For twelve years since their acclaimed debut “Is This It,” The Strokes have fulfilled the hole Lou Reed previously occupied in pop culture as arch purveyors of New York swagger and indie musicianship. It’s a role they played so well, that even after a five year break, they could still pull a crowd of over fifteen thousand at Auditorium Shores. Let’s see Bieber pull that off. Now that the band’s returned to a steady pace of work, two years after the comeback Angles, we get their fifth offering, “Comedown Machine.”

But somehow, in the two years it took to produce this, The Strokes suddenly morphed into a Eighties New Wave group, which leaps out of tracks like first single “All This Time”, and “One Way Trigger”, both being packed with cheesy keyboards and riffs made for a bygone dance floor. There are still elements of the old Strokes, though, especially that classic swing feel that’s in my favorite track: “Welcome to Japan”, which also boasts the wonderful lyric: “What kind of a**hole drives a Lotus?” I also appreciate “Tap Out”, with its shred intro.  

I don’t have a problem with new wave though, and the album has good hits. But there are misses that are just catastrophic. The most egregious is “Chances”, where Julian Casablancas sings like his tongue is glued to the inside of his mouth.

After listening to this, I wonder if the title is The Strokes subtly trying to wean us off the hype of their comeback. Or, more likely the hype created by the eternally lionized Is This It. How about this, guys, try a little harder on your next release and we won’t make you own up to the past. Sound fair?