Phrazes for the Young

Julian Casablancas - Phrazes for the Young
Critic Score
Based on 27 reviews
2009 Ratings: #451 / 923
User Score
Based on 265 ratings
2009 Rank: #218
Liked by 24 people
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CRITIC REVIEWS

80
Consequence of Sound

This is a big step for a guy who’s always been seen as “the frontman.” However, Phrazes for the Young changes all of that. Not only does it cement Casablancas’ as the driving force behind The Strokes, it presents him as the innovator: the guy willing to take chances.

80
Clash

‘Phrazes For The Young’ easily holds its own amongst not only his bandmates’ albums, but The Strokes output proper.

80
Billboard
The bleak drums on “Ludlow St.” segue into jangly guitars as Casablancas boozily mourns New York’s gentrified Lower East Side, proving that he can still orchestrate his own musical hangover.
80
Uncut

Phrazes For The Young testifies that the qualities that made Julian Casablancas so noteworthy in 2001 remain in place, just a little more difficult to predict.

80
Mojo
Julian Casablancas emerges with this engagingly odd collection of songs.
80
NOW Magazine
The album adheres to a less-is-best philosophy, and the songs sound effortless. It’s simple, straightforward and immediate, just like the first Strokes album.
80
SPIN

The effect is more Tokyo neon than Lower East Side leather. Surprisingly, the sonic leap forward intensifies Casablancas' greatest gift -- melody.

80
NME
Recorded under the radar with producer Jason Lader and Bright Eyes collaborator Mike Mogis, it’s a strange little album, just eight songs long but deceptively dense with ideas.
80
AllMusic

It may not have the sugar rush immediacy of the Strokes, and at times it's downright indulgent, but Phrazes for the Young shows that Casablancas has more than enough ideas for several albums on his own and with his band.

80
PopMatters

With a new Strokes album looking less likely by the day, I’m thankful for this — turns out Casablancas solo is just as good.

80
musicOMH

Phrazes For The Young is a successful departure from The Strokes' straightforward brawn, but it's not as different as it's been billed.

80
Evening Standard

It doesn't all work but it is daring and, as with the Strokes, the overall sound is strong and distinct enough to override any concerns about its authenticity.

78
Beats Per Minute

It’d be nice to get a new Strokes record in 2010, but Phrazes for the Young is that rarest of vanity projects: a successful one.

78
Coke Machine Glow
It is overarchingly ambitious for a solo debut, and despite Casablancas’ pre-release claims that this was going to be some classico-synth detour straight out the asshole of Tattooine, the album rarely, rarely stumbles into po-mo theatrics.
75
A.V. Club
Burdened with the responsibility of assuring the future of rock at the beginning of this decade, Casablancas now looks like he could have a decent future of his own.
70
Slant Magazine

Phrazes for the Young represents a creative departure for Casablancas and another milestone for his band—marking a point where they’ve produced more quality albums by themselves than as a group.

70
Spectrum Culture

After Phrazes of the Young, one wonders which route he will take: dance-pop, left-field audience alienation or expected unconventionality. Who knows? He might actually find Jesus.

67
Entertainment Weekly
In the end, deliberately(?) tinny tracks such as 'Glass' sound like sketches in search of a full band. Hopefully, said band will soon oblige.
60
The Guardian

Whenever Casablancas strains for seriousness, the album loses focus ... When he concentrates on making pop music, however, Phrazes for the Young is a blast.

60
Rolling Stone
A few songs have the old leather-jacket kick, but things get weirder as he explores alienation from a Lower East Side he once ruled.
60
God Is in the TV
In the early 2000's The Strokes set the pace for the decade with spontaneity and originality, but the pace here is slow, as Casablancas seems suffocated of inspiration, leaving an album with a lot to be desired. Lets just hope the long awaited new Strokes album reignites his creativity.
60
Q Magazine
'Ludow St' is lyrically smart, musically ambitious, more than any other track on Phrazes, it makes you wonder, if not regret, why the Strokes themselves never pushed the boat out this far. For that reason alone, it was worth Casablancas making this intriguing if imperfect record.
55
Pitchfork

The irony is that Phrazes for the Young is so smoothed over-- nearly all of Casablancas' trademark vocal roughness is airbrushed into oblivion-- it instantly sounds like a plexiglass-covered museum piece.

40
The Independent
They're infinitely preferable, however, to the concluding trio of "River Of Brake Lights", "Glass" and "Tourist", amorphous, arty exercises with a depressing line in nasty prog-rock keyboard parts.
40
Under the Radar
It's not all awful, and it's certainly not Gene Simmons doing "When You Wish Upon A Star," but it sure ain't the Strokes, either.
30
Drowned in Sound

As a musical reference point, people have the Eighties all wrong. Comparing new music to an entire decade is a pretty careless move to begin with, but the new artists that attract the comparison tend to be a world away from the spirit of synthpop, the genre that supposedly defines the period. Just because Little Boots, for example, uses some keyboards, it doesn’t make her music ‘Eighties’.

PipePanic
88

BAND BINGE: THE STROKES (PART 9INE OF 21ENTYONE)

How is NO ONE talking about THIS ALBUM? This is definitely the best solo Strokes album so far in their discography!

Goddamn does Julian Casablanca know how to craft a song. Even in projects that even he doesn't like (Fun fact:
According to Wikipedia, Julian Casablanca said that that this album played it too safe and was 'annoying, frustrating' to make), he is still bringing his ALL creatively. What this album is is a weirder, odder, and more ... read more

Plats
80

Nearing the end of a hiatus for The Strokes, Julian Casablancas puts together the solo record of his dreams. "Phrazes for the Young" is an outstanding synthpop record with all the 80's new wave nostalgia you could want. The production is great, the choruses are as catchy as you'd want them in a Strokes-related release, I love Jules’ vocals on here and there are a great deal of clever lines here ("I live on the frozen surface of a fireball"). I just wish there was ... read more

ScoopTime
68

Just before the release of The Stroke's Angles, Julian Casablancas released his self titled debut album titled Phrazes for the Young. If you could tell at any moment the direction The Strokes would go with The New Abnormal it would be here, the beginning of Julian's experimenting with synthpop. This project may not be as fun as the garage rock Julian and Co. are known for it is fun in its' own quirky ways with the electronics really adding a cool flavour to this album. Also if you could not ... read more

SamuelBeute
80

Favorites: 11th Dimension, Ludlow St., River of Brakelights
Least Favorites:
Cover: 4/5

87

It shows how great of a songwriter Julian is and just how many great songs he has written that this is still not really close to his best work. There's so many memorable hooks and melodies on this album and each song is such an earworm. The production here is a departure from pretty much all of his other work, with influences from synthpop and the wider pop genre as a whole, obviously still with his patented style and sound integrated. Even though this is one of his albums I come back to the ... read more

Calight
95

julian is slowly becoming one of my fav artists of all time
also this album is so underrated like holy shit yall are missing out on some amazing music

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