Tyranny (The Voidz album)
2014 studio album by Julian Casablancas + The Voidz
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Tyranny is the debut studio album by the American rock band the Voidz (marketed as Julian Casablancas + The Voidz), released on September 23, 2014, through the Cult label.[6] The album was recorded at Labyrinth, NYC, and produced by Shawn Everett.
| Tyranny | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 23, 2014 | |||
| Recorded | 2013–2014 | |||
| Studios | Labyrinth, NYC[1] | |||
| Genres | ||||
| Length | 63:09 | |||
| Label | Cult | |||
| Producer | Shawn Everett | |||
| The Voidz chronology | ||||
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| Alternate album cover | ||||
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| Singles from Tyranny | ||||
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The first single from the album, the 11-minute track "Human Sadness", was released on September 2, 2014. The second single "Where No Eagles Fly" was released on September 9, 2014, with its music video being directed by guitarist Jeramy "Beardo" Gritter.[4] After the album's release, the track "M.utually A.ssured D.estruction" was released as a promotional single.[5] The album was placed 50th in NME's "Top 50 Albums of 2014" list.[7]
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 66/100[8] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [9] |
| Clash | (7/10)[10] |
| Consequence | Favorable[11] |
| Drowned in Sound | (9.75/10)[12] |
| Exclaim! | (8/10)[13] |
| The Line of Best Fit | (6.5/10)[14] |
| NME | (6/10)[15] |
| Paste | (6/10)[16] |
| Pitchfork | (4.9/10)[17] |
| Rolling Stone |  [18] |
The album received generally positive reviews, though outlets often expressed mixed opinions. Rolling Stone gave the album 3.5 stars, calling it "the sound of a man shedding his skin. Not pretty, but more compelling for it."[18] Paste gave it 6.0,[16] while Exclaim! gave it 8 out of 10, calling it "a seriously sad album...compelling."[13] Lucas Villa of AXS awarded four out of five stars, writing, "Casablancas continues to exercise his experimental muscle in the most raucous ways with The Voidz in tow."[19] Benji Taylor of Clash gave the album 7/10, calling it "a weirdly wonderful mesh of awkward time signatures, unconventional song structures and, in general, unbridled madness".[10] Pitchfork was among the most negative of the reviewers, giving the album a 4.9 and calling it unlistenable and a failure.
GQ printed in a 2014 interview with Casablancas entitled, "Julian Casablancas Is Done Trying to Save You",
The record's called Tyranny, and that's sort of what it's about, Casablancas says: rapacious oil companies and a not-so-free press and environmental depredation. Money. Health care. Nightmares. The moon. "It's not very sexy to talk about these things, especially in a place like America, where things are, like, the best. But it just feels like we’re inside that Versailles bubble, you know?"[20]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Julian Casablancas, with additional writers noted. All music arranged by the Voidz.[6]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Take Me in Your Army" | Jake Bercovici | 4:21 |
| 2. | "Crunch Punch" | 4:51 | |
| 3. | "M.utually A.ssured D.estruction" | 2:33 | |
| 4. | "Human Sadness" | Alex Carapetis | 10:57 |
| 5. | "Where No Eagles Fly" | Bercovici | 3:44 |
| 6. | "Father Electricity" | 7:24 | |
| 7. | "Johan Von Bronx" | 6:01 | |
| 8. | "Business Dog" | Jeramy Gritter | 2:35 |
| 9. | "Xerox" | 5:05 | |
| 10. | "Dare I Care" | 6:25 | |
| 11. | "Nintendo Blood" | Jason Lader | 5:55 |
| 12. | "Off to War..." | 3:18 | |
| Total length: | 63:09 | ||
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[6]
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The Voidz
Technical personnel
|
Additional musicians
Artwork and photography
Management
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Charts
| Chart (2014) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[21] | 176 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[22] | 128 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[23] | 90 |
| US Billboard 200 | 39 |
| US Billboard Alternative Albums | 2 |
| US Billboard Rock Albums | 10 |