The New Abnormal (2020)

The New Abnormal is the sixth studio album by American rock band the Strokes, released on April 10, 2020, through Cult and RCA Records. It was their first full-length album since Comedown Machine (2013), marking the longest gap between studio albums by the band. The album was produced by Rick Rubin and recorded at his Shangri-La studio in Malibu, California, with additional recording taking place at studios in Los Angeles County and Hawaii. The Strokes began performing songs from the album for the first time throughout 2019 before revealing the album's track list and cover art in early 2020. "At the Door", "Bad Decisions", and "Brooklyn Bridge to Chorus" were released as singles prior to the album's release, with "The Adults Are Talking" being released to radio months later.

The New Abnormal received highly positive reviews from critics, many of whom considered the album a return to form for the band. Praise was directed particularly towards the maturity of singer Julian Casablancas' lyrics, as well as the band's improved sense of musical cohesion. The album reached No. 1 in Scotland and the top ten in six other countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom. It won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Album at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards in 2021, the band's first nomination and win.

Background and recording

Writing sessions for The New Abnormal dated as far back as 2016, following the release of the band's Future Present Past EP from the same year. Guitarist Nick Valensi had told DIY that they were "slowly but surely" making progress on the album. The following year, Albert Hammond, father of guitarist Albert Hammond Jr., told The West Australian that the Strokes were working with Rick Rubin on an upcoming album. Hammond Jr. responded to this via Twitter, stating that they were only presenting musical ideas to him and were not in any recording sessions. The band would eventually begin recording sessions with Rubin at his Shangri-La studio in Malibu, California. Additional recording took place at Studio City Sound, Lucy's Meat Market, Groove Masters, and Joel and Zach's Studio, all in Los Angeles County, as well as Mauka View in Princeville, Hawaii.

On May 13, 2019, the band performed live for the first time in two years at the Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles, premiering a new song entitled "The Adults Are Talking". The show was the first of what was dubbed a "global comeback tour". Early shows were plagued by technical difficulties ranging from sound issues to rain-outs to cancellations of entire festivals, partly due to COVID-19.

Composition

Music critics have generally considered The New Abnormal to be an indie rock album. Matty Pywell of Gigwise wrote that it blended indie rock and "new wave mixed with electronica". Writing for Newsweek, James Crowley wrote that the album sonically leans more towards the "disco-tinged post-punk than the garage rock they made their name with," while Kitty Empire of The Observer labeled it as "all-out pop". Writers have also considered the album as having elements of 1980s pop music, glam rock, and dream pop. The album houses the same style of dueling guitar riffs heard on the Strokes' previous albums. Harrison Screen of Vinyl Chapters found that it also carries on the tradition of the band blending "a vintage feel into modern-day," adding that "these songs are straight from the seventies." Reviewers found that the second half of the album has a much slower pace and is more dedicated to ballads. The album also includes a series of outtakes of studio chatter interspersed throughout the album. Many lyrics on the album are thought to refer to Casablancas' divorce from his wife Juliet Joslin.

Two songs on the album incorporate vocal melodies from other songs, both of which include songwriting credits for the original performers. The chorus of "Bad Decisions" uses the vocal melody from "Dancing with Myself" (1980) by Generation X, and some of "Eternal Summer" uses the vocal melody from the chorus of "The Ghost in You" (1984) by the Psychedelic Furs.