Julian Casablancas - Phrazes For The Young

With no new output forthcoming from The Strokes yet, fans are having to settle for the numerous side-projects, the most anticipated of which is surely the debut solo offering from frontman and creative driving-force, Julian Casablancas.

Opening song, Out of the Blue, illustrates a dichotomy that occurs throughout the record, as cynical lyrics disguise what is actually a musically celebratory and largely radio-friendly album. “Somewhere along the way, my hopefulness turned to sadness/ Somewhere along the way, my sadness turned to bitterness,” Casablancas grumbles in his deliciously languid slur. But, just when the tone seems to have been set, he leaps into a rousing, joyous chorus. Phrazes… often references the 80s. The synth-drenched Left & Right in the Dark even threatens to burst into Ultravox’s Dancing With Tears in My Eyes before reigning itself in and ending like something from Is This It.

With eight tracks totalling 40 minutes, the album could have done with some fat-trimming, and one senses there may have been a handful of three-minute pop classics here had Casablancas shown more self-discipline. This is a minor quibble though, and there are enough surprising left-turns to keep things interesting, like the laid-back soul of 4 Chords of the Apocalypse and the country influenced Ludlow St.

While such departures validate Casablancas’ side-project as worthwhile and necessary, the songs that fall closer to that distinctive Strokes sound are actually the highlights. So, no matter how good Phrazes For The Young might be - and it is good - it ultimately leaves the listener longing for a new Strokes album. Still, as a stopgap, this’ll do nicely.