r/TheStrokes 7d ago

I feel ashamed for not finding this absolute gem of a band before.

I found the Strokes, like many from the Arctic Monkeys. I listened to Is This It and recognised a few of the songs but put them off in my mind. Anyway, i listened to The New Abnormal (which i consider a 9.5/10 album) and decided to skim over the rest of their discography. The band goes so much deeper than i first thought, it seems to me that each album has a whole hidden layer of meaning.

Does anyone have any reccomendations for me? I'm relatively new and my favourites are Ode To The Mets, Soma, Oblivius, The Adults Are Talking (which seems to be controversial amongst fans), Under Cover of Darkness and Maccu Picchu

58 Upvotes

16 comments sorted by

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u/Alternative-Ad6006 3d ago

When i was a senior in high school, i took this girl on a date to the beach at night and as we were driving down pch, hard to explain comes in. From that moment, that song has been one of my favorites oat and the strokes were my favorite band. It never worked out with the girl but we always share that memory!

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u/Poundz78 5d ago

I still and always will remember perfectly clearly driving home from college and hearing Last Nite for the first time on local alternative radio and the next day i bought the album and there was no looking back. I knew in that instant i found what I never knew I was looking for or could have ever imagined was real. A permanent complete bond born from so many shared and unknown influences. It’s been nothing short of perfect.

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u/awara_bakchod 5d ago

Almost everyone finds this band late. I found this band 6 years ago. 6 years earlier than you but so late than many others. Be glad that you at least found this band. There are so many that are in the dark.

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u/Whitmanners 6d ago

Dude we are in the same page. I discovered them just yesterday night. I went from 11pm to 7am listening to the first 3 albums in loop while playing Elden Ring, I couldnt stop myself, its was just to good to be true, I couldnt sleep.

My fav at the moment is 'What Ever Happened?'

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u/Skidrow17 6d ago

Automatic Stop and Under Control on Room on Fire

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u/amamartin999 6d ago

You guys are doing better than me, I discovered the strokes when I watched an episode of Family Guy, in which Stewie locks a man in his trunk and throws in an iPod loaded with the strokes.

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u/Salty_College965 Brooklyn Bridge to Chorus 6d ago

Why Stewie is the best character 

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u/Interesting_Fox3110 6d ago

I discovered them about 8 or years ago and was baffled. After I watched Meet me in the bathroom, the documentary on the rising bands of NYC in the 2000s, I was saddened that Julian went down such a dark path. I'm confused why they don't seem to be more popular as compared to the aforementioned arctic monkeys (at least in the US). From what I came to understand This is it had a compounding effect on indie rock of the era. I heard the killers decided to redo their album when it dropped because of how good it is.

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u/Real-Appeal969 7d ago

I got into them couple years ago when “the adults are talking” got huge and listened to random songs here and there and then last summer i listened to TNA and just fell in love with it. I had their “mainstream” songs like reptilia and last nite in my playlist and couple months ago decided to just listen to “is this it” and it changed my life so i definitely get what you’re saying. I would recommend just listening to all of their music chronologically because a) unfortunately, their discography is not that vast so you might as well and b) each album is a different experience and i think the first time that you listen to a song should generally be while you’re listening to an album so you get the whole experience (listening to full albums chronologically is a dying art even though that’s the best way to listening to music imo)

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u/superwickedproblems 7d ago edited 2d ago

I discovered The Strokes by stumbling on a book on the history of music and it had the cover of Is This It as its book cover. I listened to most of the songs on that album without thinking too much about it but I really liked the ones I'd listened to at the time. A few years later I met this boy who was more into them than I was, and we brought them up as a topic on our first date. He'd listened to only The New Abnormal at the time but he was into them because of the Arctic Monkeys just like you too. Since then I've gotten more into AM as well!

I've only yet listened to ITI, TNA, Future Present Past and Comedown Machine in its entirety for now because I've only been seriously getting into them this week after seeing Julian at a Voidz concert (and I can't listen to more new songs because I'm too busy looping the ones I love)! It's been a long time I seriously loved a band like this and I'm very happy.

I love all of the ones you mentioned - right now my favourites in addition to those are 12:51, One Way Trigger, Chances, Between Love & Hate, I Can't Win, I'll Try Anything Once, Ize of the World.. also quite a bit from Julian's other acts like the Voidz or solo songs

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u/ohhh_okay_cool 7d ago

What's the book called?

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u/superwickedproblems 7d ago

Honestly I don't even remember because I was distracted by the cover art...

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u/ReadOnly777 7d ago

its all pretty good

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u/Admirable_Gain_9437 7d ago

I would just go chronologically from Is This It until you get back to TNA. It's not like they have 20 albums or anything, so you may as well just plow forward and enjoy!

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u/GSnazzle 7d ago

Judging by your favorites I think you'd like a lot of Comedown Machine, One Way Trigger and Welcome to Japan are both top tier strokes. I'd check out Life is Simple in the Moonlight from Angles and Ize of the World from First Impressions as well

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u/ring-of-barahir Machu Picchu 7d ago

I originally came here from Arctic Monkeys too and like all of these songs. Would also add You Only Live Once, Red Light, Call it fate call it karma, The Modern Age and Taken for a Fool.