The difficult second album…
Those who have followed The Strokes’ trajectory to the present day often graph the quality of the band’s releases as a rather sharp downward slope.
Their first album, Is This It, was that all-too-rare record that lived up to the hype. Against a recently ruined New York backdrop, their no-nonsense, cool-as-balls rock ‘n roll stood out as something that almost everyone could get lost in.
That was in 2001. 14 years later, The Strokes have not endured the test of time in the same way that, say, Kings of Leon have, despite the latter’s much slower start.
Many say that The Strokes’ decline into fourth-or-fifth-line-of-a-festival-poster territory began with Room On Fire. Nobody says that it’s The Strokes’ worst album, but plenty of people claim that somewhere behind Julian’s half-mumble/half-howl, Fab’s clockwork drumming and riffs that live for days in your brain rent-free, the band started to lose its spark.
The primary concern of the more puritanical punters at the time was that Room On Fire was no less than exactly the same as Is This It. The Strokes seemed to take this criticism to heart and ended up delivering three albums that strayed (sometimes wildly) from what the band was best at. In 2015, fans are left three okay albums, one bona fide belter and one album that sounded quite like a classic and got lambasted for it all the same.
Room On Fire is that lambasted classic, and we’re here to pay tribute to the five best songs off that album.
Between Love and Hate
A common criticism of Room On Fire was that it was too similar to its predecessor. Stylistically, it didn’t deviate far from the blueprints laid down by Is This It. Emotionally, on the other hand, The Strokes’ second album was far more expressive.
Between Love and Hate is a down-tempo song with shuffling drums and jangling guitars beneath lyrics that are defiant but melancholy, syllables elongated to let the emotions flood in towards the end of the chorus. Decidedly less hipster and a little more heart-wrenching, Between Love and Hate was a clear sign of The Strokes’ growth.
Clip via pcindarellie.
12:51
The Strokes’ most marketable moment, 12:51 is a song that could be played around the clock in nightclubs, shopping centres and elevators. Julian’s mumbled melody is matched note-for-note by a synthy-sounding guitar so sweet and smooth that chorus-duties for this song were handed entirely to lead guitarist Nick Valensi.
12:51 foregoes a traditional chorus in favour of a contender for The Catchiest Riff Ever Written, uncorrupted by contrasting vocals. 12:51 was an advertiser’s dream and the most clear evidence we’ll ever have that The Strokes could have been the world’s biggest band.
Clip via thestrokesVEVO.
What Ever Happened?
As the first track on Room On Fire, What Ever Happened? is the song the band chose to confirm that their second album was a reintroduction rather than a reinvention. Julian’s vocals are jagged as ever as he croons lyrics about a complicated relationship with a woman more beautiful and glamorous than we will likely ever talk to.
A standout moment on this track comes at one minute and forty-five seconds, when Fabrizio Moretti stops the song dead with a single drum beat before the band launches into the second verse with Julian’s lyrics as cryptic as ever, demanding answers from dead playwright Tennessee Williams and blaming somebody for letting him down in some way. Classic.
Clip via Melomanía Alternativa.
Under Control
Musically, Under Control is the sonic equivalent of drinking beers on your back porch, breathing in smoke from your barbecue grill and enjoying the evening.
Lyrically, the theme of this song seems to be resignation to a role of watching the world go by. While the words are awfully forlorn, there is a summery, soulful, shimmering backdrop of guitars that reminds us of a divorced man whose kids won’t call drinking a cocktail on a beach in the Bahamas.
This song is the definition of easy-listening… until you listen a little closer.
Clip via Tucker Bliss.
Reptilia
Reptilia is not only the best song on Room On Fire, but arguably the The Strokes’ best ever song. Its cinematic atmosphere, pounding urgency and howled vocals give the song a panicked excitement that The Strokes don’t often explore. Reptilia is a moment when the band lost their cool, and became all the more cool for it.
Clip via thestrokesVEVO.
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