Science band from Oakland, California, US
The Phenomenauts are a musical band from Oakland, California, that combine several styles of music with a futuristic science fiction theme. Their sound uses elements from rock and roll, punk, glam, garage rock and new wave styles of music. They call their style "rocket roll".
The band is known for throwing sudden, unexpected shows at places where they are not invited. They often play in front of existing concerts where crowds have already gathered. They gained notoriety in 2003 for sneaking into the Warped Tour, following the tour in their own vehicle and performing at each stop for several weeks.
The Phenomenauts perform under a space and science fiction persona. Each band member uses a stage name and dress in uniform. Most of the band's songs revolve around science, space, robots, and the future. The band has even decorated their vehicles to match their theme. Their live shows often feature special effects like clouds of smoke or lasers, and they are known to shoot toilet paper into the crowd and set their drum cymbals on fire.
The Phenomenauts also use their music to promote science education and learning. They have played and promoted events such as the Bay Area Science Festival and the March for Science. In 2015 they released the album "I'm With Neil", a tribute to astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and the public radio program Science Friday.
History.
Band formation and "Rockets And Robots" (2000–02).
The Phenomenauts were formed in 2000 in Oakland, California, which the band refers to as "Earth's capital". They were formed from the band Space Patrol, a 1980s cover band that played on homemade instruments. Space Patrol members included Commander Angel Nova, Corporal JoeBot, and Major Jimmy Boom. The trio added bass player Captain Chreehos and formed The Phenomenauts—a name which means "to pilot an unusual experience".
In 2002 The Phenomenauts released their first album, "Rockets And Robots". It was self-published on their own label, Arlington Lab Recordings. The album was well received "by radio stations and audiences surrounding the Bay Area". It rose on the music charts on local college stations such as KSSU in Sacramento and KALX in Berkeley. "Rockets and Robots" was also reviewed favorably in local music publications; for instance, "Zero Magazine" wrote, "What separates this East Bay foursome from all the other bands of this type is their sense of humor and songwriting craft".
Band manager Colonel Reehotch explained that recording the first album was "a process [of] 'Delusional Exploration'. "Rockets and Robots" was an experiment to take the Phenomenauts rock show ... and translate it to your mind. So that if you had never seen the band before and listened to the album you could paint the picture of the show in your imagination".
Later in 2002 The Phenomenauts won two awards. They were chosen as California's Best Live Band by the "East Bay Express", and called the Best Lifestyle Music artist by "SF Weekly".
After touring to support their debut album, the band signed with Springman Records. "After a year of touring up and down the Bay ... Avi [the] owner of Springman Records ... saw us at the Gilman. He said, ‘You guys are something I want to be a part of’. ... It was one of our best ideas to work together". In the spring of 2003, "Rockets and Robots" was remastered and re-issued on Springman Records.
Expansion and mini-albums (2002–04).
 Leading up to their second full-length album The Phenomenauts released two smaller works. These releases, in turn, were preceded by the band adding a fifth member to their lineup—Professor Greg Arius playing synthesizer. This gave the group an "extra layer" and type of sound. Then in 2003 the band released "Mission Transmission", a 7-inch vinyl containing two new songs. To celebrate The Phenomenauts went on their first European tour in November 2003 with fellow punk/rockabilly band Demented Are Go. This was followed by their second mini-album "Pre-Entry" in 2004. "Pre-Entry" had live versions of the two "Transmission" songs as well as three new ones.
"Re-Entry" (2004).
The Phenomenauts released their second full-length album "Re-Entry" later in 2004. "With the new record ... the band felt really comfortable about the vision and going into the studio. We didn't worry so much about [making] a movie this time as we did trying to capture the energy of the songs". Shortly after releasing "Re-Entry", the Phenomenauts were a finalist for the "Not So Silent Night" concert held by San Francisco radio station Live 105.
Discussing their music-making process, the band noted that trying out songs live before they were recorded "enabled the band to sort through their best material, and eliminate any excess fat". While it had been two years since their previous album release, the band was "glad [they had] waited until [they] had enough 'A' material".
Both "Pre-Entry" and "Re-Entry" were engineered by Chris Dugan at Nu-Tone Studios, who later went on to win a Grammy as an audio engineer for Green Day. Through heavy touring and promotion the album charted at No. 10 on the College Media Journal (CMJ) Top 25. The band also played and interviewed on G4 TV's "Screen Savers’ Live Music Fridays" to promote the album.
In late 2005 the Phenomenauts lineup changed, with Corporal JoeBot departing the band. He was replaced by a new member who went by the name Corporal JoeBot 2.0. Then in late 2006 the band released a music video for the "Re-Entry" song "Mission". The video appeared on the front page of both YouTube and MySpace, receiving more than 430,000 combined views.
"For All Mankind" (2008).
The Phenomenauts released their third full-length album "For All Mankind" in 2008, on Springman Records imprint Silver Sprocket. The band said the album was "inspired by new wave and 70's punk", and "serves as a call to arms to defenders of science and honor across the galaxy". The album contained the track "Science And Honor", which explained the band's motto and philosophy.
