Phoenix is a French rock band from Versailles, formed in 1995. Their line-up, which has remained unchanged since their formation, comprises Thomas Mars (lead vocals, drums, percussion), Deck d'Arcy (bass, keyboards, backing vocals), Christian Mazzalai (guitar, backing vocals) and Laurent Brancowitz (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals). Thomas Hedlund has been the band's session and live drummer since 2005.
The band's sound has been primarily described as indie pop, synth-pop, pop rock, and new wave. They have released seven studio albums, to date, with their fourth album, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, becoming a major breakthrough success in 2009. Featuring the singles "1901" and "Lisztomania", the album won a Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album. With the release of the band's fifth album, Bankrupt! (2013), the band headlined Coachella and Primavera Sound. The album was a commercial success, debuting at number 3 on the French Albums Chart and number 4 on the Billboard 200.
The band's Italo disco-influenced sixth studio album, Ti Amo, was released in 2017 and featured songs that celebrated the band's "European, Latin roots". The band's seventh studio album, Alpha Zulu (2022), was recorded within the Louvre Palace during the COVID-19 pandemic, and was inspired by the death of the band's longtime producer, friend and mentor Philippe Zdar.
The band performed at the 2024 Summer Olympics closing ceremony held at the Stade de France in Paris, France. They performed the 2010 track "Nightcall" in collaboration with French electronic pop artist Kavinsky and Belgian singer Angèle as well as "Tonight" with Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig. Phoenix formed the supergroup UFOs with Braxe + Falcon, which released their debut single "UFO" in 2025.
History Formation and early years Phoenix was conceived in the 1990s when vocalist Thomas Mars, bassist Deck d'Arcy, and guitarist Chris Mazzalai, who were all friends in school, started playing together as a "garage band" based out of Mars's house in Versailles. In 1995, Laurent Brancowitz, Mazzalai's older brother, permanently joined the band on guitar after the end of Darlin', a short-lived band that Brancowitz had formed with Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, who would later form electronic duo Daft Punk. Two years later the band took on the name Phoenix and pressed 500 copies of a single on their own label, Ghettoblaster. Shortly after, they were signed to the Paris-based Source Records. Phoenix quickly became well acquainted with labelmates Air when they acted as their backing band on several UK TV appearances.
United, Alphabetical, and Live! Thirty Days Ago (2000–2004) Phoenix began releasing singles in 1999, the first of these being "Heatwave" and "Party Time", the latter of which would eventually appear on their debut album, United. The single "Too Young" was released on 22 May 2000, along with remixes of the track by Zoot Woman and Le Knight Club. "Too Young" was the band's first single to chart, reaching No. 97 in France and No. 148 in the UK. The band's debut album, United, was released on 12 June 2000. It featured the singles "Party Time" and "Too Young", with "If I Ever Feel Better" being announced as the third single from the album on 22 January 2001, and charting in several countries, reaching No. 12 in France and No. 4 in Italy. United received positive reviews, although the band did not reach mainstream success. "Too Young" was included on the soundtrack for the movie Lost in Translation (which was directed by Mars' future wife, Sofia Coppola), as well as in the movie Shallow Hal.
Shortly after the release of United, Phoenix began work on a second album, recording in 2003 and 2004 and releasing the singles "Run Run Run" and "Everything Is Everything" in 2004. The band's second album, Alphabetical, was released on 22 March 2004 and saw the band reach more mainstream success, with both singles reaching some alternative rock airplay charts. French fashion designer Hedi Slimane commissioned a special mix of their song "Victim of the Crime", taken from Alphabetical, as the soundtrack to one of his runway shows for Dior Homme.
Following Alphabetical, the band toured three continents, playing 150 dates. This tour was followed up with a live album, Live! Thirty Days Ago, released only thirty days after the end of the tour.
It's Never Been Like That and Kitsuné Tabloid (2005–2009) After their Alphabetical tour, Phoenix spent time in Berlin during the summer of 2005, making use of Planet Roc Studio to produce their third album. On 8 May 2006, the band released the lead single from the album, titled "Long Distance Call". American band Paramore would go on to perform a cover of the song live on Taratata, a French TV show. Phoenix's third studio album, titled It's Never Been Like That, was released on 15 May 2006. It was the first to feature Thomas Hedlund on drums.
To promote the release of the album, Phoenix toured the United States and Europe in 2006. The album charted in several countries, reaching even greater success than Alphabetical, although it still did not chart in much of North America. It's Never Been Like That was re-released in Mexico later that year, with the so-called "tour edition" featuring four bonus tracks recorded live in Oslo from the tour. On 11 September 2006, the track "Consolation Prizes" was announced to be the second single from It's Never Been Like That.
Phoenix curated a compilation album for French electronic music record and fashion label Kitsuné. It was released on 23 March 2009, and includes music by Elvis Costello, Roxy Music, Kiss, Lou Reed and others.
