{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} {{Infobox album | name = Phantom Head | type = studio | artist = the Scaramanga Six | cover = Phantom Head.jpg|border=yes | alt = | released = 2013 | recorded = | venue = | studio = | genre = * Alternative rock * art rock * psychobilly | length = 54:39 | label = Wrath | producer = Steve Albini | prev_title = Cursed | prev_year = 2011 | next_title = Scenes of Mild Peril – The Scaramanga Six Live in Session 2013–2014 | next_year = 2014 }}
'''''Phantom Head''''' is the seventh album by English rock group the Scaramanga Six.
==Background== {{unreferenced section|date=November 2014}} In 2012, the Scaramanga Six used a crowd-sourcing initiative to raise funds to travel to Chicago and record with Steve Albini. For these sessions, the band expanded to a sextet for the first time since 2002, with the usual quartet of the Morricone brothers, Julia Arnez and Gareth Champion augmented by a second drummer (Steve Gilchrist, who'd played stints with the band on previous occasions) and James Kenosha on piano (who'd previously both produced and drummed for the band)
In keeping with Albini's ''audio verité'' production ethos, the band recorded live to two-track tape. The session involved few overdubs. A follow-up session was recorded later in the year, with further vocals being recorded. The completed ''Phantom Head'' was released in April 2013. The six-piece lineup of the Scaramanga Six played concerts to support the album before reverting to the standard quartet lineup in 2014.
==Reception==
The album was well received by press. In the national media, ''The Sun'' gave ''Phantom Head'' a four-out-of-five rating and said "this self-styled evil pop-group persist in producing great albums that demand loudly – to be heard.″ ''The Quietus'' described it as "another great album from a band that really deserve a much bigger audience."<ref>[http://thequietus.com/articles/12279-scaramanga-six-phantom-head-review Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''The Quietus'']</ref> ''Louder Than War'' wrote "the guitars are tight, the melodies are memorable and effective and the production is spot on."<ref>[http://louderthanwar.com/the-scaramanga-six-phanthom-head-album-review/ Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Louder Than War'']</ref>
''Vibrations'' hailed the album as a release which "must surely rank amongst their finest work to date". ''Splizz Magazine'' noted "dark sounding art rock songs that sound like Nick Cave crossed with The Editors" while ''Pure Rawk'' said: "think bands like Magazine and Wire or even Bowie's Berlin output with a fixation on death, murder and dystopia and you wouldn’t be far off the mark. Unsettling, but brilliant stuff."<ref>[http://www.purerawk.com/2013/04/16/album-review-scaramanga-phantom/ Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Pure Rawk'']{{Dead link|date=February 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref> ''Soundsphere'' wrote that "The Scaramanga Six produce a sound which conveys similarities to The Stranglers at their best and vocals as powerful as Bowie back in the day."<ref>[http://www.soundspheremag.com/reviews/cd/cd-review-the-scaramanga-six-phantom-head/ Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Soundsphere'']</ref>
''Unpeeled'' described ''Phantom Head'' as "a top notch, modern rock record."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.unpeeled.net/albums.html |title=Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Unpeeled'' |access-date=6 November 2014 |archive-date=6 November 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106084100/http://www.unpeeled.net/albums.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> while ''Contact Music'' said "if you like your music somewhat dark and bizarre, Phantom Head has a great deal to offer you."<ref>[http://www.contactmusic.com/album-review/the-scaramanga-six-phantom-head-album-review Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Contact Music'']</ref> and ''Counterfeit Magazine'' said: "from smooth keys to dirty rock guitars, dark soundscapes to edgy punk, there’s something for everyone... Highly recommended."<ref>[http://www.counterfeitmag.co.uk/reviews/the-scaramanga-six-phantom-head-wrath-records/ Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Counterfeit Magazine'']</ref> ''Entertainment Focus'' described the album as "one huge, often sad, dark and angry rant... and it’s something that we love."<ref>[http://www.entertainment-focus.com/music-review/the-scaramanga-six-phantom-head-album-review/ Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Entertainment Focus'']</ref>
''Soundblab'' commented "the album’s energy-levels are frequently manic, and you can positively feel the intelligence of its makers behind the riffs."<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20141106072948/http://soundblab.com/content/content/view/id/5150 Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Soundblab'']}}</ref> ''My Dad Rocks'' said: "It’s this kind of touch and skill, in both delivery and recording, that means this album rates highly amongst the swathe of indie rock offerings out recently."<ref>[http://www.mydadrocks.co.uk/indie-music-reviews/3477-album-review-scaramanga-six-phantom-head-wrath-records-out-now.html Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''My Dad Rocks'']{{dead link|date=March 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Awarding eleven marks out of thirteen, ''Room 13'' congratulated the band on "eclectic brilliance″<ref>[http://www.roomthirteen.com/cd_reviews/13264/Scaramanga_Six__Phantom_Head.html Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Room 13'']</ref> while ''7 Bit Arcade'' concluded "while some bands falter with age, and some just fade away, there’s no such fate for the Morricones & Co., who simply go from strength to strength."<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20130519223045/http://www.7bitarcade.com/music/article/the-scaramanga-six-phantom-head/ Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''7 Bit Arcade'']}}</ref> ''Beat 2 a Chord'' observed "for lovers of punk/rock/metal and everything in between, Scaramanga Six have a clear talent for genre-blending and story-telling throughout their music" and congratulated the band for "continuing to push their boundaries and deliver something fresh years after their formation. Hats off to them."<ref>[http://beat2achord.com/the-scaramanga-six-phantom-head/ Review of ''Phantom Head'' in ''Beat 2 a Chord''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106085835/http://beat2achord.com/the-scaramanga-six-phantom-head/ |date=2014-11-06 }}</ref>
== Track listing == {{tracklist | all_writing = Paul Morricone/Steven Morricone | title1 = I Will Crush Your Heart | length1 = 5:42 | title2 = I Am the Rain | length2 = 4:39 | title3 = The Bristol Butcher | length3 = 4:55 | title4 = Blunt Force Trauma | length4 = 3:40 | title5 = The Spider | length5 = 4:04 | title6 = We Are the Blind | length6 = 5:27 | title7 = They Put You On a Pedestal | length7 = 4:14 | title8 = Twist the Knife | length8 = 3:45 | title9 = Missing | length9 = 4:09 | title10 = The Cardinal | length10 = 3:09 | title11 = It's Just a Matter of Time | length11 = 6:16 | title12 = The Stepford Bands | length12 = 4:39 }}
== Personnel == *Paul Morricone – vocals, guitars, baritone saxophone *Steven Morricone – vocals, bass guitar, tenor saxophone *Julia Arnez– guitars, vocals *James Kenosha – piano *Gareth Champion - drums *Stephen Gilchrist - drums
== References == {{Reflist}}
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Category:2013 albums Category:The Scaramanga Six albums