- The Strokes were undoubtedly one of the most fashionable and photogenic bands of the noughties, tastefully accompanying their perfect cheekbones with one of the great rock debut albums Is This It? way back in 2001. Not everything they’ve done since matches this masterful record, but by the same token their career has proven them to be far from one-trick ponies.
Each and every member of the band has gone on to make records with both solo and band side projects. While guitarist Albert Hammond Jr has carved out quite a solo career for himself with his pleasant, low-key indie rock, it’s frontman Julian Casablancas who has taken the most interesting musical route away from his main band.
This can largely be attributed to the music he makes with The Voidz, culminating in Virtue, a chaotic, immensely enjoyable hot mess of an album. Now “hot mess” is not a description one usually uses when complimenting a record, but in the case of this album, that very frazzled, “all over the shop” feel is what makes it so enjoyable. At nearly an hour in length, it should outstay its welcome, and there are admittedly a handful of tracks the album would not be any the poorer for skipping, but the patchwork quality of the music resembles a hastily yet passionately prepared mix tape more than a cohesive album.
It’s all such giddy, experimental fun, as evidenced by the five wildly varying singles from the album which have been released at a prolific rate since January of this year. From the most Strokes-esque moment which opens the record, Leave It In My Dreams, to the closing nihilistic sci-fi ballad Pointlessness, Julian and cohorts take us on a truly wild ride.
Plenty of the songs sound like updated, dystopian takes on the music that only the hippest New York clubs would have played in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, like that brief magical moment when no-wave, punk-funk and hip hop all collided. The cowbell post-disco of All Wordz Are Made Up recalls post-punk revivalists The Rapture and the slinkier work of Liquid Liquid.
There are more deliberately paced moments as well. AlieNNation is a woozy slice of alternative R&B and rides a late ‘80s Soul II Soul-style beat. Ariel Pink would not sound out of place in the hallucinogenic MOR soul of Pink Ocean, the song enhanced by Casablancas’ rough but appealing falsetto.
As ever, Julian’s not the most technically perfect of singers, but his voice remains one of the most charismatic and distinctive out there. From the cyber-glam of Pyramid Of Bones to the electro-punk of We’re Where We Were, there’s a slightly unhinged urgency to the album, like the band were bashing out the tunes as a matter of life and death. So The Voidz’ Virtue is not the most focused record you’ll ever hear, but there are plenty of high spots and it’s never boring.
- Matt Thrower.