Julian Casablancas
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Julian Fernando Casablancas (born August 23, 1978) is the vocalist and songwriter of the band The Strokes.
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[edit] Early Life & Education
Julian Casablancas is the son of John Casablancas, the founder of Elite Model Management, and Jeanette Christiansen, a Danish model who was Miss Denmark in 1965, and brother of Cecile Casablancas. His parents were divorced when Casablancas was very young and he lived with his mother and ex-step-father Sam Adoquei.
The first band member that Casablancas knew was Nikolai Fraiture while the two attended the same kindergarten, later becoming best friends with him in the fifth grade. When he was 14, Casablancas was caught drinking before school and consequently forced into a rehabilitation program called Phoenix House twice a week. Soon afterwards, his father sent him to Institut Le Rosey, a boarding school in Switzerland. It was here that he encountered Albert Hammond Jr.. Although the two were not friends at the time, they would later become band-mates and room-mates.
When Casablancas returned to New York after six months at Le Rosey, he continued his education at Dwight School in Manhattan, where he met Fabrizio Moretti and Nick Valensi, who later also became fellow band members. He dropped out in 11th grade and attended Five Towns College on Long Island for one year, receiving a scholarship after writing a classical composition. He worked as a bartender before going into music professionally.
[edit] Music
Casablancas' musical influences are varied and wide ranging, including but not limited to The Velvet Underground, The Pogues, Bob Marley, Built to Spill, Guided By Voices, and The Doors. One of Julian Casablancas' (as well as other members of the band) main influence for starting a band was Nirvana, whom Julian is quoted to say as the last greatest rock band, (particularly Kurt Cobain whom Casablancas sees as a musical hero). As The Strokes' principal songwriter, he has the greatest impact on their sound and has been known to be extremely meticulous with it. Recently, however, the band purports that Casablancas has become more communicative and more open to others' contributions. [1]
Another recent change has come in the recording of his vocals, which is significantly clearer and louder than their first two albums. However Casablancas says this was adjusted only because it fit the songs more.
[edit] Personal life
[edit] Drugs and Alcohol
Casablancas has been known to be a heavy drinker, but he reportedly cut back on the alcohol because he felt it was beginning to interfere with their music, though many are still skeptical as to the extent of his alleged sobriety. In a March 2006 interview with NME, Julian said, "Alcohol didn't get in the way of shows, it just got in the way of songwriting and in the way of being a normal person, you know? You don't want to be thinking crazy shit 24 hours a day." However, recently Julian commented that cutting back on alcohol just means getting "stoned" more often.
He has also quit cigarette smoking.
[edit] Marriage
On February 5, 2005, Julian Casablancas married his band's assistant manager Juliet Joslin (now Juliet Casablancas). Although the two had not been dating for very long, they had known each other for years. He announced the engagement at several shows including Central Park, where prior to playing their song "Hard to Explain", he said, "I'm getting married and it's hard to explain!"
[edit] Trivia
- Courtney Love's song But Julian, I'm A Little Bit Older Than You, from her debut solo album America's Sweetheart (2004), was written about Julian Casablancas. [2] He has denied rumours that "Meet Me In The Bathroom" off Room On Fire was written about her in return.[citation needed]
- He has a tattoo of a tarantula on his right arm, as well as one on his chest of what may be two daggers in a cross and a treble clef on his right wrist.
- He is an avid baseball fan, particularly of the New York Mets, and has said that "if I could go back in time I’d be a minor league pitcher" [3]
| The Strokes |
|---|
| Julian Casablancas | Nikolai Fraiture | Albert Hammond Jr | Fabrizio Moretti | Nick Valensi |
| Discography |
| Albums and extended plays: The Modern Age | Is This It | Room on Fire | First Impressions of Earth |
| Singles: "Hard to Explain" | "Last Nite" | "Someday" | "12:51" | "Reptilia" | "The End Has No End" | "Juicebox" | "Heart in a Cage" | "You Only Live Once" |
