Jellephant & The Phantoms are one the best kept secrets of the Dutch indie scene. The band formed around Jelle Haagsma and featuring members of Paracetamøl and Christopher Walkman is one of the most prolific as well. Always Down is the thirteenth (!) album of the band’s ten year career. Let’s start with the good news. Always Down is an excellent record. Like the previous Jellephant record we covered on ATW, it has a sense of urgency and hunger that you’d normally associate with early career releases. Mix in the skill of veteran musicians and you get an indie rock record that sounds lively and scrappy, but also layered and nuanced.
The sad news? Always Down will be the final full band release for Jellephant & The Phantoms. Thanx for all the tunes, Jelle & The Phantoms! Fortunately, Jelle Haagsma will continue to release music under the Jellephant moniker. We’ll be listening.
Always Down is out now through Brighter Records.
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