I always reference ‘Mad Max’ when I think about what I want to wear. But it’s a fine line between that and ‘Edward Scissorhands’. – Julian Casablancas
I’m not a pop song lyric writer. I can’t just focus on one simple meaning or even a double entendre. – Julian Casablancas
For a long time I didn’t want to do a solo thing, but there comes a point where everyone else is going outside of The Strokes and The Strokes filtering process. – Julian Casablancas
One of the big songwriting things for me has always been: always think what you do sucks. Because the second you stop believing that, you suck. And that’s a fact. – Julian Casablancas
L.A. is a vortex. The weather there tricks you into thinking you’re on vacation, even when you’re working fourteen hours a day. – Julian Casablancas
If you’re in a bar and a certain song comes on and the vibe is just different, it evokes the kinds of things that you want to feel, and if music can do that it’s a very special thing. – Julian Casablancas
I don’t really care about clothes, but it’s about wearing something that gives you social confidence. – Julian Casablancas
L.A.’s kind of, like, seven really cool towns. It’s so laid-back. If you go in the right spot, you can walk around, and you don’t need a car. – Julian Casablancas
The artistic element of Manhattan has kind of moved to Brooklyn. Has it changed it? Yeah. Has it ruined it? I would say no. It is what it is. I say better that than an urban war zone. – Julian Casablancas
When you first start writing a song, it’s fun, then when you start recording it, it’s fun, but by the time you’ve finished recording it, you’re sick of it. – Julian Casablancas
The Strokes can play anything. They could play ‘Thriller,’ and it would just sound like ‘Thriller’ as played by the Strokes. – Julian Casablancas
I think a lot of people study the rules too much and then don’t know how to be creative. – Julian Casablancas
Sometimes I’ve sat outside, not to tan, but as a result of that I ended up tanning slightly. – Julian Casablancas
Songwriting is hard – it’s so easy to fall into the same traps. It’s not like I wake up and songs flow out of me. – Julian Casablancas
I see myself out of my own eyes, which means I have no idea what’s going on the other way around. I just think I try to be a good person – and I fail. – Julian Casablancas
A tour is the most intense, stimulating way to hear music; it’s the best form to receive it. There’s genuine excitement from people. I feel like we’ve stepped up a level. – Julian Casablancas
There are so many little places I want to play, sometimes weird places I think would be fun to play… a bar that’s half full. – Julian Casablancas
In most cultures, you can have a kid at 18 and it’s not a big thing. It’s not like, ‘Oh, you’ve got to get a different haircut and move to the suburbs and act, like, 35.’ – Julian Casablancas
