Julian Casablancas on Escaping the Shadow of the Strokes (Paywalled - Use incognito)

In the early 2000s, the Strokes's sleek sound and rock 'n' roll attitude—bolstered by an acclaimed 2001 debut, "Is This It"—revived New York's rock scene. The band's ascent triggered a gold rush among music executives seeking to sign similar acts. ​ Several years later, however, the quintet's album sales disappointed and its releases and concert appearances became more sporadic. Strokes leader Julian Casablancas released a solo album in 2009 in which he sought to give fans music he knew they'd like, something he now regrets. ​ Now the 40-year-old is heading a new band, the Voidz. In 2014 it released "Tyranny," and this year it released a second album, "Virtue," which has earned him critical praise for exploring new sounds and styles in a way that is still accessible. ​ "I don't wanna be a puppet that the ghost of my young self still controls," he sings on "Lazy Boy," one of the album's 15 tracks. Mr. Casablancas spoke with the Journal about escaping the shadow of the Strokes, balancing earworms with experiments, and how recording "Virtue" in Los Angeles made for a more upbeat album. Edited excerpts follow: ​ WSJ: You're such a New York character. Where do you actually live now? ​ JC: Wall Street. Just kidding. Right now, I'm in California, in Studio City, but I live on the East Coast. About an hour outside the city. ​ WSJ: The Voidz has a more challenging sound than the Strokes. Do you approach them differently? ​ JC: In terms of my "approach," for me, it's a continuation of the same thing. I know it sounds different, but the direction that maybe I wanted the Strokes to go in would have sounded different. ​ WSJ: You're saying this dichotomy—the Strokes are pop and mainstream and the Voidz are arty and difficult—is false? ​ JC: Yeah. From my point of view, the Strokes were not pop-leaning. They were successful with something that was not mainstream. But I don't think it was really pushing the boundaries I was interested in, even at the time. If things had happened differently with the Strokes, they might have sounded like the Voidz, you know? Or they might have sounded like, I don't know, a cappella jazz. Who knows. ​ JC: It's natural to have boy-band nostalgia. I feel that all the time. I like bands, and I like it when they stay together. But it's almost like, at this point, a soap opera. I don't want to disrespect it. Like, the Strokes have not broken up, you know? That door is not necessarily shut. ​ WSJ: Has it been a challenge establishing the Voidz as something other than "Julian's weird side project"? ​ JC: Of course. I'm not comparing myself to him—Michael Jackson is obviously on top of Mount Godmore—but he did, I don't know, four or five solo records before "Thriller." I'm sure they did relatively well—better than what I'm doing—but I'm just saying people like to simplify things. If you went back to that era, they'd just be like, "What are you doing? Why aren't you playing with the Jackson 5?" ​ JC: It's a terrible example. But I just think people aren't good at really judging things in the moment. Eventually, they come around, when it's safe enough to like something. ​ WSJ: It's a paradox: If the Strokes had been less of a cultural touchstone, maybe it'd be easier for you to make a mark with the Voidz. You wouldn't be haunted by your success. ​ JC: Time out. I'm not haunted. I don't mind. I'm proud of it. The paradoxical part, for me, is that the Strokes's success was such a slow-growing thing. Yes, we had a moment, and grew, and could play big concerts. But it was always like, 'Why aren't we doing well?' It wasn't like No. 1 hits and selling out arenas. It was six or seven years later, after we stopped trying, when all of a sudden we realized we could play these big festivals. The perception started becoming that we're this huge band. And that's cool. I'm happy it aged well. I'm 100% grateful. But the assumption that, like, we put out [2003's] "Room on Fire" and it was like the biggest album of all time, and now I'm playing, like empty clubs—the whole thing is funny to me. ​ WSJ: Your latest album, "Virtue," is getting better reviews than the first Voidz album, "Tyranny." What changed? ​ JC: On "Phrazes" ["Phrazes for the Young," his 2009 solo album], because I was scared of the "it's-a-weird-side-thing" perception, I did things I thought people would like more. ​ JC: With "Tyranny," we were a bunch of people with similar artistic tastes who loved underground music, of all countries and times. We had all—including [Voidz producer] Shawn Everett—been in so many different bands and situations where we felt, I don't want to say stifled, but maybe a mixture of feared, or prevented from wild or daring artistic choices. It was always kind of like, "You can't do that." So I think with every crazy idea [Shawn] had, we'd just be like, "Let's do it. Let's try it." ​ WSJ: So with "Virtue" you've found more of a balance? ​ JC: That's probably an accurate assessment. We realized we'd maybe dialed a little too far of a future date in the time machine with "Tyranny." We wanted to make an album that more casual music listeners would like as much as we liked "Tyranny." We wouldn't, like, compromise things, but we'd be a little more aware. We also did "Virtue" in L.A. If you hang out in sunny, nice places, your music becomes sunny and nicer. We thought letting some sunbeams into the Voidz would help. ​ Who Is He? ​ -Name: Julian Casablancas -What He Does: Singer and songwriter -How He Got There: In the early days of the Strokes, Mr. Casablancas meticulously composed nearly every melody, even guitar solos. After releasing "Is This It" and 2003's "Room on Fire," each about 30 minutes, Mr. Casablancas and his band ventured into more adventurous territory, relaxing their self-imposed constraints. -His Big Break: The Strokes were considered saviors of rock 'n' roll during New York's early 2000s indie-rock boom, much like Nirvana and Guns N' Roses in previous eras. -His Obsession: Artists who aren't as well known as their biggest hits. "Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, New Order, Queen," Mr. Casablancas says. "Obviously they're not under the radar, but just to me, in terms of the amount of songs you hear and go, 'Oh my God, I know that song.' "

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