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (2009–2011) In early 2009, around the time of the release of the Phoenix's compilation album for Kitsuné, it was announced that the band would be returning with a new album titled Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, which would be released on 25 May 2009. The album was recorded in Paris, and was co-produced and mixed by Philippe Zdar of Cassius. "1901", a tribute to early Paris, was released on 23 February 2009 on the band's website as a free download. Due to extremely positive reviews, the song was then issued as a retail single and aired for the first time on Australian radio station Triple J. In June 2009, after the release of the album, Phoenix first appeared on the cover of the 62nd issue of The FADER publication. As the album's popularity rapidly grew, "Lisztomania" and "Lasso" were issued as the second and third singles from Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix.
As it became apparent that "1901" was Phoenix's biggest success yet, the song was performed live on several TV shows and began to appear everywhere. "1901" was featured in the US during Super Bowl XLV in a Green Bay Packers montage, and was also performed on Saturday Night Live along with "Too Young" and "Lisztomania" on 4 April.Phoenix Live performing Saturday Night in New York video Phoenix also performed "Lisztomania" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, "Girlfriend" on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and "1901" on the Late Show with David Letterman, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien.
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix won Best Alternative Music Album at the 2009 Grammy Awards on 31 January 2010. Shortly afterwards, "1901" hit No. 1 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart. The album was the first Phoenix album to be certified gold and appeared on numerous "Best of" lists at the end of 2010, including Rolling Stone magazine. In addition, "1901" and "Lisztomania" were certified platinum and gold, respectively.
Following the album's release, Phoenix appeared at various major music festivals, including the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Texas in 2009, Coachella Music Festival in Indio, California in 2010, the 2010 Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, the Southside Festival and Hurricane Festival in Germany, the 2010 Lollapalooza, the Mile High Music Festival, Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival in San Francisco, California, Rock Werchter 2010 in Belgium, and the 2010 Reading and Leeds Festivals. On 20 October 2010, French electronic music group Daft Punk, composing of guitarist Christian Mazzalai's childhood friends Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, made a special appearance for their show in Madison Square Garden.
AllMusic, a review website, commented favourably on the release of the album. "Beyond containing the band's best, most efficient songwriting, the album also stands apart from the first three studio albums by projecting a cool punch that is unforced," a reviewer commented.[ Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix – Phoenix | AllMusic] Vocalist Thomas Mars, described as "more bright-eyed and youthful than ever", is more prominent in these songs, harmonising with the instruments. "Maybe they've just hit their stride," the reviewer said.
Phoenix are the subject of a documentary From a Mess to the Masses that documents their 2009–10 tour in support of Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. The film was directed by Antoine Wagner and Francisco Soriano—Wagner was also responsible for directing the "Lisztomania" music video. The title of the documentary is a lyrical excerpt from "Lisztomania" and the total running time is 52 minutes. From a Mess to the Masses premiered in Germany and France on the Arte television network on 13 October 2011.
Bankrupt! (2011–2015) On 5 April 2011, the band posted a blog update on their website entitled "Songwriting..." with CCTV stills of the band working in a studio. The band said that the album would be a departure from the pop sounds of Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, and they were trying to create something more experimental. The same year, vocalist Thomas Mars married American screenwriter and director Sofia Coppola, whom he had met while producing the soundtrack to The Virgin Suicides in 1999.
On 16 January 2012, the band had completed four songs for the fifth album and it was scheduled for a late summer 2012 release, with an autumn tour. Daniel Glass, the founder of Glassnote Records, stated in relation to the material, "It's very hard to beat Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, but this could be revolutionary." The webpage was updated to display the words Pluviôse, Thermidor and Vendémiaire. Pluviôse, Thermidor and Vendémiaire are three of the months of the French Republican Calendar (also known as the Revolutionary Calendar).
On 16 January 2013 Bankrupt! was announced as the title of the fifth album. The cover depicts a color drawing of a peach next to a peach slice, with a pink flower and two green leaves; the track listing included song titles such as the title track, "S.O.S. in Bel Air", "Bourgeois", and "Oblique City".
A schedule of the music festivals that Phoenix performed at in support of the new album was announced and headline positions were confirmed for Germany's Rock am Ring and Rock im Park Festivals, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Primavera Sound, and Lollapalooza. The band also appeared at the Beale Street Music Festival in Memphis, Tennessee, and appeared alongside acts such as Beyoncé and Nine Inch Nails at the "Made in America" festival during Labor Day weekend in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
On 18 February 2013, the band released "Entertainment", the first single from the album. A music video for the song, directed by Patrick Daughters, was released on 7 March 2013. On 28 March, Phoenix started their 2013 tour in Vancouver, British Columbia, at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre and performed their first concert in two years—the show's set list included "Sunskrupt!", a song that combines "Bankrupt!" and "Love Like a Sunset". Phoenix performed on American television during the next month—on 6 April, Phoenix was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live and performed "Entertainment" and "Trying to Be Cool/Drakkar Noir"; on 18 April 2013, the band repeated the two-song set list on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.