves, possibly due to bad days, anxiety, or mental and physical issues.” There`s a rolling repetitive rhythmic beat to the warm `It Rains` which has lyrics that seem delightfully reflective.

`Flaws` is much faster paced with reverberating riffs and vocals floated abstractedly atop. I felt there was a lightness to `Words As Bugs` with lyrics That are shared in an almost breathy questioning manner.

`Into the D` is a brief instrumental soundscape with gasping sighs while `Dusk Enchanted` I read, celebrates the mesmerising tranquillity and beauty of dusk, capturing the magic and melancholy of its colours and metaphorical significance. It captures the serene feeling that a stunning sunset brings. A captivating slice of dream pop.

`Quiet Quit` begins with a fairly driven pace before slowing down then resuming its original path. We enter a more darkwave zone with `Apart`, a poignant cry for awareness and a sombre reflection on the urgent need to combat climate change. The tense, constricted rhythm mirrors a sense of claustrophobic dread.

`Stranger`s Ride` is both enchanting and ethereal, a quite illusory listen. I found that `All Around` had a strange tenderness almost sensitivity about it.

The album concludes with `Sirens (Tame)` which portrayed a sort of haziness or fuzziness and appeared to almost hesitate at times as it evolved.

There was much to enjoy with `Sirens At Golden Hour` which will take you into another celestial sphere or dimension if you allow it to. There`s a real vulnerability to Federica`s vocals as the musical accompaniment draws you into its depths.

If you`re a fan of bands such as Cocteau Twins, Dead Can Dance, This Mortal Coil or Mazzy Star, you`ll love Phantom Handshakes.