Album Review by David Beech
Listen Up Manchester Album Rating: 7/10
New York-based band The Strokes really need no
introduction. They've been making their garage-enthused rock 'n' roll since
2001, with their debut EP sparking one of the largest bidding wars amongst
labels in recent history. Their first full length entitled Is This It
has received global critical acclaim and earned the band numerous awards. Now
12 years, four albums and countless airmiles later, the band release their
fifth studio album Comedown Machine. Not only is it a milestone album
for the band, but it marks the end of the bands contract with RCA marking the
end of an era, and the start of something new.
Going off the strength of album opener 'Tap Out' you could
be forgiven for thinking The Strokes have fallen back in to the trappings of
their ill-fated 4th album Angles. However there is something
sufficiently more salient about 'Tap Out' than any of the songs featured on the
aforementioned. However it is a departure from their garage-rock roots.
Something that's upheld by the eclectic and unusually understated 'One Way
Trigger' which features an erratic synth pattern and almost falsetto vocals.
It's certainly different and a far cry from the Television-esque Is
This It but there's still something about the track which remains
particularly Strokes-like.
'Made in Japan' is particularly evocative of pre-First
Impressions of Earth recordings. Casablancas' signature arrogant swagger is
back in almost-full force, although there's a distinct lacking of confidence
when compared to their earlier albums. The last minute of the track is easily
the highlight as the song picks up and features some chunky bass work courtesy
of Nikolai Fraiture.
If 'Made in Japan' is the band almost back to their roots
then the track that follows '80s Comedown Machine' is certainly The Strokes
we've all come to know and love. The chorus even dares to get heavier than most
of their repertoire with a particularly lo-fi vocal making this easily one of
the stand-out tracks from the album and a contender for a further single while
'50-50- is a chance of pace and at a second under five minutes is also the
longest track on Comedown Machine. It's understated vocals coupled with
the excellently produced drums throughout make this a personal highlight and
possibility of a classic in the making. Halfway through the song soars to
unexpected highs and shines with an atypical aesthetic.
Without dissecting and analysing every single track on the
album, it's difficult to convey just what this album sounds like. It's all at
once undeniably The Strokes, but it's not The Strokes as you know them. Given
their contract is up; this could be the band foreshadowing the road their
planning on taking now they're free of the constrains of a label. There's still
elements of the ballsy garage rock there, but there's also a newer, shinier
veneer that the band have encased themselves in. The inclusion of a synth might
well deter people who have buried their heads in the sands of the first two
albums, certainly on their initial listens, but Comedown Machine is an
album that will grow on you. From the preprogrammed Casio-beats to Casablanca's
atypical vocal parts across the majority of the album, it's certainly a bold
move for a band who's last album didn't fair nearly as well as those that
preceded it, but if it's the music they want to make, who are we to stop them.
Eclectic and erratic, different and dance-y, there's surely something for even
the most stringent of fans.
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