The Strokes Deserves Better Than the Ire of Ruthless Old-School Critics

By Dale B  •  in Features
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The Strokes recently celebrated the twentieth anniversary of their second album, Room On Fire, featuring some of the most iconic songs of their repertoire like ‘Reptilia’ and ’12:51′. Fans of the revered band took this time to reflect on this iconic album. 

One such retrospective came from Stereogum, with the piece detailing the many factors that led to Room On Fire’s immense popularity and immediate hype upon its release. This was all fine and good until the final paragraph kicked in. 

“The group never made an album nearly this good again.” Coupled with the Stereogum writer’s reverence for The Strokes’ debut album Is This It, there has been a vocal outcry amongst old-school fans and critics alike that The Strokes are somewhat of a one-album wonder. 

This is far from the truth, though rereading older reviews of each Strokes album post-Is This It shows that these constant comparisons to their first album have halted any meaningful conversations on who The Strokes are and what people think they are. 

Vision of Division

The Strokes’ rise to fame was nothing to scoff at, as the New York quintet quickly rose to messianic heights, with many seeing their 2001 debut as heralding the return of rock and roll after the likes of more radio-friendly fare came to dominate the charts. 

Is This It carries this garage rock flair while having each subsequent song be as catchy as the last. It was lightning in a bottle that many were desperate to have the band replicate, an immense pressure that was put on The Strokes themselves. 

Room On Fire was seen as a natural rethread of Is This It’s sound, but the hype began to die down with their third album, First Impressions of Earth, where critics tore the album down, claiming it to be the band’s weakest release and their first “flop”.

Then came the band’s five-year hiatus, with the relationship between the bandmates becoming strained after their rapid rise. This led to Angles in 2011, a proper reinvention of their sound, which still drew comparisons to Is This It, which was a decade old at this point. 

For most old-school fans, this was probably the breaking point for their Strokes fandom, with the subsequent album and EP, Comedown Machine and Future Present Past, not doing much for those who were already clamouring for the days of ‘Last Nite’ and ‘New York City Cops’. 

80’s Comedown Machine

The next major hiatus for The Strokes took seven years, with key members like frontman Julian Casablancas and guitarist Albert Hammond Jr. making strides with their solo projects. Yet, the world wanted The Strokes, and the band truly delivered. 

2020’s The New Abnormal came out at the right time, with its Jean-Michel Basquiat album cover and coincidental name resonating with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, The Strokes managed to recapture the magic in their special way. 

Touted as a return to form, The New Abnormal was truly a success when it won the Best Rock Album at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards in 2021. Recognition aside, it was weird that those who praise The New Abnormal didn’t have the same things to say about the two albums that preceded it.

If anything, The New Abnormal is the culmination of The Strokes’ shift to a new wave sound that began with Angles. Even elements of the more syncopated rhythms of Comedown Machine are highly evident in songs like ‘Brooklyn Bridge to Chorus’ and ‘Why Are Sundays So Depressing’.

That said, there were still outlets like Pitchfork and The Observer that saw The Strokes as nothing more than 80s-inspired hacks. Comparisons to Is This It were still abound with publications like The Times comparing the first album to the sixth, albeit in a more favourable light.

The Modern Age

There is something to be said about those who have a lived history with The Strokes, seeing their growth in real-time and embracing their no-frills approach to rock in an age where things became a little more produced and layered. 

It is how they are adamant in having some sort of set image and sound for The Strokes, and becoming beholden to Is This It as gospel that makes it hard to talk about all the good The Strokes have done with their later albums. 

Those of a later generation, one that enjoyed a musical landscape where The Strokes were already an established act and saw Angles as a triumphant return for the band, are more accepting of The Strokes’ more new wave sound. 

It remains to be seen if The Strokes will ever make another album, but if they do, music fans have to let go of Is This It. The other albums all have their charms and characteristics that deserve a thorough re-review through modern lens. 

The Strokes were put on a pedestal the minute they became big and it is unfair for them to ever live up to any sort of expectations that were set on them by the public. They have evolved and become one of the most influential bands of the 21st century, far outclassing the initial success of Is This It. 

Photos by Jason McDonald.