Strokes’ New Album Delivers Different Sound

Since my older brother was kind enough to open up his iTunes library for me to fill my iPod shuffle in the seventh grade, I’ve acquired some of his musical tastes. It made sense that some of his favorite bands would rub off on me, but one has really stuck since the exciting days of my first preteen musical discoveries: The Strokes.

The Strokes changed my musical world. I remember being baffled by how cool music could sound. How cool it could make me feel. Their mind-blowing guitar solos, their laid-back vocals and their general New-York-City-rock-band-who-doesn’t-care attitude were like nothing I’d ever heard before. I remember actually forcing my friends to listen to the unbelievable guitar solo in “Vision of Division”. “You Only Live Once” (yeah, I know, but it came out in 2006, long before the birth of YOLO) was constantly on repeat and I could never listen to “Automatic Stop” enough. I even became interested in the band members’ many side projects, like guitarist Albert Hammond Jr.’s solo work, as well as drummer Fabrizio Moretti’s band, Little Joy.

And five years later, I still love them. So you would think that I would be ecstatic to review their latest album, Comedown Machine. But truthfully, I went into this review with concerns that I would be hugely disappointed. Since the group’s previous album, Angles, their sound has completely changed from the stuff that I fell in love with. It’s changed from the downtown, alternative rock ‘n roll of “Someday” and “Reptilia” that left me listening again and again to a weirdly dancy (yet still angsty), extremely 80s sound that I was less than thrilled about. But since I have been a fan for so long, I decided it was worth a shot to give their new album a chance.

Now, if you, unlike me, live for 80s music, then you should probably just go out and get this album immediately. But if you’re not into The Strokes and think a little synthesizer goes a long way, then I would steer clear. But as a devoted fan, I’ll do my best to defend this album a little. So let me tell you about the little ways that “Comedown Machine” redeems itself.

Upon my first listen, I was not exactly happy — I was so focused on the elements of their new style (like the synthesizer and extreme falsetto that made the track “Chances” perfect for a slow dance in an 80’s prom movie) that I completely overlooked the little glimmers of the old Strokes that I knew and loved. After closer listening, though, I noticed that nearly every track’s intro and verses were disappointingly 80s, but had a chorus and guitar solos (like the guitar parts in “One Way Trigger” and “All the Time”) that left me thinking of the old Strokes sound. Maybe the fact that I always loved the guitar riffs and solos so much means that their guitarist isn’t really into the new sound, either.

Another issue I had with this album was it’s lack of unity. I realize that that seems like the most obnoxious complaint an album reviewer could make, but as I was listening, it really bothered me how few of the tracks sounded like they belonged on the same album. Tracks like  “Call it Fate, Call it Karma”, which was so unusually different I could hardly tell it was The Strokes at all, and “80’s Comedown Machine”, which was actually one of my favorites from the album thanks to its great guitar and slightly mellower sound, were nothing like the rest of the album.

This was probably because of influence from bandmates’ side projects, like Albert Hammond, Jr.’s solo work, which was evident in “80’s Comedown Machine”. The most unusual influence, though, was that of drummer Fabrizio Moretti’s other band, Little Joy, in the final track, “Call it Fate, Call it Karma”. The slow, 1940’s influenced guitar and piano immediately made me think of Moretti’s other band, but the song felt so disjointed with The Strokes’ sound, not to mention the rest of the album, that I was actually confused by the way to chose to end the album. Especially if it could be their last.

Yep, that’s right. I have my suspicions that this is the end of the line for The Strokes. Remember that older brother that made me fall in love with The Strokes in the first place? He’s an even bigger fan than I am, and he expects that one of our favorite bands might be close to breaking up. His theory is based on couple of things: first off, their music video for “All the Time” is a retrospective of their career, comprised of a bunch of old footage from when the band was getting famous. Another clue is that one of this album’s tracks is called “Happy Ending,” which could be not-so-subtly hinting that this is their final album.Though the idea of one of my all time favorite bands calling it quits certainly makes me sad (though they have been around for over a decade), more than anything it makes me wonder why on earth they would choose to become an ‘80s  and deny me the sound I love before they end their career.

So if you’re a die hard Strokes fan like myself, “Comedown Machine” probably won’t be what you’re hoping for, but it’s worth trying. Who knows, maybe I’ll grow to love the new 80s side of The Strokes. You’ll know I’ve accepted the 80s once I break out my leg warmers.