The Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas will release his sophomore solo album, Tyranny, on September 23rd via his own Cult Records. In anticipation, the album is streaming in full below (via Rolling Stone).
The follow-up to 2009’s Phrazes for the Young is the first by Casablancas with his backing band The Voidz, which includes Jacob “Jake” Bercovici (bass guitar, synthesizers), Amir Yaghmai (guitar), and Jeramy “Beardo” Gritter (guitar).
In a recent promotional piece, Casablancas says he and The Voidz are dabbling in “an in-between area in music that hasn’t been explored.” As Gritter contends, “He wanted you to have the ability to play technical stuff, but also be able to thrash on three chords. So, for me, this was the band I needed to be in.”
(Read: Our exclusive review of Julian Casablancas’ Tyranny)
“I’ve always felt like the best cool things are never in their time, it always takes years,” adds Casablancas, before using Slayer as a metaphor. He goes deeper, saying, “I just feel like art musically, if you can do something really good and make it popular, you can inspire a lot and that parallel in other areas in the world.”
Speaking to NME regarding the 12-track album’s title, Casablancas said, “Tyranny has come in many forms throughout history. Now, the good business is pit above anything else, as corporations have become the new ruling body. Most decisions seem to be made like ones of a medieval king: whatever makes profit while ignoring and repressing the truth about whatever suffering it may cause (like pop music, for that matter).”
The album is preceded by two singles: the 11-minute “Human Sadness” and “Where No Eagles Fly”.
Pre-orders for the album are ongoing. In addition to standard CD, LP, and digital formats, Tyranny is also available on cassette and as a USB drive inside a cigarette lighter sleeve.
Tyranny Tracklist:
01. Take Me in Your Army
02. Crunch Punch
03. M.utually A.ssured D.estruction
04. Human Sadness
05. Where No Eagles Fly
06. Father Electricity
07. Johan Von Bronx
08. Business Dog
09. Xerox
10. Dare I Care
11. Nintendo Blood
12. Off to War…
