The Phantasy Concert Club has garnered decades of acclaim in the local music scene. Considering its paranormal past, however, it may as well be known as the Phantasm Concert Club.
A new episode of “My Ghost Story” will air at 10 p.m. Dec. 3 on the Biography Channel. During the show, the Lakewood landmark will be on display as a source of the spiritual and shadowy.
Chris Page, founder of Ohio Researchers of Banded Spirits, led a crew on an investigation of the legendary night club. Stories of spirits screaming throughout the building and sightings of unidentifiable entities prompted Page to visit and determine what exactly is there.
Having performed about 300 cases across seven states since 2007, Page and his crew have developed not only a keen understanding based in scientific inquiry, but a genuine interest in investigating the unknown.
“It’s a passion for us,” Page said. “We don’t just rush into a place and automatically say ‘There’s a ghost here,’” Page said. He said that it’s a matter of getting in touch with whatever kind of entities are present. His organization often receives calls from people looking for clarification regarding something out of the ordinary. His job, he said, is not a matter of evicting the spirit, but one of confirming its presence.
“They want validation that they’re not nuts,” Page said of his customers. “We go in with the mindset that we try to validate your experience.”
According to Page, the world of the paranormal is difficult to reconcile against the backdrop of the rest of society. People are either total believers or total skeptics, he said.
“When you really see something for the first time, that’s when you’ll be contacting me. Not before,” he said.
Noting that he and the members of his group have all had their experiences with the paranormal, he said it’s a phenomenon that can’t be fully understood without being fully subjected to it.
Most of time, Page's work involves residential homeowners. People encounter something — perhaps a deceased relative or a former resident — and they simply can't shake the sense that there's more around them than what meets the eye, he said. When investigators get involved, environmental, paranormal and mental factors are all taken into consideration, he added.
“Every case is different. You take something different out of each haunt,” Page said.
Of the Phantasy Concert Club, Page said he and his crew got the inimitable sense that the spirits in the building were “protecting” it.
“I feel they’re probably looking over (the club),” Page said. As far as the rest of his investigation, anyone interested in a view from the other side can tune in this weekend.
Beyond that, the next time you’re catching a drink or a show at the Phantasy, stay alert.
“I would tell people to keep an eye out,” Page said. “If you see that shadow moving out of the corner of your eye, don’t dismiss it.”
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