Episode 188: Phantom Handshakes

Look At My Records!

Episode 188 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Matt Sklar and Federica Tassano of Brooklyn indie-pop outfit Phantom Handshakes. The story of this relatively new band is quite unique to our times. After serving as a reliable supporting cast member of several great New York City bands like The Planes and Parrot Dream, Sklar found himself with a significant amount of time on his hands during the early days of the pandemic. He began revisiting some of his own old song ideas and experimenting with new ones, recording demos at home while in isolation. In need of a vocalist, he reached out to Tassano, who is the front person of Brooklyn shoegaze outfit Sooner. She laid down some vocals immediately, and the project released their debut EP, Be Estranged, in July of last year. Sklar and Tassano kept plugging away in 2020 and early 2021, and they followed up their debut EP with their first full-length, No More Summer Songs, in April. Tune in to our interview to hear about how the two first connected, what it was like playing these songs together for the first time in person after already releasing an EP’s worth of material, Tassano’s process behind writing her darker lyrics, and much more. Plus, the duo picked some awesome records from my collection, including choice cuts from Bachelor, The Cranberries, Kyle Forester, and more! You can follow along with their picks via the official playlist for Episode 188.

You can purchase No More Summer Songs on vinyl or cassette via Bandcamp. The album is also available on all streaming platforms. Keep up with the band by following them on Instagram and liking them on Facebook.