Last October, Julian Casablancas and the Voidz gave Philadelphia the privilege of hosting the first stop on their U.S./U.K. tour behind 'Tyranny,' an album full of Manichean twinges both blindingly bright and gloomy.
The Strokes frontman, solo artist, and founder of Cult Records ventured in a new direction with his five counterparts in the Voidz, exploring different lyrical turf and shedding some of the critically exploited cheekiness that earned The Strokes as many boos as it did bras.
Everything that makes Casablancas a first rate melodist and exponent of pop is alive and present on 'Tyranny,' but its rhythms and structures are more experimental than the technically inclined arrangements of The Strokes. It's a dense and dramatically produced album that alternates between aggression and despair, which might not connect with everyone but warrants listening for more than just kicks.
Vice interviewed the 36-year-old Casablancas multiple times over the course of a few months to check in on his current state of mind. As their profile makes clear, that isn't such an easy task.
Casablancas is so over-analytical it sometimes stops him forming full sentences. He finds it both frustrating and funny. Like many musicians, he communicates more clearly in his music than in conversation. Sometimes he sings his indecision: “Not really, maybe, I don’t know, I don’t know, I don’t know…” But he also possesses the surety of an artist who’s meticulously called the shots and whose calls have by and large paid off.
The full story at Vice is well worth a read for anyone who appreciates how The Strokes helped change the atmosphere and attitude of music at the turn of the century. Casablancas says he hopes to continue working with both The Strokes and The Voidz, which should please fans of both bands. Beyond that, the article delves into the growth of an established musician and person over time, how mainstream exposure attracts and repels different elements of culture, and how that experience shapes convictions in music and in politics.
Katy Winn/AP
