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Originally slated for release in 2004, theatrical goth/glam/punk/alternative rock collective Deadsy third collection of retro-eyeliner anthems is as strangely likeable as it is manipulative and redundant. Phantasmagore wants to be the best Ministry/Sisters of Mercy/T. Rex/metalcore Bauhaus reunion album ever made. Frontman Exeter, who sounds like a cross between Alice in Chains' Layne Staley and Social Distortion captain Mike Ness, lets himself morph in and out of vocal affectations like a C-list Mike Patton, painting "Carrying Over"'s "glammy" pre-chorus with echoes of Ziggy-era Bowie before launching it into a full-on Andrew W.K.-style arena rocker. The band draws a whole lot of comparisons to Gary Numan, and the "Cars" synth-patch that gets peppered throughout Phantasmagore's 11 cuts doesn't help, but for every misstep (the world does not need another big modern rock version of the Rolling Stones "Paint It Black") there's the a piercing ray of campy fun that shines through all of the forced doom and gloom ("Razor Love," "Book of Black Dreams," "Health & Theory") like the mischievous flash of a grin beneath Marc Bolan's top hat. ~ James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide
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