The Strokes
The New Abnormal

“I just wanted to be a member of the Strokes, now look at the mess you've made me make. I'm hitchhiking with a rolling suitcase, miles away from any imaginary highway.”

The last Arctic Monkeys album opened with these words, a heartfelt homage from the newcomer (Alex Turner) to the "old" that changed everything. That indispensable gem released nineteen years ago, “Is This It”, truly reshuffled the deck, and for the Strokes, everything changed from that day. From that day, they had to contend with incredible expectations with each release; it's true that they often added their own share ("Angles" and "Comedown Machine", while certainly not bad, were not landmark albums), but it's also true that an album like "First Impressions Of Earth" was heavily criticized at the time of release only to be reassessed in the years to come.

Perhaps this is why the former prodigy kids took such a long break: a full seven years since the previous album and four years since the last very brief sortie (the "Future Present Past" EP, nice but also not irresistible). And perhaps also for this, they decided to rely on a guru like Rick Rubin, who in recent years seems to want to specialize in handling all important rock comebacks (Smashing Pumpkins, for example). Add to this the leader Julian Casablancas's desire to vent, which resulted in that small schizophrenic gem that was the recent second album by the Voidz, and the die is cast.

The question remained, then, how determined the New York rockers were to return to being a true, cohesive rock 'n roll band, and the answer comes with this new "The New Abnormal" (who knows how much Casablancas will smile thinking back to the choice of the title, given the situation we're living through in these months), which ultimately turns out to be their best album since "Room On Fire".

The Strokes seem to have decided what to be when they grow up, something unthinkable until recently: in this new work, their imprint is clearly evident everywhere, especially in tracks like "The Adults Are Talking" (the first piece to be presented live months ago), which opens grandly with the classic guitar intertwining typical of the American band (don't be fooled by the electronic drums at the beginning, we're deep in Strokes territory). And there is certainly brand new material for the die-hard fans of the early days, with "Why Are Sundays So Depressing?" seemingly lifted from "Room On Fire" and the second, brilliant single "Bad Decisions" destined to become a small great classic in the band's discography (the track is practically a semi-cover of Billy Idol's "Dancing With Myself", which is credited).

But it’s where tradition meets novelty that the best things happen: Casablancas this time brilliantly negotiates with his companions and brings some of the Voidz's healthy madness into the Strokes, with Rubin playing a fundamental role in brilliantly and expertly merging both elements. The lead single "At The Door" relies entirely on Julian's voice and leaves out Moretti's drumming for once, hitting the mark; "Brooklyn Bridge To Chorus" throws heaps of synths into the classic mix, "Eternal Summer" succeeds where "Comedown Machine" failed, while "Selfless" and the anthem "Not The Same Anymore" close the circle by paying homage to the Arctic Monkeys of "Suck It And See". It closes with "Ode To The Mets", a long crescendo ballad also anticipated before the album's release.

Jean-Michel Basquiat's artwork "Bird On Money" on the cover is the cherry on top of an album finally beautiful from start to finish, which might (given the very nature of the band, it’s better to use the conditional) have definitively brought the Strokes back to us. Welcome back, at last.

Best track: Not The Same Anymore