By Paul Falardeau (Arts & Life Editor) – Email
At the beginning of the last decade, few bands could rival the dazzling success of the New York bred saviours of rock and roll. At the time, The Strokes seemed to have no equal amongst the hip, young music crowd, aside from perhaps the White Stripes who were morphing into existence somewhere on the other side of the musical spectrum. In fact, in many ways the Strokes’ music, captured on their debut album, Is This It?, was incendiary. Followed by Room on Fire, which nominally and musically propagated that sentiment, The Strokes’ first two albums are, in many ways, the beginning of modern “indie” music. So, it was a manner befitting Icarus that the Strokes burnt and crashed after the overall failure of their third release, First Impressions of Earth, which was almost uniformly rejected by fans and critics alike for its reckless and unsubstantiated experimentation. So, it is from these circumstances – and a five-year hiatus – that The Strokes release their fourth LP, Angles.
The first track of Angles, “Machu Picchu,” whirs into existence like an old pinball machine upon start up. Shortly, it proceeds to lay down a rather tropical sounding guitar background and all hopes of the Strokes going back to basics seems to be dashed. Yet, in a flurry of exhilaration, the chorus ushers in a flash of classic-Strokes genius before returning to its, now ingenious, Hawaiian send-off. Each return to the chorus brings the band closer to its roots as guitar parts brilliantly intermingle and riffs revel in all their staccato greatness. True to form, the end of the song is even cut short.
The next track, “Under the Cover of Darkness” is a full on orgy of retro-Strokes that could stand right next to “Last Night” or any other classic. But don’t call it a comeback just yet. From here on the album gives its name deeper meaning as the band seems unfinished with its experiments.
That, on Angles, does not seem to be wholly a tragedy. In fact, at times it takes the band soaring to new heights. “You’re So Right” finds the New York lads all dark and electro-ed out, with a serious Crystal Castles injection. The result is exciting and brings the band into the new decade, but is anchored by a solid solo courtesy of Albert Hammond Jr; there is still a lot of Strokes in this modern track. Continuing this trend is the funky and cocksure “Taken for a Fool” which sounds like nothing short of a renaissance.
If only that were all there was to say. Unfortunately other tracks on Angles fall short, like the unfortunately synth-ridden “Games” which sounds like elevator music with an additional hit of painkillers. It seems to be blatant – and poorly executed – jump on the wagon, where other tracks redefine trends. Other instances, such as “Gratisfaction” and “Metabolism” are not necessarily bad, but sound odd on a Strokes album, like covers of Weezer and Muse respectively.
This is not a bad thing per se, The Strokes burst from the seams of their old reputation while still keeping a lot of the disaffected cool that made them popular to begin with. Some experiments fail, but over 75 per cent of them sound great, if a little all over the place at times. Angles builds on the failures of First Impressions of Earth and admirably continues to take steps forward. If it ever fails it is when it plays it safe. Still, is this Is This It? Bluntly put: no. It is an enjoyable and well-made album, though. More so, it should herald the return of The Strokes to the house they built with their own disenchanted hands.
