By day, he’s a substitute teacher keeping classrooms in line - but when the sun drops and nighttime's shadow prevails, he becomes something else entirely. Draped in a flowing cape, crowned with a wild afro, and channeling the spirit of late-night creature features, The Phantom emerges from the darkness as a solitary pulse of chaos.
His sound - what he calls Ghoulish Rock N’ Roll - is a fever-dream fusion of surf riffs, garage grit, and rockabilly swagger, all soaked in the eerie glow of vintage horror. It’s not for Squares, man - It's a midnight transmission from the strange side of the dial, where bats swoop from the skies, monsters dance and bones rattle.
He’s a musical anomaly who fell in love with rock ’n’ roll at an early age. Elvis Presley, The Big Bopper, and Jerry Lee Lewis formed the soundtrack of his childhood, shaping a sound he would never truly leave behind. Even as a teenager, when punk rock took hold, that foundation remained intact. Bands like Circle Jerks, T.S.O.L., and The Cramps helped define who he was becoming, while artists such as Screaming Lord Sutch and Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs added the final, distinctive touches to his musical identity.
From his website:
My name is Harley Isaac Rother, known to many as The Phantom. The day I was born, the hospital echoed with the defiant sound of Rock N’ Roll, - It’s been obsession ever since.
When I was in Kindergarten, every kid in the class was assigned to bring in a song to share. Drawn by the sinister laugh that starts the tune and the good time surf rock beat, I brought in Wipe Out by The Safaris. I assumed every kid would bring in something rockin’ and it would be a wild party. I was shocked when I was the only kid who brought in a Rock N’ Roll song tune. It was at the moment that I knew I was different.
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He's bringing his legion of one to Des Moines on June 14. He is playing at The Haunt - a basement bar located at 500 Locust Street in the East Village. Only 65 tickets are available, and by today's standards, they are cheap. So act fast! This event is already half way sold out. You can purchase tickets here. If you live outside of Iowa, his tour schedule is posted above. We here at Blue Banana cannot emphasize enough the Bona-Fidelity of this show.
I dusted off the Ouija Board, conjured the Phantom for a minute, and asked him a few questions.
Who - or what - is Phantom AD?
I am The Phantom A.D. the purveyor of Ghoulish Rock ‘N’ Roll music. I release rock n roll music on LP, CD and streaming and tour the country. I’ll be doing shows in at least 40 different cities this year in the North, East, South and West. I’m my own booking agent, manager and record label. 100% independent!
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Tell us about yourself. What drives you? What are your guilty pleasures? What celebrity was your high school crush?
My real name is Harley Isaac Rother and I make music as The Phantom A.D. I always loved rock n roll like Little Richard, Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis and I didn't ever hear much of anyone playing that type of music in a way that felt exciting - so that’s been my mission - making high energy rock n roll but for today. If you come to my show you’ll see I don't do a single slow song and I’ll be drenched in sweat when I’m finished. And hopefully you will be too! The other aspect is to combine all that with a classic horror appeal. Like Bela Lugosi but with a guitar.
Hey this is four questions in one! That's ok. My biggest guilty pleasure is probably collecting stuff. I like old toys, music and horror movie memorabilia. I also like competition reality shows like Beast Games and Squid Games Challenge.
Chyna (RIP!) is my celebrity crush. She was dangerous and sexy. The perfect combo.
Tell me about a specific paranormal experience you've had.
A fortune teller cast a spell on me which led me to be attacked by monsters and transform into The Phantom. It’s documented in my music video for Heeby Jeebies.
Monsters are often metaphors - fear, isolation, transformation. What do they represent to you?
To me they're just cool! Everyone loves animals and monsters are like extreme animals. Gorillas are cool but a giant gorilla is even cooler!
A lot of horror deals with fear - what’s something that genuinely unsettles you in real life?
Poverty and injustice. I’ve been blessed to travel a lot in the last few years and in every American city there's people sleeping on the street, ghettos and visible desperation. It doesn't have to be like that. In Japan and a lot of European countries those things don’t exist. I’m constantly donating to people’s Go Fund Me's because they have medical bills they can't pay for. Again that's a fixable issue that other countries don't have but we as a society choose to let people fend for themselves if they get sick and don't have insurance that covers it. ANYWAY
Your music, while rooted with the Safaris, and the Cramps, still has that kitschy vibe to it, like "Monster's Holiday" by Buck Owens. Who would you say is the one band or performer that has influenced you the most?
Sam The Sham and The Pharaohs! I loved Wooly Bully the first time I heard it and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. They have tons of great songs. Everything they did was fun from the name to the costumes to the music. Sam did the most with the least. He wasn't a highly skilled musician yet he created a totally unique and recognizable sound on his organ. You can hear that Wooly Bully beat on a lot of his songs like JuJu Hand, Ring Dang Doo and others. He also has a song called The Phantom that influenced me in an obvious way.
There’s a line from Lux Interior: “I’m not a musician, I’m an entertainer.” Do you relate to that at all, or do you see Phantom AD as something different?
I relate to the entertainer part because I think people find my live show entertaining and that's my goal. But I am also a musician. I’ve been playing guitar my whole life and it's important to me to be at top level musically. The Phantom A.D. is very guitar centric and I’m influenced by great guitar players ranging from Dick Dale to Django Rhineheart.
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| Phantom AD says, "Monsters are like extreme animals!" |
If you could score a movie about any cryptid or monster, what would it be?
Bigfoot!
Similarly, What real-world legend or cryptid deserves a Phantom AD soundtrack?
Well there's a song on my new album called Even Sasquatch Wants to Rock which will be coming out in May. It's a true story about the time Sasquatch joined me on stage because he wanted to play ghoulish rock n roll. Satch is a killer guitar player!
I feel like I should ask about Screaming Jay Hawkins, but honestly man? I've got nothing. He's so damn good, though, right?
Yeah, I love him. We have the same birthday, July 18th. He famously had 57 kids and I never met my biological father, so ya never know…
You're playing in Des Moines on June 14. Those of us who are attending your show - what do we need to know?
It's at an actual haunted house called The Haunt - or maybe it's a haunted bar? The only thing you need is to prepare to have a good time! That and you will need a ticket which I would recommend buying now at thephantomad.com/the-haunt . There's only room for 65 people and as of April 10th, 20 tickets have already sold and the show isn't until June 14 - so this will sell out! Get tickets now!
Creepy Cool Boss Class and Bad Ass!
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