Battle of the Bands 10.13.09: Julian Casablancas vs. Electric Six

Posted by Adam Battagello on 10.13.2009

A showdown in the alternative scene with the now solo Julian Casablancas taking on Electric Six.

Welcome ladies and gents, so nice of you to join me for yet another fun filled installment of the article that hates the handshake and loves the face slap. It's Battle of the Bands.

Before the blow


In a quick musical comment, while scouring the cyber world for songs to use in today's article, I happened across the new Death Cab For Cutie track "Meet Me on the Equinox", that is set to be the lead single for the upcoming Twilight franchise sequel. Needless to say, as good as the song is, and it is a particularly strong track from the indie stalwarts, knowing what happened to the Paramore single "Decode" in terms of intense playback when the last movie was released, I am anticipating that by the end of 2009, I will likely never want to hear this song again.



Upon taking a look at the soundtrack for this upcoming movie, I was a little more than surprised to find that a lot of artists that I admire will be featured in the film. But suffice it to say I don't care if your music is so good that it makes Sgt. Peppers look like a recyclable disc, being in proud possession of a Y chromosome basically disqualifies me from ever having the need or desire to watch the film in question.

Perhaps if it went a little more like this…



...ok, maybe not.


It's Time For the Face-Off


This Week:
Julian Casablancas- 11th Dimension vs. Electric Six- Body Shot




I've combed the realms of alternative rock in an attempt to bring together some new singles for today's face-off. In the first corner we have Julian Casablancas of Strokes fame. The Strokes spent much of earlier this decade leading the revival of garage rock music, playing a vital role in the bitch slapping of your N'Syncs and your Backstreet Boys, and for this we should be eternally grateful. Now front man Casablancas is looking to pursue a solo career with his debut album ‘Phrazes For the Young' due out in November, this first single from which makes up half of today's battle.

And in the other corner we have Body Shot, the latest single from Detroit based group Electric Six. The group has received much recognition for their eclectic mix of new wave and alternative rock sounds, but surprisingly has flown under my radar up until now. So, will the guys I've never heard of overcome the guy who led a revolution in rock music? Let's find out.


Julian Casablancas- 11th Dimension



It must be a testament to Casablanca's willingness to explore, because frankly, ‘11th Dimension' sounds like very little like what you would have heard before from the singer. Defying his origins as a garage rocker, Casablancas brings us a song-steeped heavy in electro rock, if synths and drum machines are your thing, then this is going to be one for you.

Casablancas seems more determined than ever on ‘11th Dimension' to make some sort of insightful comment regarding modern culture on society, and to a degree, he succeeds. The lines "Where cities come together, to hate each other in the name of sport" and "America, nothing is ever just how you plan," seem to comment both on the harshness and absurdities of modern society at the same time. In his own way, on this first single, Casablancas is undoubtedly shooting high up on the list of modern musical social commentators.

In all honesty, as strong as this track may be, for anyone who is used to the well established rock sound of Casablancas' group The Strokes, this may seem like a big shift. Casablancas really is trying to move to the other end of the spectrum on his solo output and I say more power to him for giving it a shot. Not necessarily my normal flavor of music but you've gotta give respect to the man for attempting to make something more than just a one man Strokes album.

Moving on!

Electric Six- Body Shot


As I mentioned earlier, having not heard much of the group before, I find myself coming in with a fresh perspective on this single. So let's get this train wreck moving.

Much like its competition today, Body Shot is a track fuelled by an electro sound, albeit with much more of a rock feel than ‘11th Dimension', if you're looking for an appropriate comparison, think of your Franz Ferdinands and those other New Wave revival groups.

Lead singer Dick Valentine displays the same kind of self -confident snarl that propels Eagles of Death Metal singer Jesse Hughes. Both men just have the kind of voice that can really help them get any subject material over, no matter how absurd it may be. Body Shot is a track full of tongue in cheek lyrics, and really couldn't be any more different lyrically from its competition today. While Casablancas is making snide societal observations, Electric Six's lyrics are…how to put this lightly…fuelled by sex.

What more can I really say about Body Shot? If nightclubs played more tracks like this and less straight up dance music, maybe I would get out more often. The track itself is one of those rare offerings that is dancey enough for the club addicts, as well as rocking enough for anyone looking to do a bit of head banging. It's a hard line to tread, but the Electric Six manage to do it rather successfully with Body Shot.


There Can Only Be One!
This week, as strong as both tracks are, I'm going to side with Electric Six. A couple of times while writing Battle of the Bands I have been thoroughly impressed while reviewing a band that I have heard very little of, and this is another one of those situations. Like I said, Julian Casablancas has made a strong offering, yet I can't help but feel that his track ‘11th Dimension' may inadvertently end up alienating more than a couple diehard Strokes fans. Whether or not this was his intention, only he knows. On the other hand, Electric Six offer a track that I can see getting played in nightclubs, rock clubs, basically anywhere you can think of short of a classical music theatre. Many of these Franz Ferdinand sounding bands dabble in a style that has naturally wide appeal, and Electric Six's attempt this week was enough to get them the big W.

So, they were both strong tracks, what do you think?

With that, I'm outta here, until next week, happy battling.