It’s finally here! The Stroke’s new album, Comedown Machine, was just released this past month on March 26. It has been a few years since the release of The Stroke’s last album, and the two songs leaked last month from the new album show that Comedown Machine has a completely different vibe compared to the band’s usual music style. Have the Strokes lost their touch or have they just revamped their ways? Comedown Machine is the band’s fifth and final studio album fulfilling their contract with RCA records. This brings up a question about their next recording contract. Who knows? Their next record company could influence how their music will be played in the future. One thing that did bug me about the new album’s cover was that RCA is printed larger than the band’s name. I would think that “The Strokes” should be the largest words on the cover, not the record company. The album has eleven new songs on it, and buyers from Japan are lucky to get a bonus track named Fast Animals . Most of the songs seem pretty similar in style, which was a letdown because the difference between the two leaked songs before the album was released showed potential diversity on the album. However, even though there isn’t much diversity in the album, the electric, garage band feel the album has is a nice change of style for the band. One thing that confused me was that one of the two songs that were leaked, All the Time , was supposed to be the album’s lead single. When I first heard the song, I thought it was decent, but compared to the rest of the album, I think it is one of the worst songs. Other Strokes fans also didn’t like the song much so it’s just a wonder that they would make that their lead single. So far the album has been doing great on iTunes, reaching number 47 on the charts the first day it was released, and a high of number five the next day. Reviews on the internet are all positive with ratings four stars or higher, nothing below average. One thing I did notice that people complain about, and what I personally think as well, is that the new album seems more of a solo album for The Strokes’ lead singer, Julian Casablancas. On The Strokes previous album, Angles , Julian apparently would remove himself from the rest of the band and record his parts separately and just send the files through email. Yet on Comedown Machine, Julian was with the rest of the band while recording this time. Angles was a great album and their songs felt like it was a group effort even though Julian wasn’t recording with them, but on Comedown Machine , it felt like it was a solo album even though they recorded together. So I wonder if maybe the band is better off writing their songs like they did with Angles and having Julian record separately. Jason Geis, Elder student and Strokes fan, said, “The new album really impressed me. It had a modern electric sound, but it still sounds like The Strokes. I think it’s one of their best albums yet.” I agree with everything Jason had to say. The new album does sound very electric and modern but you can still tell it’s the same band at heart. I feel as though the reason for the electric garage-band feel this album has is because the band is trying to keep up with modern pop culture and trying to expand their audience while at the same time trying not to lose any of their old fans. When asking my sister, and huge Strokes fan, Lauren Bihl, what she thought of the album, she replied, “I think Comedown Machine is lacking in variety. Although a few songs are good, it seems like most are too similar.” I also agree with Lauren’s thoughts, like I said earlier, it seemed like the album would have variety but unfortunately did not, which was a big letdown. The band said they had left over material from Angles when making Comedown Machine. This has me worried for the band’s future efforts considering that thier previous material and their new material both sound the same. Could all their future songs turn out to sound the same? Hopefully this will not be true, and hopefully we will see more of the band in a few years with more enjoyable songs.