At release the physical copies of the album were sold with extra items, including a die-cast metal pin, a 24-page color booklet, and a package that folded out to make a rocket ship. The band explained that they added these items to give fans an extra reason to purchase the album: "The biggest negative right now is that CDs just don't sell. Vinyl actually is selling more than CDs, because it's got some extra flavor to it. It has something people want to hold in their hand. [We added the items] for that reason. ... I think it's people wanting to reach out and touch a piece of the band—to hold something they have created, [it] gets them a little closer".
The album was reviewed favorably in local publications such as "East Bay Express", which wrote, "The Phenomenauts come roaring out of the gate at warp speed on their third album". To promote the album The Phenomenauts went on two tours. The first was a United States national tour with The A.K.A.s. They followed up with an international tour across the U.S. and Canada with San Francisco band The Re-Volts. The band also collaborated with Emmy Award winning writer Rich Fogel and Eisner Award winning artist Erica Henderson to create an animated music video for the song "Infinite Frontier".
In February 2009 The Phenomenauts lineup changed again, with JoeBot 2.0 and Captain Chreehos leaving. Two new members took their place: Leftenant AR-7 on guitar and vocals, and Deck Chief Nick Wayzar playing bass.
"Electric Sheep" (2010).
In 2010 The Phenomenauts released the digital-only mini-album "Electric Sheep", containing four new songs. The album featured AR7's first songwriting and singing with the band. The band departed on their second European tour, "Operation: Europe!", to promote the album after release.
Between "Electric Sheep" and their next album the band changed bass players. Nick Wayzar was replaced by Chief Engineer Atom Bomb, playing the Stand-Down Bass.
"Escape Velocity" (2013–present).
 In 2013 the Phenomenauts ran an online fundraiser for their next album, to raise money for studio time and to cover a tour. Fans could bid to vote on naming the album, or on other items such as playing laser tag or bowling with the band.
The album was released in 2014 with the title "Escape Velocity", an album they hoped "encourages people to break free of their own limitations". The band described the album sound as a departure from their previous albums. Rather than focusing on one style or theme, "Escape Velocity" was a combination of "second half of the 20th century Rock and Roll". It combined many different sounds including 50s Rock and Roll, 60s Soul music, 70s glam, and early 80s punk rock. Nova said "musically, it's more diverse than anything we’ve ever recorded". The Phenomenauts used the album launch to visually rebrand. Atom Bomb designed a new logo, and Nova designed new uniforms.
A Huffington Post reviewer said that "Escape Velocity" stepped away from the "pure rockabilly music" of the band's previous albums. They felt the work had a "more polished ... clean ... and futuristic style" in songs like "Infinity Plus One", but kept "fast hooks" and was "right at home at a ... sock hop" with songs like "Rocket Soul". A "For The Love Of Punk" reviewer noted "[it] reminds me of a modern, punk rock Chuck Berry that’s about science". The band went on their third European tour at the end of 2014 to promote the album, playing in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland.
In 2015 Ripley Clipse joined the band playing keyboard, taking over from Professor Arius.
Starting in 2015 the "Escape Velocity" song "Theme for Oakland" was used as the official after-game celebration song for the Oakland Athletics. The song was used again in 2017 in a series of commercials promoting the Athletics and the city.
In February 2020, The Phenomenauts issued a statement on the band's Facebook page, announcing the firing of Angel Nova from the group, stating, "We recently learned that a member of our band has violated these principles. So as a band, we’ve made the decision to move forward without Angel Nova. We do not condone his actions and find them completely unacceptable. We respect the privacy of those involved – their stories are not ours to tell, so we would like to focus on what we can do moving forward. We are thankful to the brave people who have come forward to tell their stories and we’ll continue to support survivors of sexual and emotional abuse." While not specifically mentioning what allegations led to Nova's removal, the band encouraged fans to support anti-sexual abuse and anti-domestic violence support organizations.
Commando performances.
The Phenomenauts earned a reputation for "staging commando performances" at venues where they were not booked, and were often unwelcome. They played "on the sidewalk in front of the venue" after a show at The Fillmore, and had shows "cut short by security guards" after sneaking backstage at the 2003 California Music Awards. "Security couldn’t figure out how to unplug us cause we brought our own power source. ... Eventually, between songs they asked us to stop but they were kind of powerless".
The band frequently staged performances in front of other venues, where crowds had already gathered:
 ;templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" / ;"When we first started, we used to take a car battery and an inverter and put it together and then plug a bunch of amplifiers into it and strap it all to a dolly. And then we’d get out of a van that looked like a spaceship ... and we would just start rocking. We’d blast smoke off, and people just didn’t know what the hell was going on. We’re all wearing space outfits ... and we’d just kind of plop down in front of a concert, ... play a show and people loved it. ... We’d play three or four songs and we’d get out of there as fast as we could".
Sneaking into the Warped Tour.
The band gained notoriety in 2002 and 2003 for sneaking onto the Warped Tour. In 2002 they "found an open gate in the back, hid behind a dumpster and then quickly set up in front of the stage and started playing". In San Francisco "a security guard told them to get a move on. However, while loading their gear—in full 'uniform'—into the group's 'space van', another security guard ... assumed they were supposed to be there ... [and] kindly directed them to the official artist entrance". In