Review Summary: An artist stays true to himself.
Whenever I listen to an album, I try to conceive of it as a whole. The music is, of course, the beating heart. But the artwork-- that's the face. The title, the name. The tracks are the spine. And the lyrics, that's the personality. What is this whole piece of art, "Reality Awaits" by The Strokes attempting to express?
That is up to each listener to discern. But now several days in, I see an artist -- Julian Casablancas -- making a single, subversive statement across a tapestry of auto-tuned tunes: "F--- you and your expectations". There's no greater peace for an artist to feel than that. They see what they see and must express it honestly. Many don't have that luxury or confidence.
The music itself is delicious. While I'm not particularly a fan of the autotune, it's incredible how they can still capture emotions in a way I can relate to. In this way, they sound as fresh as ever to me. I teared up during "Falling out of Love." By "Liar's Remorse", I had a box of tissues next to me. After "Tyrants of the Mellow Moon", I was borderline bawling.
Isn't that what true art is supposed to do, make us feel something true? It's a hard line to straddle. To satisfy an entrenched sound-- in this case the raw groove which this band already accomplished 25 years ago. Instead, they've decided to push sonic boundaries through analog and electronic emulsification. A case study on staying human in an increasingly machine world.
You don't have love because you don't want pain
You don't want pain because you don't have trust
You don't have trust, so you don't have love
You don't have love because you just can't take the pain
3.5/5
