This album starts off with “Leave It In My Dreams”, and it’s a sort of light, fluttery Garage Rock intro. Honestly, it’s more of what I would expect to hear from The Strokes these days than The Voidz. However, this is still well done and pleasant to listen to. If you know Julian’s performance style from whatever project you’ve heard him in, you should know what to expect. This is an alright opener, I don’t completely hate it. But first off, of all of the singles released from this album, this is by far my least favorite. But more importantly, I have to stress this doesn’t sound like a Voidz track at all. But it’s a pleasant listen, and some of the vocal effects on Julian’s vocals in the later moments are a decent intro to the genuine weirdness of this album. It’s alright, but it’s a very safe opening tune. On the other hand “QYURRYUS” is much more like it on every level. I love the funky, wild riff and just how gruff this one sounds. This is far from the pristine, toothless material The Strokes have been dishing out recently. No, this is a genuinely out there, experimental Funk tune. Not to mention, all of the focus is completely around the seriously weird performance of Julian. Of all of the good things about this project, I think my favorite part of this entire album is hearing Julian go absolutely wild. The pulsating beat, the wild guitar riffs, it all comes off so spontaneous and in the moment. Not to mention, this is easily some of my favorite use of auto-tune in recent memory, “QYURRYUS” absolutely rules. Then we have “Pyramid of Bones”, which is a little more upbeat and more gruff sounding. While at first this once again comes off like some Strokes leftovers, this is far from that. We get a gritty riff, another seriously passionate and pissed off performance from Julian, and it all comes off genuinely bizarre. Then, we get these even weirder freak-outs during the chorus. I absolutely love “Pyramid of Bones”, it’s so determined, and the feeling that anything can happen at any moment is really exciting. But like, take this and compare it to the new Jack White album which seemed so rigid and weird for the sake of being weird. This on the other hand, this literally just sounds like Julian Casablancas freaking out, and it’s massively entertaining. Even that last absolute blast is just so brilliant. But then we get to some of lesser moments here, like “Permanent High School” which really tones things down. In a lot of ways, this track is my issue with the Voidz. Why the hell is this album almost an hour? And 15 tracks? Tracks like this absolutely do NOT have to be here. They don’t really add anything to the album at all. Sure, there are some sweet lyrics here and there, but this once again doesn’t come off like a Voidz track. This sounds like Strokes leftovers, and it’s the most average Strokes leftover you’ve ever heard. It’s pleasant to listen to, but it’s not what I showed up for. On the other hand, I seriously love “AlieNNatioN”. This one immediately throws us right back into the more experimental and weird side of this album. But The Voidz this time around are sounding so much more accessible and focused. This one has a great funk to it, and I love the contrast between that Julian’s soothing performance. This isn’t the most explosive track or the biggest statement, but it really fits the sounds of the album. Not to mention, I love how synthetic this track comes off Sure, there are some sweet vocals and instrumentals, but it’s all so cold, and I love it.
On the other hand, “One of the Ones” all around is so much more hulking. The instrumentals are just so massive, and I love the production here. Julian here isn’t soothing, he’s far from it. This is one of his more out-there performances, but it ends up coming off strangely streamlined, and certainly more focused than you would expect. I love the winding passages and just how out of control Julian’s vocals become, only to be sort of leveled out by this practically tropical breakdown. The Voidz certainly know how to keep you on your toes. And speaking of keeping us on our toes, “All Wordz Are Made Up” is a straight-up funk tune. It’s a bizarre one, but a funk tune nonetheless. Julian’s muffled vocals sound right at home though, and this track comes off almost anthemic. It’s seriously catchy, and I feel like there’s almost some Daft Punk influence to this one deep down. “All Wordz Are Made Up” will certainly get you grooving, and I continue to be just so impressed with how focussed The Voidz sound. Not to mention, Julian’s vocals get so damn passionate at points. This tune is absolutely killer. But what in the hell is going on with “Think Before You Drink”? This track is a Lo-Fi, stripped down Folk tune that sounds out of the book of Guided By Voices. But man, this is just sounding incredibly awkward. Like, this is just so goofy and not nearly as experimental as I would have liked to hear. Julian doesn’t even sound confident in his performance sadly. If this is supposed to be some endearing ballad, it’s way off. Once again, did this track really need to be here? But “Wink” brings back in a lot of those Experimental characteristics we’ve heard plenty of so far. That pulsing, almost industrial instrumental is brilliant, and deep down there’s almost a Pop Rock tune hiding. But the way this tune is presented is brilliant. It’s got a great beat, it has some attitude, and it remains accessible. I love the fluttering guitars underneath it all, and it just reminds us even in the ugliest of moments there may be something seriously pleasant deep down. Either way, “Wink” will absolutely pump you up. On the other hand, “My Friend the Walls” is much more immediate starting off with this incredible vocal line from Julian. It’s actually seriously euphoric and gets me really excited for this. But once again, while I dig this track for its intensity and straightforward ideas, I literally feel like this is a Strokes tune that Julian just doused in effects. Which once again, is totally fine, but it’s just not what I want to hear. It’s ok and certainly listenable, but it’s far from the most original tune here.
