Bio
East Los Angeles is a throwback to Los Angeles' early 20th century heritage. The dusty streets of the Monterey Hills on which much of the region sits, are often winding and narrow. At times busy industrial shops sit side-by-side with single-family residences. You might reckognize the media's depiction of East LA which recalls images of lowriders, cholas, and taco trucks. Although all these images are accurate there is also a nocturnal dance and electropop music current (with arguably similar sounds to Daft Punk, early Depeche Mode, and even newer acts like MSTRKRFT) that is contained within backyards and warehouses of East LA and is unseen by the mainstream media.
It happened on a late night liquor store break during the summer of 2009. Electronic DJ/Producer duo Juan Severino, and Viva Libre were working on a licensing project at their East LA based recording studio. As they walked out of their studio they saw a local scenester sporting tight purple pants, bright high top Nikes, and large white headphones unashamedly rocking out as he strutted by them blaring what seemed to be a muffled Justice song. Libre said to Severino “I feel East Los is going through a new adjustment in identity”. Severino replied "I think it's time we form another band".
Severino and Libre had previously collaborated in several bands, a licensing project, an art collective which became infamous for hosting wildly successful underground parties in the LA area, and most recently a recording studio in the heart of East Los Angeles. However, that night Severino and Libre realized that previous artistic and musical collaborations had not allowed them to indulge their electropop, house and freestyle aesthetic.
Paying homage to their underground artistic roots and their East LA home, Phantom Power came to be. Phantom Power are an electronic composer/producer duo, backed by a multimedia troupe named The Fantasmas. Formed in summer of 2009 in East Los Angeles by Severino and Libre, Phantom Power are here to bring the music scene a bit of multimedia melodrama one dance party performance at a time. Phantom Power have just remixed The XX's Shelter, ESG's Dance, and Italian industrial band Antiquark's Shameless. They are also putting the finishing touches on an original single to be released in the Spring of 2012 produced by the eccentric Deviato Mombazi. Severino and Libre can be found DJing parties, clubs, and guerilla projects throughout Southern California.