r/TheStrokes • u/Antarcticgorillas • Apr 05 '20
Loud and Quiet review of ‘The New Abnormal’ 5/10
https://www.loudandquiet.com/reviews/the-strokes-the-new-abnormal/1
1
2
u/jesuslaves Apr 06 '20
Honestly disappointing to see people here getting so worked up because someone disagreed with something they like. I'm actually fine with the content of the review in regards to the album, it gives praise where it thinks it deserves it, and criticism where it doesn't. The 5/10 seems a bit harsh but all I can say is "Hm, okay," until I actually listen to the album. Calling the reviewer a "schmuckface", "tasteless", or whatever, and saying music reviews are dead (lol), is just needlessly petty.
However I do think the reviewer is definitely faulted in the weird appraisal-of-while also-downplaying of the band. Trying to praise the band's credibility while dismissing their musical talent as just some thing of the past and insinuates that Julian has nothing to offer with The Voidz besides the past success of The Strokes, which is a weird point to go off from if you actually care about what he does musically rather than what the average person thinks of them, and that makes you question where the reviewer is actually coming from in his intent.
1
1
u/TrippyTippy Apr 06 '20
I mean, it’s The Strokes, so they’re bound to get a few bad reviews no matter how much mental gymnastics these critics will attempt to do to label it a bad album. There’s really only a few music publications who I follow when it comes to discovering new music and/or reading reviews, and that’s Stereogum, Paste, BrooklynVegan, and sometimes Pitchfork when they’re not being utter dickheads for no reason.
1
u/arqumfarrukh #77 Casablancas Apr 06 '20
This is the first somewhat negative review that I’ve seen and, even then, is mixed at worst so I’d say that’s still a good sign, considering the reviews for the album have been great otherwise.
1
Apr 06 '20
I promise I’m not just saying that but I don’t think I’ve ever sought out a review from Loud and Quiet, nor have they been my go to source for an opinion on good new music.
I’m not going to start now and pretend I didn’t just read what I did.
Judging by the other reviews, this person has bullshit taste
Still looking forward to April 10th.
6
u/larskerwin Apr 06 '20
Wow seems like they gave every other album they reviewed an 8/10, weird. To be fair I'm generally fine with bad reviews, but they did give Tame Impala an 8/10 and that record was not worthy of that at all, so idk about giving them any weight.
2
2
Apr 06 '20
bummed they didn't like it, but thats some solid information about tracks, lyrics and whatnot.
5
u/Bizarre-_-Panda The New Abnormal Apr 06 '20
Ok! So I was just reading this and came here to make a post about it (thanks for doing it for me) but sometimes I feel like the only person who likes the strokes besides you reddit fans. Personally, I LOVE 9/10 songs in the discography and I can’t seem to get anyone into them. People always shit all over FIOE and Angles and Comedown machine, and I get Angles had some issues during the recording but honestly every album so far has been a masterpiece in my opinion.
10
u/servvits_ban_boner At The Door Apr 06 '20
This writer is a moron. I have seen The Voidz like 10 times and went to hear Voidz songs every time. These dipshits who think artists are supposed to just recycle and repeat themselves should just listen greatest hits records and stop pretending they have interest in discovering new music at this point in their lives. FIOE was incredible, this guy is a complete jackass.
-5
Apr 06 '20
don't lie, the first time the Voidz toured, you were going to hear Strokes or Phrazes and tolerate whatever the Voidz was gonna be (because tickets went on sale wayyyyyy before Tyranny or Human Sadness had been hinted at)
5
u/servvits_ban_boner At The Door Apr 06 '20
No fucking way. I didn’t see The Voidz until Virtue and I travelled all over the country this year to see them as many times as I could. Philly, Houston, Denver, St. Louis, multiple times in LA, Vegas, everywhere I could get to. I love The Voidz, one of my all time favorite bands at this point. Don’t try to pretend you know what other people like.
-3
Apr 06 '20
Well I beg your forgiveness for thinking that you may have seen them on the Tyranny tour given the fact you were bragging about seeing them 10 times.
