The Strokes? Maybe you’ve heard of ‘em? Well, of course you have (assuming you’re sporting even the faintest pulse) … they’re only the (yes, we’re gonna say it) “hottest” rock band on the planet right now. So, shall we be the first voice of dissent in the sea of people shitting themselves over the Strokes? That would be pretty cool, but naw, we like ‘em too. Their debut, Is This It, is a batch of well-crafted, aggressive, and catchy tunes that basically throw the Velvet Underground, the Stooges, Television, and the Kinks in a blender. Flaunting such obvious influences could’ve been a disaster for a less talented crew – relegating them to cover band status – but they manage to pull it off with a massive attitude and amazing energy. Cool points given for the NYC lads being an average of 20 years old and not doing the rap/rock thing … and more points given for the album clocking in right around 30 minutes. Very rock ‘n’ roll. Whether or not they’re actually Jesus come back to save rock music is quite another matter, but not the issue here. Right now it’s Strokes o’clock, let’s go throw some beer.

The Strokes
RCA Records

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