- Nancy Flight is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Justin Everett is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- John Westover is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Nora Etches is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Edward Henderson is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Bharadwaj Chandramouli is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Dean Chatterson is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Marius Scurtescu is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Robert Parkes is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- James Murton is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Susan Doyle is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Vincent Strgar is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Helen Spiegelman is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Subir Guin is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Kimball Finigan is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Joanne Manley is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- David Leach is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Joel Berger is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Heather Sapergia is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
- Dittmar Mundel is a Tyee Builder. You can be, too.
Different Strokes?
No, just the same old New York jive.
Slummin' it with The Strokes.
-
The Death of Paul Simon
He contemplates the hereafter. We contemplate his legacy.
-
Destroying the Dance Floor
With slinky new album 'Kaputt,' Dan Bejar confounds all expectations again.
-
The Call of the Wild
Karen O's Magical Mystery Tour
Is this it? Seriously? It's taken The Strokes five years to release a new single that's almost identical to their first single? Should we even be surprised? Were The Strokes really ever all that?
To be fair, this is a band that came along when popular music was in a particularly dreary place, back in the weenie-pulling heyday of Limp Bizkit, boy bands, nu rock and pop punk. Given the suicidally depressing strip-mall gestalt of blink-182 or the mono-browed jock-stalt of Staind and its constipated ilk, who could blame us for losing our shit over five hot dudes from New York who sounded like Television?
But that was 10 years ago, and on the evidence of new single Under Cover of Darkness" -- what a crappy title, by the way -- The Strokes still sound like Television. More than ever, in fact, just not nearly as interesting. Which simply doesn't cut it after the tense build-up that followed their signing off in 2006 with "You Only Live Once." This was after three albums of diminishing returns, boring live appearances, Hollywood girlfriends, mediocre solo efforts, Nikolai Fraiture's new hair and the growing sense that The Strokes really were -- as early critics grumped -- children of privilege. Which chafed a little when they persisted in never delivering the knockout punch after such a great, three-minute debut. And let's be frank; dropping "New York City Cops" from Is This It after 9/11 was a wiener move. Final score? The Strokes have still failed to improve on the giddy revelation of "Last Nite." Meaning they aren't doing their job properly.
LISTEN TO THIS
The Strokes - "Under the Cover of Darkness"
Their new album, Angles, comes out on March 21. A week earlier, an authentically destitute group of filthy Texan urchins called High Tension Wires release their first album since 2007's Midnight Cashier. You want a whip-smart, retro-inspired gas? Expect Welcome New Machine to take a big 'ol dump from a great height on the NY glamour boys. ![[Tyee]](http://thetyee.cachefly.net/ui/img/ico_fishie.png){kind=small}
- Cohen rejects request to reopen salmon hearings
- Dave Barrett, Kim Campbell named to Order of BC
- Harper gov't funded study arguing Canada suffers from 'Dutch Disease'
- BC biotech company seeks approval for GM apple
- Union cites safety risk as marine centres slated for closure, including BC
- Theft of giant cedar prompts call for increased park policing
- Surprise! Trio of ministers shows up unexpectedly for environment hearings
- BC committee crosses Clark on cosmetic pesticide ban
- Bill C-38: the Environmental Destruction Act
- Canada's Economy, Deconstructed (by a 12 year-old)
- Is the 'Living Wage' Enough?
- What About Just Guaranteeing Everyone a Basic Income?
- Van Dongen No Hero to Me
- Republicans, get in my vagina!
- Tories admit to closing enviro research group because they disliked results
- Does BC Stand for Ban Clotheslines?
- 'Cagey' Clark's Pipeline Prevarications
- I Breast-fed My Preschooler. Big Whoop
- Bill C-38: the Environmental Destruction Act
- Seven Ways to Help Folks Fall in Love with Cycling
- It's no yolk: Breakfast crew share $21.4M Lotto 6-49 jackpot in Ontario
- Is the 'Living Wage' Enough?
- North Island College Cutting Down on Face Time
- Gov't Moving to Keep Farm Disease Outbreaks Secret
- 'The Coca-Cola Case'
- 'Cagey' Clark's Pipeline Prevarications
- Meet BC's 'Changemakers' of Aboriginal Learning
- BC Hydro Management Process Flawed: Internal Audit
- Does Simon Fraser University Need a Men's Centre?