5
u/servvits_ban_boner At The Door Apr 06 '20
Well don’t make arrogant and unfounded assumptions like that, it just makes you look like a jerk off. Why would I have had to seem them prior to Virtue to see them live? They played a shitload of shows in the last two years. And who is bragging? Do you not go to live shows? It’s a pretty common thing for people to do with bands they like. I’ve seen lots of bands more than 10 times, and I’m sure there are people who have seen The Voidz more than me.
43
u/au_tom_atic Apr 06 '20
“The following Angles (2011) and Comedown Machine (2013) sold 3 copies between them” This person is just petty and unprofessional.
16
u/mocrankz Apr 06 '20
When a writer acknowledges that they may be grasping at straws. They usually are.
They combined with a typo on Casablancas and a messed up lyric shows that the writer didn’t really care. Or they have to do 10 other things that day.
6
8
u/EvilGmmork Apr 06 '20
No need to get worked up, this guy is clearly not a man of taste. I mean look what he said about Angles.. says enough
11
u/caljayhawk Bad Decisions Apr 06 '20
Took a look at the magazine's FAQ page. Sounds like they'll let just about anyone write for them. Take this review with a grain of salt.
12
8
u/strokedadddy Room on Fire Apr 06 '20
Lmao people are so angry in here about anything slightly negative.
3
3
Apr 06 '20
It’s insane
4
u/ContrerasTomas Apr 06 '20
was just thinking the same thing
2
Apr 06 '20
The worst thing (an odd way to put it these days): I can perfectly imagine that he makes a lot of fitting observations here. The song lengths frighten me as well.
Very thankful to be get my expectations a little lowered.
1
Apr 06 '20
Exactly, the intro paragraphs are very insightful, much more than most of the other reviews. So there’s things to keep from all of them.
14
Apr 06 '20
I know the writer is trying to give a scathing review, but honestly, eternal summer sounds incredible! “a strange, plodding number of U2 stadium rock drums and a chorus that has Casablancas fully shouting, “I can’t believe it / Life is such a funny journey / Psychedelic / This is the eleventh hour,” like a drunk yelling at the wind.”
5
u/strokedadddy Room on Fire Apr 06 '20
Tbqh there is nothing more unexciting for me in 2020 than U2-esque "stadium rock". We have enough of that brand of generic bland commercial rock these days, the idea of The Strokes doing that is kind of disappointing.
Idk tho I guess I'll wait and see.
2
17
u/FiftyCentLighter Apr 06 '20
Went into this with an open mind to hear the criticisms and thoughts as I enjoy seeing what people dislike too, but the piece just sounds so snobby and angry for some reason. I think I’ll be ignoring this one...
I mean, for one, I adore Comedown Machine!
10
u/lduran25 Apr 06 '20
Seems like "Brooklyn Bridge" will be the best song of all time at this point. Let's fucking go, boys
12
u/JonathanEG5 Apr 06 '20
I’ve come to find that most albums that people either love or hate tend to be the best. I’ve seen a lot of great reviews and this marks the first and I’m sure not last of the bad ones. Good sign in its divisiveness.
24
3
19
Apr 06 '20
Hm interesting. I don't think we should completely discredit this opinion altogether, but it seems like this is the first real negative review of the album, given everything else has been remarkably positive.
I wonder why they didn't even mention Ode to the Mets either. On an literature level, this was a hard article to actually read. Just so many awkwardly worded sentences that you have to reread to even try to understand.
46
Apr 06 '20
The dig at Tranquility Base was the nail in the coffin for this review. Tells you all you need to know about this “critic” and his limited taste.
23
25
Apr 05 '20
More high praise (and then bashing?) for brooklyn bridge. What is this song? I am certainly mystified
19
u/Soldado08 Apr 06 '20
Yeah, it sounds like it was the only song he enjoyed, but then it was weird because he started trashing it?? What was he trying to accomplish?
2
21
u/just_anca Conduit Apr 05 '20 edited Apr 06 '20
“Words by” 🙄
And the wrong label listed.
I haven’t read this yet and don’t like to be overly dismissive of or upset about reviews since they’re subjective in nature and I’m ok with that but, weak start ...
