By The Keystone Newspaper Lead singer Frank Phobia recounts the history and goals behind Anthrophobia
By John Mahoney
Being a rock fan in Kutztown isn’t always easy. There aren’t many performances close by, let alone shows that are both accessible and high-quality. This is precisely why I was shocked to find such a raw and gritty performance in that of the rock, punk and metal fusion band, Anthrophobia.
Hailing from Reading, Pa., Anthrophobia came to Kutztown’s very own Young Ones Record Store to debut their new album “Going Out Swinging.” The album consists of ten tracks full of throat-cutting, guttural vocals that ooze with the passion and effort of truly devoted musicians.
I attended the show on November 21, 2024, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. last year alongside a few friends of mine, not knowing much of what to expect, but what I got out of the experience was not only a CD and a good show, but a story as well.
In an interview, Frank Phobia, the lead singer of Anthrophobia, discussed the band’s origins, their connection with Young Ones and Kutztown, as well as their overall goal when it comes to making music.
Anthrophobia began performing in the 1990’s, doing basement and loft shows in high school, and the band would only continue to grow until eventually getting their first deal with BMG/EMI, a subsidiary of Mausoleum/Oxygen Records, in 1996.
Two years later, the band would even go on to join the 30-band roster of the 1998 Vans Warped Tour alongside bands like Blink-182, Deftones, Bad Religion, 311, and Incubus. Frank Phobia listed the event as one of the greatest memories he had made while touring and performing.
While describing other career highlights, Phobia said, “Touring and winning over crowds in clubs where no one knows you. Hearing ourselves on the radio for the first time, working with great engineers in various studios all over the place. Little things too, like rocking with big crowds or small crowds that sometimes just hit a nerve with you, and an audience that is almost an outer body experience. Signing a record deal wasn’t really a favorite thing, but almost just an opportunity and vindication of what we were working towards at the time.”
The band’s lineup has shifted and changed throughout the years, with members like the current drummer, Dickie Delp, coming and going. Currently the band consists of bassist Rob DiJoseph, guitarist Brent Black, the aforementioned drummer Dickie Delp, and, of course, lead vocalist Frank Phobia. Together, the group has worked towards an immense comeback since their multiple-year hiatus ended in 2015.
“I love playing with all of them; it’s an undeniable chemistry we have with each other as a band,” Phobia said. “We respect that, we embrace it and have learned to function as a band. It’s a musical marriage between 4 guys that have different musical paths, influences and backgrounds.”
In terms of influences, Phobia said that he was a “sponge,” constantly absorbing all kinds of music since childhood, attending every show he could.
“I loved a lot of diverse music… probably why Anthrophobia is hard to categorize,” he said. “I got into punk, metal, new wave, classic rock at an early age. Started playing guitar at 14 and started Anthrophobia at 17. My first Anthrophobia show was in March of 1985.”
Some of the most notable inspirations for him as an artist were in the many performances he’d often venture to see, including shows by the likes of U2, Misfits, Descendants, Frank Zappa and dozens and dozens of other legendary musicians and pillars of their respective genres. In many ways, Phobia has been described as a pillar of punk rock himself, as said by alternative rock band Local H.
Releasing their new album “Going Out Swinging” under the brand-new Young Ones record label is a full-circle moment for Phobia who had once worked at the store for over a decade.
“I worked at Young Ones for over a decade, part time. I started a whole series of in-stores while I was there,” Phobia said. “I also put on shows at a small dance club in Kutztown called BackStreets, the Back Alley, something like that. It was a half block away from where Young Ones is now.”
At the November show itself, Phobia and his bandmates took time to give Kutztown and Young Ones a huge shout-out as places that have helped nurture the current Anthrophobia. The relationship Phobia had with the store’s owners and staff was one of pure love and appreciation.
Phobia notes that ‘Going Out Swinging” is a labor of love for the band, an album that stands as a sonic representation of how far the band has come and what they are capable of even decades after the group’s inception.
“It was a creative goal to write 10 songs that were all killer, no filler and record it with J. Robbins again and just hold it in our hands with artwork created by an iconic artist we love, Derek Hess,” Phobia said. “At our age, we take nothing for granted with being able to still be a good band, a band we are proud of and still being creative and trying to master our craft, which of course is a never-ending process. Every record, every show, every song we write may be the last, so we are always trying to better ourselves and be the best we can be.”
In the near future, Phobia has said he plans to take all the opportunities he can and, of course, have fun with all the future music he makes.
“After almost 40 years of ‘Anthrophobia’ as an entity, we have a few things on our bucket list that are left or things we’d like to revisit,” Phobia said. “A lot of things we just aren’t interested in doing anymore. We do it at this point for fun, excitement, and self-gratification. It’s our creative outlet, it’s our escapism; we are entrenched in a music scene we love.”
For anyone interested in starting their own musical endeavors, Phobia had the following to say: “Make sure you are with people you find to be a positive in your life and the project, not negative. Have fun! Find gratification and satisfaction that isn’t based around monetary gain, especially in newer projects. If it makes you happy, push forward and set realistic goals. Look at the small picture, not just the big picture that may be completely hypothetical.”