Review Summary: A triumphant return, but perhaps not the one we were expecting.
The fall of the Strokes has left Julian Casablancas in a very delicate position. On the one hand, Casablancas still maintains the popularity and overall relevancy brought on by the success of his signature album with the band,
Is This It. On the other, the critical and cultural backlash the band has received from their more recent releases (some of it undeserved), on top of the messy breakup with RCA and the apparent tension within the band itself, has clearly marked the end of the road for the band in its current state. This particular release is important to whether Casablancas maintains relevancy in a post-
Is This It world, whether he wants to admit it or not.
Tyranny, however, is a success in this regard.
The album is, for the most part, a plethora of noise, a lo-fi screecher that spits out 8-bit synths mixed with the dirtiest of guitars from Beardo Gritter and Amir Yaghmai and almost indecipherable vocals from Casablancas. The production smacks of DIY lo-fi rock, and it does a good job creating this bleak mood the album finds itself surrounded in. Songs like "M.utually A.ssured D.estruction" and "Business Dog" sound raw and tense, furious energy fed through dusty guitar amps. Other times, however, Casablancas allows this production to create a haunting, depressing atmosphere.
"Human Sadness" is one such track. This sprawling 11-minute epic is the cornerstone of the record, complete with strings interlaced with a sad yet soothing bass line, that eventually give way to exploding synths and utter blasts of guitar amidst Casablanca's soaring voice. It's one of the few real calming points of the record, and epitomizes the ambition found on the album as a whole, along with the Arabic tinges found on "Dare I Care" and the hazy moods found on "Xerox."
Overall, it's a gritty, unsettling album. Occasionally missteps are heard (opener "Take Me In Your Army" in particular plods along without too much of a purpose), but otherwise it is a solid affair. The production is dark and desolate, and the Voidz do a fantastic job providing a brutal backdrop to Casablanca's "protest record." Ambition seems to be the name of the game, and because of that, Casablancas finds himself with some of the strongest songs he's written in years.
