Interview with PHANTOMS OF FUTURE (Part 1 of 2)

It took 25 years to wait for a new album from Phantoms of Future. But it finally happened: “Forever Dark” has been released. To chat about it at length with mastermind Sir Hannes, I meet him one Friday at his record store. It’s quite busy, as I notice when I walk in. I’m led straight to the back, to Hannes’s office. He’s still in the middle of a conversation with a customer, but he invites me in anyway.

Obsessed?

He seems full of energy right away. And so this becomes the first interview I conduct mostly while standing. Because Hannes doesn’t stay in his seat for long: As he talks, he walks animatedly around his office, where, amid vinyl records, posters, and memorabilia, one can discover countless mementos from his decades-long career. Over the next hour, we talk about more than just the latest Phantoms of the Future album, “Forever Dark.” “I’m obsessed with music,” Hannes says during our conversation. In fact, this passion runs like a common thread through his entire story—from the band’s early days through the long hiatus to the surprising return of Phantoms of Future. Among other things, Phantoms of Future toured with Iggy Pop in the mid-1990s. Hannes still vividly remembers how Iggy approached him and said, “Sir Hannes, you’ve got the punk inside.” It’s a moment that will always stay with him.

From Dream to Reality

Phantoms of Future took a break of more than two decades since their last album, “Inside/Outside.” What was the moment when Hannes realized he wanted to revive the band? “For me, the Phantoms of Future chapter was actually over,” Hannes explains. “In 2001, I felt like we’d said everything we could with the band. We’d released seven studio albums and two live albums. On top of that, there were disagreements—which happen in every band. At some point, I just didn’t feel the same way about it anymore.” It would then take 19 years for that feeling to change. “I kept dreaming about being on stage with Phantoms of Future. The dreams became more and more intense. At some point, I stood in front of the mirror and asked myself how that was even supposed to work anymore. But somehow, it was meant to be. It was like a mission sent from above.”

Reforming an old band

Hannes then found himself faced with the task of putting a band back together. “First, I tried to bring the old musicians back on board. That was difficult,” he recalls. “In some cases, it wasn’t possible for health reasons. In others, because they’d long since moved on to other things. Some didn’t want to deal with the stress of life on tour anymore. But little by little, the current lineup took shape. It was a tough road. Anyone else would probably have given up three times over by now.”

Katrin Hemmerling

We’ll continue our interview soon.

Watch the video for “Sun”: