Tonight’s Concert Pick: Phantogram at Union Transfer

You can never know what quaint country folks keep in their barns. Hailing from the no-man’s-land of Saratoga Springs, Phantogram records its electro-rock songs in a converted barn, filling the rural space with synths and soundboards. The result is an urbany blend of low-fi dance accompanied by the duo’s trendy aesthetic. Because Saratoga isn’t exactly honored as a music-saavy town, it is at first a little surprising to see band members Sarah Barthel and Josh Carter decked out in the day’s quintessential “cool musician” outfits. In their video for “When I’m Small,” off their debut album eyelid movies, Barthel tosses around her severe black hair while Carter acts stoic under his Buddy Holly glasses and thick beard. It is as if every ounce of culture that somehow reached Saratoga was soaked up by the band and is now being offered up to others, like when “When I’m Small” made its way to pseudo-controversial MTV drama Skins earlier this year. With that sort of commercial recognition, it’s not unlikely Phantogram could inspire a new generation of music-loving country dwellers to start converting their own barns into private studios, too. Phantogram performs with Exitmusic at 8 p.m. at Union Transfer; tickets to the all-ages show are $15. —Marielle Mondon