Album review: Big Boi and Phantogram, ‘Big Grams’
Truth be told, most people will approach this cross-genre collaboration between Outkast rapper Big Boi and the dream-pop duo Phantogram with a great deal of caution.
Having met and expressed mutual admiration for each other at San Francisco’s Outside Lands Festival in 2011, the unlikely pair recorded a seven-track EP that brings out the best in both parties:
Big Boi hasn’t sounded this engaged in years (even if his rhymes are less than spectacular), while Phantogram comes up with its most accessible melodies yet in songs like “Lights On” and “Fell in the Sun.”
The haunting spell is only broken when guests such as Run the Jewels (“Born To Shine”) and Skrillex (“Drum Machine”) crash the party.
“Big Grams” is set to make its live debut at the Treasure Island Music Festival on Saturday, Oct. 17.