The Angles of The Strokes

Photograph by Hannah Schultz

As much as I enjoy new bands, the one that I consistently fall back on is The Strokes. They are, and I imagine always will be, my favorite. No matter what mood I'm in, their songs put me in a good place. Their sound reminds me of home and my best friends. Maybe I've idealized them too much, but I've also convinced myself that the band members and I would be really good pals if we knew each other. I was only eleven when their first album came out in 2001, and now, after a five-year hiatus, they are finally about to release a new album called "Angles". As an avid, die-hard, fully committed fan, I'm counting the days to March 22nd (24!). During the last five years, most members of The Strokes have completed their own side projects. Julian Casablancas and Albert Hammond Jr. recorded solo albums, while Fabrizio Morretti joined the band Little Joy. For a long time, people didn't know if they'd ever record together again. And as much as their reunion sounds positive and wonderful, there has...unfortunately...been quite the controversy that I can't help but discuss.

Photograph by Hannah Schultz

A recent article by Spin magazine fully dissected the issues surrounding the new album. First, the band changed who wrote the songs. Before, lead singer Julian would write most, if not all, of their songs. This time, they each had a voice in the writing process. Bassist Nikolai Fraiture said, "We listened to everyone's ideas with open ears and came to collective decisions. Everyone had an opinion." With songs written by five minds instead of one, the sound is bound to be different. Only until the album is released will fans know if this was a good change in the process.


More rumors have been circulating that there is unresolved tension between Julian and the rest of the band. This news hurts my heart the most. In the Spin article, Fraiture went on to explain, "We wrote and rehearsed together as the four of us. Then we'd send the track over to Julian. There was a lot of back and forth. I don't know if Julian had trouble being with us -- I don't know what was going through his mind. There were tensions. But it worked." So from that statement, it would seem that they didn't even record the album together. I think this is disconcerting for any fan who loves them as a group. They're a unit. You hear and see the friendship whenever they're together. If that's gone, what's the point?


Lastly, another problem surfaced with their producer. Initially, they were working with Joe Chiccarelli, a well known producer for Avatar Studios. Due to a lack of chemistry and conflicting interests, they ended up scrapping all the work they had done with him and starting completely over without him. After parting ways, they wound up in Albert Hammond's personal studio, where it seems they happily re-did the entire album.

Photograph by Hannah Schultz

For now, it seems their problems have been resolved. But for a fan who loves them so much, it's upsetting to hear that there even were such significant issues. On a positive note, Fraiture mentioned at the end of the Spin article that things are getting better, "Everything is great between us now that the album is done," Fraiture says. "That's the hardest part -- seeing beyond the daily quibbles to focus on the main goal."


I guess I can view their problems the same way I view my personal growth over the last five years. You can't expect a band to remain perfectly in sync. People change. Friends go through negative cycles. I only hope that after their five-year hiatus and recent drama, The Strokes will continue to make the music that I love.