New York City’s The Strokes have been around since 1999, bursting onto the scene in January 2001 with Is This It reaching critical acclaim in the U.K. I admit, I have never been a fan, as I always felt like there was something missing in the hook for me and that they were the kind of band that was deemed compulsory listening. I’ve never been one to jump the bandwagon and the more hype surrounding a band, the longer I will take to even give them a listen.

You can imagine my surprise at Angles. What’s that? Synthesizers? With its slick, polished production, safe enough to be played at Starbucks without offending anyone sound you’d think I’d hate it. Yet it is precisely these factors that intrigue me—the shift in production, turning away from Julian Casablancas doing all of the writing to the entire band exercising the songwriting. This change is palpable as it creates a very cohesive album that flows along seamlessly and not just the same note over and over. Perhaps I’m getting old, but I find that a well-produced album is a good thing and there is always a time and a place for lo-fi. Also, I can’t help enjoying the modicum of controversy surrounding the making of the album: firing of producers resulting in the band producing the album themselves, people not getting along and all the classic studio sessions riff raff. To this I say, “Hmmph! Interesting!”
My featured track, Games, is a catchy, new wavey gem. Angles is a short 34 minutes, mixing soaring melodies, post punk, power pop and synthesizer. It’s an album that needs to be recognized if only for its cultural cache and for the comeback from a five year hiatus to a warm reception.

Listen to Games here.


Buy your own copy of The Strokes Angles here.