This album rattles on with “Pink Ocean”, which is actually a really cool track. While the pacing is a whole lot more on the slower side, this one has a seriously mysterious and cool vibe to it. Julian’s vocals here are seriously soulful, it really doesn’t even sound like him. But I’mall for this, cause this track is absolutely funky as hell. it’s a weird one for sure, and contains a whole lot of seriously ghoulish moments. But it all seems to fit comfortably into the world of The Voidz, especially down to the “I want out of this world” chorus. It’s a chilling moment on this album and really shows off the great sadness behind The Voidz. “Pink Ocean” is not nearly as fun as some of the earlier tunes here, but I’m all for it. “Black Hole” on the other hand really does just sound like Julian is literally losing his mind. The instrumental here is practically imploding upon itself, and it sounds like it’s constantly about ready to fly off the tracks. Then, we have Julian’s manic, outrageous vocals which sound like he’s just rattling off whatever he’s thinking. And honestly, I absolutely love it. “Black Hole” is erratic, insane and an absolute blast. However, tracks like “Lazy Boy” continue to be the biggest thorn in my side. This literally sounds like the same boring garbage that The Strokes would put out these days and expect people to eat it up. Even in Julian singing “I don’t wanna do this anymore”, it’s so obvious that tunes like this are just not the fun he wanted to have. Tracks like this puzzle me, especially after The Voidz so far have come out with so many truly ballsy, Experimental Rock tunes. And then what? Are you going to just plop this at the end? It just doesn’t seem right to men I think some of the woozy synths are cool. But everything else about “Lazy Boy” is painful. Then we have “We’re Where We Were”, which is just as confusing as it’s title. I like the upbeat, tense playing here and the fuzzy production. But Julian’s vocals on this one are all over the place. This track is actually all over the damn place. I feel like some of the verses are sort of average, but some of the breakdowns are easily the most intense moments on this entire album. “We’re Where We Were” is a weird one, so much so that I’m just sitting here stunned by it. I don’t hate it, but I certainly don’t love it, it’s sort of just bombarding me. But once again, The Voidz come up with a seriously weird choice for a finale in “Pointlessness”. After all of these exciting and wild tracks to just get this sort of bland, melancholy closing track is just seriously weird. Julian doesn’t even sound like he’s interested in this at all. Even the instrumental is just so incredibly average, especially after just how truly wild the rest of this album is.
Rating: 7.9/10
Give A Listen To: “QYURRYUS”, “Pyramid of Bones”, “All Wordz Are Made Up”, “Wink"
Genre: Experimental Rock / Garage Rock / Noise Rock
Overall Thoughts: The Voidz return with their second full-length album and a much more accessible sound. This album overall is pretty wild, filled with tortured vocals from Julian Casablancas and pretty off the rail instrumentals. I think what makes this such a fun album is its unpredictability. You never know when The Voidz are going to decimate your eardrums with some abrasive breakdowns or a legitimate funky, futuristic Rock tune. But where this album lacks is Julian Casablancas still clinging to his past. Sprinkled throughout this album are a few tunes that sound like legitimate Strokes tunes that Julian just piled tons of effects on top of. And no, they aren't exactly good Strokes songs either. This album is still an absolute blast and a seriously clever, Experimental Rock album, but I think The Voidz have yet to give us our all.
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