Spring Break
Review: Julian Casablancas needs to re-'phraze'
6.5/10 stars
Alyssa Carroll
Issue date: 11/5/09 Section: Focus
Though the Strokes decision to go on indefinite hiatus disappointed thousands of fans, lead singer and songwriter Julian Casablancas is making a name for himself with his debut solo album "Phrazes for the Young." Deriving the album's title and inspiration from the Oscar Wilde essay, "Phrases and Philosophies for the Use of the Young," Casablancas explores human superficiality and greed along with a more electronically-based sound than his former work.
Working with Bright Eyes member and respected indie producer Mike Mogis and producer Jason Leder in New York, "Phrazes for the Young" features only eight tracks and little diversity in sound.
Casablancas faced a huge challenge in making his personal work unique, and essentially fails as "Phrazes for the Young" sounds like a Strokes album with synth additions.
Opening with the commercially-appealing "Out of the Blue," Casablancas uses the quickly strummed electric guitar styling, characteristic of Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond Jr.
Where Casablancas does manage to diverge his solo talent is in his production of electropop tracks like "Left & Right in the Dark" and "11th Dimension," which merge the '80s-esque pop of singers like David Bowie and the electronic erraticism of Nintendo-core video game sounds.
Though an overall uptempo dance album, select tracks like the folky "Ludlow St." and "Chords of the Apocalypse" slow down the pace, though again Casablancas' voice becomes too evocative of the Strokes' sound.
With only eight songs and a sound that was to be expected of Casablancas, "Phrazes for the Young" fails to reach the solo success of other Strokes members like Hammond's successful "Yours to Keep" and "¿Cómo Te Llama?"
Check out: Out of the Blue" and "Left & Right in the Dark"
Working with Bright Eyes member and respected indie producer Mike Mogis and producer Jason Leder in New York, "Phrazes for the Young" features only eight tracks and little diversity in sound.
Casablancas faced a huge challenge in making his personal work unique, and essentially fails as "Phrazes for the Young" sounds like a Strokes album with synth additions.
Opening with the commercially-appealing "Out of the Blue," Casablancas uses the quickly strummed electric guitar styling, characteristic of Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond Jr.
Where Casablancas does manage to diverge his solo talent is in his production of electropop tracks like "Left & Right in the Dark" and "11th Dimension," which merge the '80s-esque pop of singers like David Bowie and the electronic erraticism of Nintendo-core video game sounds.
Though an overall uptempo dance album, select tracks like the folky "Ludlow St." and "Chords of the Apocalypse" slow down the pace, though again Casablancas' voice becomes too evocative of the Strokes' sound.
With only eight songs and a sound that was to be expected of Casablancas, "Phrazes for the Young" fails to reach the solo success of other Strokes members like Hammond's successful "Yours to Keep" and "¿Cómo Te Llama?"
Check out: Out of the Blue" and "Left & Right in the Dark"
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Jade
posted 11/05/09 @ 2:26 AM EST
Well, i think it is an amazing album. Of course hes always gonna sound like the strokes when he single handedly composed their first two albums. Hes really talented and i love his debut album. (Continued…)
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