THE STROKES Angles (Sony) Rating: NNNN
Ten years after they were supposed to save rock ‘n’ roll, and five years since their last album, the Strokes sound like a band trying to figure out who they’ve become. You can hear them stretching themselves in different directions, then occasionally retreating to archetypal Strokes formulas, and it’s readily apparent that Julian Casablancas isn’t dominating the songwriting any more. One minute they sound like the Cars, and the next they’re paying tribute to Thin Lizzy while still dropping enough nods to contemporary trends to avert retro accusations.
The first impression is that it’s a bit of a mess, with some really good bits scattered throughout. The more you listen, though, the more it makes sense as a record. The electronic tangents are jarring initially, but then a genius guitar lick pops out of nowhere and ties it back to the rest of the album. At times they sound like they’re working too hard to prove they’re not just a pop band, but thankfully, they’re not so deluded as to forget that’s exactly what they do best. Indecision and infighting have rarely sounded this solid and inspired.
Top track: Gratisfaction