- Seven Ways to Help Folks Fall in Love with Cycling
- Gov't Moving to Keep Farm Disease Outbreaks Secret
- Feds Not Standing on Guard for Canada's Water: Experts
- What About Just Guaranteeing Everyone a Basic Income?
- The Big Download Whacks Cities
- Should We Subsidize Work?
- A Night Shift at Jen's Kitchen
- The Future of Education Is Here...
- Ban Billboards, Fund Journalism!
- Trio of threats hurting Fraser River salmon: study
- Toronto police get the stick for G20 crackdown
- Toronto Conservative election victory tossed by judge
- Northern Gateway risks big spill in Alaskan waters...
- ...but worse than Gateway, or Keystone: coal exports
- Facebook rakes in ridiculous cash on stock market
- Ottawa sex exhibit lands Heritage Minister in 'hot water'
- And now, a nude picture of Stephen Harper
6
Login or register to post comments
Mathieu Y
1 year ago
Hahaha
Although I disagree that they sound like television, I completely agree that they are still as boring as ever. My first concert was watching the Strokes at the Plaza of Nations, but I liked their opening act, the Raveonettes much better. At the time I didnt understand why they were being trashed by the media, but at the time I was only 15.
Come to think of it, the two singers are very damn similar. I wonder which label made the investment in this new old new york style?
richneal
1 year ago
Mundane at best
Hi Adrian -- agree with your commentary -- the Strokes aren't cutting it at all. Yeah, they had a good moment or two -- think of their first gig in Vancouver at the old Starfish Room, which was okay, but that's it. They've gone from a mildly-interesting-curiosity to why-are-they-still-doing this? All in all, the Strokes are about as much fun as watching paint dry.
This becomes even more puzzling when you think about the ubiquity of music generally these days . . . If we surf YouTube for half an hour, we can usually find some amazing examples of contemporary indy rock/pop, in addition to a plethora of retro treasures from the 60's, 70's, and 80's. Whether they like it or not, the Strokes competing with that stuff, and they look third rate by comparison.
All of this leads us to a bigger question - is corporate support for the Strokes a sign of the death of 20th century rock music? The prevalence of rap, RnB, hip-hop & dance are all associated with the development and widespread use of technology, and the Strokes are one prime example of a band caught in a money-generating trap of mediocre product and declining sales. The Strokes make the whole genre seem tired and well past its sell-by date.
Other than that, I hope you're keeping well Ade -- it's great to see The Tyee giving you a forum for your writing. It's been a while for us mate . . .
Cheers
Dick Neal
dave49
1 year ago
TV appearance
I saw The Strokes on TV show years ago, when they were touted as the next big thing. I was shocked by their lack of basic musicianship, there tentativeness and the two boring songs they played. If this was the future of rock, we were in trouble.
warbler
1 year ago
Oh god help me..
I was one of the believers who thought they were the next Velvet Underground....
I still like their debut album, however other bands in the genre that emerged at that time have since gone on to much bigger and better things. The White Stripes come to mind.
Bobb999
1 year ago
Television?? I'm afraid I
Television?? I'm afraid I agree with those who disagree with the article's author who puzzlingly claims The Strokes sound more like Television than any other band. Huh? A main distinguishing trait of Television was their emphasis on guitar solos & improvisation that could easily stretch an onstage performance of songs like Little Johnny Jewel, Kingdom Come, and Breakin' In My Heart to 15 minutes or more. The Strokes are a chord band like the Ramones were. Guitar virtuosity was never demonstrated by The Stroke's & was never their aim, but it was with Television. Unlike Television, solos & jamming is not The Strokes' thing at all! Also, the Strokes write sweet, catchy pop-y vocal melodies just like the Ramones did. Television's vocal melodies were never sweet or pop-y sounding!
I'm not saying The Strokes are Ramones clones, not at all. But they seem to have far more in common with that band than with Television
Adrian Mack
1 year ago
They sound like the Strokes
Well, I removed the word "superficially" from the fist draft because I thought it was already way too wordy. But when the Strokes first arrived, Television and the Velvet Underground were the two bands that kept coming up. I hear the Television comparison, superficially, in the guitar tones, and particularly in Julian C's voice. In fact, the first thing that struck me about the new single is that he sounds more like Tom Verlaine than ever. But of course, the Strokes have none of Television's bravado, intelligence or ambition. Who does? And I never heard VU in the Strokes. Or the Ramones. Especially the Ramones. If I'm reminded of anything else, since we're doing this, it's the Modern Lovers.
Also -- Dick, lovely to hear from you!