Latest Release
- SEP 20, 2024
- 1 Song
- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix · 2009
- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix · 2009
- Alpha Zulu · 2022
- United · 2000
- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix · 2009
- Nightcall - Single · 2024
- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix · 2009
- After Midnight (feat. Clairo) - Single · 2023
- Ti Amo · 2017
- United · 2000
Essential Albums
- Recorded in Berlin and laser-focused, this is the sound of Phoenix finding themselves. Out go the pristinely produced R&B numbers and in come high-grade indie bangers, all garnished with the guttural grunts of Thomas Mars’ newly confident delivery. Chiming clarion-calls (“Napoleon Says”), glam-inflected anthems (“Courtesy Laughs”), rumbling New Wave (“Sometimes In the Fall”); nothing is beyond their grasp. And the melodies are huge enough to hit the back of the biggest festival field imaginable.
- Lean, ebullient, and sparky, the debut from French quartet Phoenix stylishly transported the cool of New York’s early-Noughties rock revival to Paris. Yes, there are intriguing sonic detours—distorted electro medley “Funky Squaredance”, say—but United’s peaks cleave to a formula of garage-forged urgency. “Party Time” brings thrashy riffs to the soiree and “Too Young” (propelled by frontman Thomas Mars’ tumbling English lyrics) still deserves its spot at the indie anthem top table.
Albums
- 2022
- 2022
- 2018
Artist Playlists
- Indie darlings from France take over the world.
- Rock's bad boys mingle with house music's biggest heroes.
- “We're hoping that we will be able to go back to work.”
- Listen to the hits performed on their blockbuster tour.
More To Hear
- Beck and Thomas Mars discuss their collaboration on “Odyssey.”
- Shining a light on Phoenix, plus other French artists.
- Ezra and the Phoenix frontman talk Starbucks and US indie rock.
- A celebration of two musical greats.
More To See
About Phoenix
Living up to their mythic name, Phoenix emerged as a bright, shiny beacon of guitar-pop pleasure amid an otherwise serious-minded era for alternative rock. Indeed, the quartet—who formed in 1997 in Versailles, France—had much less kinship with any grunge, punk, or garage contemporaries than with vanguard ‘70s pop acts like Electric Light Orchestra and 10cc. Likewise, the Gallic cool and youthful energy of early standouts like “Too Young” and “If I Ever Feel Better” pointed to Phoenix’s affinity with friends in the French scene like Daft Punk and Air: the guys from Daft Punk were in Darlin’, a pre-helmets band, with Phoenix guitarist/keyboardist Laurent Brancowitz, while Air enlisted Phoenix frontman Thomas Mars to sing on their score for The Virgin Suicides, a film directed by Mars’ future wife Sofia Coppola. After finding success in Europe with albums like 2004’s winsome Alphabetical, Phoenix broke through in the U.S. with 2009’s Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, an irresistible collection of songs that brimmed with melody and melancholy yet matched the heady rush of EDM bangers, too. On 2017’s Ti Amo, Phoenix again showed their ability to add a rare effervescence to guitar-driven indie pop by embracing Italo disco and a more electronic sound without losing their breezy appeal.
- ORIGIN
- Paris, France
- FORMED
- 1999
- GENRE
- Alternative