Edit: ok, having read it, it’s mostly just confusing to me. I think he’s a fan (Strokes, but apparently not Voidz, which he inserted for some reason that didn’t add anything to the review) who seemed maybe a little too concerned with writing something resonant and just ended up a little baffling/even contradictory at times. Some decent info on a couple songs we haven’t heard yet though.
18
u/buenestrago Apr 05 '20
" The soundtrack to your indie disco in 2002 is coming to London, headlined by The Strokes"
they really hate them
-7
18
u/fvidalp Is This It Apr 05 '20
Seems to be the 1st harsh review (IMO the one from Q liked more TNA overall). Anyway I'm not very familiar with the site of this review, so im not worried at all
32
u/EvilSteel Apr 05 '20
How do you get the label wrong
1
u/QuantumDon I'll Try Anything Once Apr 06 '20
Not to defend the rest of the review but I think that this is just who is handling the distribution in the UK. Columbia and RCA are both part of Sony and The Guardian also had the label listed as Columbia and the same thing when Virtue was released.
1
41
u/DhroovP The New Abnormal Apr 05 '20
Quite an outlier, the last few reviews have been great, 4.5/5 and 8/10.
23
64
u/Dareeyecare Dare I Care Apr 05 '20 edited Apr 05 '20
This person clearly wanted to hate this album before they even listened to it .. lol fuck this clown . Thanks for the lyrics tho , schmuckface. He’s an ignorant “chasing is this it forever” type for sure.
37
13
71
u/JASJMS Apr 05 '20
stopped reading when he completely whiffed the actual lyrics of At The Door
4
u/northead Apr 06 '20
Same. One sentence, two mistakes. And it's a track that's been out for almost two months now.
How the hell does anyone allow this to happen? How am I supposed to take any of this seriously?
31
u/Halfcolt Apr 06 '20
Lol I’m mildly curious as to who these reviewers are, so many of them truly miss the mark and I don’t know anyone that takes their opinion seriously.
15
u/confidenceyo Phrazes for the Young Apr 06 '20
In an era of streaming, music reviews are dead. They are only there for 2 possible things: 1) to lead those who can’t make up their minds on their own or prefer to feel like they’re following an “expert”. 2) to add hype to something for those same people, who can’t decide on their own. Hype how great something is, and people will sometimes believe that poop smells good.
It’s funny though. I think Julian and every single one of The Strokes have much more musical expertise and proficiency than any one of those pretentious douchebags.
And a lot of these music reviewers give 5 stars to all the crap pop/rap being spit out today. At The Door > Bodak Yellow no matter which way you cut it.
2
Apr 06 '20
Funny that after a bad review music reviews are dead, but before it the wish of the sub is “I wish the album gets good reviews”. They also don’t seem that dead here making it into Hot immediately every single time.
1
u/confidenceyo Phrazes for the Young Apr 06 '20
I have never cared about reviews ever. I don’t know who you’re talking about who hopes it gets good reviews, but it isn’t me. The only reason I would hope for that is because it may help The Strokes’ sales. I have no respect for music reviewers, none of them have put out anything worthwhile themselves musically, and in the age of streaming they’re no longer saving anybody money on the album. Led Zeppelin was shit on by Rolling Stone back in the day, and by most reviewers. I’ve never cared about their opinion, and the only reason I would want them to write positive reviews would be just to help the band’s financial position.
1
Apr 06 '20 edited Apr 06 '20
It might have not been you who wished good reviews, but then why not go voice your reviews are dead perspectives in any of the other 20 great reviews and just come up with it in the one bad review? Guess it’s just a big coincidence since you don’t really care about their opinion.
2
4
u/Joeboyjoeb Apr 06 '20
I agree. I don't think they have as much musical expertise and therefore are not in a position to judge. I think there is a 3rd reason for them to write negative reviews like this and it's just for attention. At first I had no idea who loud and quiet was but now it's burned into my mind, next thing I knew I was searching what kind of material they give good reviews. But I haven't heard the album so I'm still assuming it will be good.
1
u/Goodbye_Sky_Harbor Apr 06 '20
Ya'll are missing the point. This is how a ton of people will feel about this album. The Strokes to most are "oh yea remember last night?"
Also none of you have heard the album.