As the Strokes' recording hiatus stretched into its third year, bassist Nikolai Fraiture joined his fellow bandmembers Albert Hammond, Jr. and Fabrizio Moretti and started a side project. Backed by the British band South, Fraiture is Nickel Eye, and Time of the Assassins may be the most musically different of any of the Strokes' extracurricular music from their main project. Inspired by the Kinks, Frank Black and, especially, Leonard Cohen -- a cover of whose "Hey That's No Way to Say Goodbye" closes the album -- Nickel Eye trades in folky pop that sounds homespun despite cameos by Regina Spektor and Nic Zinner (whose strafing guitar is unmistakable on "Dying Star"). Perhaps the biggest difference between Time of the Assassins and the Strokes' output is the earnestness that radiates from this album, from Fraiture's voice, which is nasal and sometimes more than a little off-key, to its lyrics, most of which were culled from poetry he wrote while he was still in his teens. Not surprisingly, Time of the Assassins has more than its fair share of angst and brooding, from the black-hearted balladry of "Back from Exile," which uses traditional-sounding imagery such as fevers, New Orleans, and walking the line, to more typical breakup laments like "You and Everyone Else." These songs aren't exactly amateurish, but they are underdeveloped, starting out relatively strong before sputtering to a close. The album's lighter moments fare better, especially "Fountain Avenue," which fulfills Fraiture's daydream of being a '60s folkie with misty acoustic strumming and cooing backing vocals courtesy of his wife Illy, and the bruised pop of "Another Sunday Afternoon." "Providence, RI"'s ambling folk-rock and "Brandy of the Damned"'s reggae lilt are very different but equally charming, making the most of Fraiture's limited voice and showing off his skills as a creative, intuitive bassist. Neither horrible nor great, Time of the Assassins is an unassuming album, a working holiday that was probably more enjoyable to make than for anyone besides die-hard Strokes fans to hear.
© Heather Phares /TiVo