Albert Hammond Jr.

Summary

Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin

Episode: Albert Hammond Jr.
Date: July 29, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this rich and reflective episode, Rick Rubin sits down with Albert Hammond Jr.—guitarist of The Strokes—for an in-depth conversation spanning the band’s formation, creative process, the evolution of their sound, navigating success and excess, solo ventures, and the emotional complexities of long-term collaboration. With plenty of honest recollection, humor, and candidness, Hammond Jr. shares stories from The Strokes’ earliest days to their latest work, providing insight not just into the music, but the unique dynamic and resilience of an influential modern rock band.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

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The Genesis of a Song and Band Life (03:34–06:20)

• Songwriting Process:
  Hammond Jr. describes how songs gestate, mentioning a song started in Hawaii that “had a long journey,” evolving through jams in Paris and Costa Rica. The organic, sometimes chaotic assembly of ideas results in music that sounds “fluid as a song.”
  • “It was like it needed help to get the shell off or something.” – Albert Hammond Jr. (04:45)
• Band Dynamics:
  Reflecting on joining The Strokes (fall 1998), Hammond Jr. discusses their early connection and musical ambition:
  • “I moved across the street. I went to a film school…ran into Julian. We moved in together, like, right away.” (05:23)
• Early New York Scene:
  The Strokes were self-contained—trying to create their own scene in late ‘90s NYC at places like Bar 13, often feeling like outsiders:
  • “We always thought, if we can just get a few bands, we can play one place, people will come to us… that was kind of the idea.” (06:25)

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The Early Years: Gigs, Rehearsals, Ambitions (07:30–16:29)

• First Shows:
  Recounts their nerve-wracking debut at Spiral Lounge with only friends in the audience and rehearsing in the storied Music Building.
• Rehearsal Habits & Attitude:
  Emphasizes relentless rehearsal, unspoken camaraderie, and the immersive level of commitment:
  • “The time commitment, mentally, felt like all the time. That’s all I thought about.” (09:16)
• Refining Their Sound:
  The band purposely avoids covers, focusing on originals; learns to play quieter to avoid fatigue and keep songs fresh.
• Breakthrough Shows:
  The Mercury Lounge residency, culminating in a sold-out show:
  • “That moment is as big as, like, doing SNL.” (13:05)

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Recording and Identity: “Is This It” Era (15:24–31:55)

• First EP Sessions:
  The Strokes’ early recordings (with producer Gordon) capture the band’s explosive chemistry live.
  • “It’s like we found ourselves. I felt invincible...” (15:50)
• Shedding Complexity:
  Early material was more “proggy” and complicated before focusing on punchy, direct songwriting influenced by Guided by Voices and John Lennon.
• Attitudes toward Image/Names:
  Albert’s insistence on “The Strokes” (not just “Strokes”); reflects on the importance of names and perception.
• The UK Discovery:
  Describes first UK gigs, where their presence was enough to ignite curiosity.
• New/Old Sound:
  “It sounds both traditional and new at the same time... It sounds like, you know, if you’re going to fight or kiss someone.” (26:34)

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Band Relationships and Commitment (34:28–39:20)

• Band Member Portraits:
  Personal recollections of each member and how their bonds and roles shifted over time.
• Commitment and Boldness:
  On quitting college, risk-taking, and the sense of swimming upstream:
  • “The whole way has been like swimming upstream. We didn’t fit anywhere.” (36:34)

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The Creative Process: Albums Two and Three (39:20–81:02)

• From EP to First Album:
  Quick succession due to rising exposure and UK label interest.
• Making “Is This It”:
  Recorded live—a “dream” experience. The impact on the members’ families marks the moment’s significance.
• Public, Press, and Pushback:
  Early adulation gives way to backlash; Hammond Jr. reflects on the complexity of sudden acclaim.
  • “It was a combination of the music’s really cool...and we were young, good looking, we look cool.” (47:52)
• Touring and SNL:
  Daniel on key dates, including releasing the album on 9/11 and the emotional, energizing early tours.
• Sophomore Pressure:
  The second album (“Room on Fire”) was fun but pressured. He recognizes how perceptions shift:
  • “How upset people got about certain parts of the second record. And then how over time, people are upset that we don’t sound like the second record.” (54:28)
• Enduring Growth and Struggle:
  Touring life, growing audiences, and an evolving relationship with the audience (filling ever-larger venues and the emotional challenge of facing crowds).

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Later Albums, Solo Work, and Evolution (81:02–105:14)

• Breaks and Solo Projects:
  Discusses the informal band hiatus, Albert’s solo records, and personal struggles (rehab).
  • “There was a big pause because I went to rehab.” (82:48)
• Silent Healing:
  Healing often occurs through “speaking” musically rather than verbally.
  • “Some of the healing actually happens while you’re creating and playing music.” (84:09)
• Band Members Moving Away:
  Reflects on Nick’s move to LA and how living apart ultimately creates focused, “camp-like” recording sessions.
• Making Album Four:
  Details multiple recording attempts, issues with producers, and feeling the band’s absence.
• Fifth Album and Media Reticence:
  “Comedown Machine” released with no press, no shows—liberating and strange.

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The Return: Later Strokes and Renewed Collaboration (105:14–122:41)

• Reuniting for “The New Abnormal”:
  The band records in LA with Rick Rubin, regaining old camaraderie; jamming becomes integral to writing.
  • “There was an element of, like, you in the room allowed us to be a band. Your presence allowed us to be like, oh, it’s the five of us.” (105:24)
• COVID and New Generations:
  Album release coincides with the pandemic, but connects with a younger audience.
  • “A whole new generation of people found us.…it’s really moving and cool.” (113:17–114:03)
• Post-Pandemic Touring:
  SNL performance marks their return, followed by major shows and opening for the Chili Peppers.
• Costa Rica Sessions:
  Hammond Jr. lauds their most recent (and favorite) album—recorded in Costa Rica—for its musical vitality and creative satisfaction.
  • “There was an energy there that was just fantastic… It’s my favorite album.” (116:57)

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Artistic Philosophy and Looking Forward (121:10–End)

• Always More to Give:
  Hammond Jr. feels The Strokes are continually unlocking new creativity—never coasting on the past.
  • “It’s not like we got to the end and it was like we got nothing left.” (117:05)
• Band Identity:
  Despite change and age, the band maintains its essential spirit—“the surroundings change, but it’s like they just grabbed us and put us in different things.”* (103:20)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On creative evolution:
  “Part of us being a band is actually… feels like we still have our best songs yet to write. If anything, we’re like, unlocking new things we couldn’t do.” – Albert Hammond Jr. (45:38)
• On outsider status:
  “People look at it…like it was so easy, but it was always against the grain. We didn’t fit anywhere.” (36:34)
• On performing live:
  “My practice is always, like, slowing it down, being in the moment, not thinking what the next song is. Once I finish a song, not worrying about what I did wrong the other one.” (64:04)
• On blending tradition and innovation:
  “It sounds both traditional and new at the same time. There’s like nostalgia in there. It sounds like dangerous, but sexy…” (26:34)
• On musical healing:
  “Some of the healing actually happens while you’re creating and playing music. You get to speak to each other without talking, but in a very deep way.” (84:09)

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Important Segments & Timestamps

• Song Genesis, Early Band Life: 03:34–06:20
• NYC Scene, Early Shows: 06:20–10:58
• First EP, Recording “Is This It”: 15:24–31:46
• Band Member Dynamics: 34:28–39:20
• Making and Reception of Albums 2 & 3: 54:11–81:11
• Struggles, Solos, and Healing: 81:02–88:26
• Recording Abroad, Later Records: 89:16–97:55
• “The New Abnormal” Era & COVID: 105:14–115:19
• Costa Rica Sessions & Optimism: 115:19–117:54

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Conclusion: Enduring Spirit and Vision

Through nostalgic stories, hard-earned wisdom, and irrepressible enthusiasm, Albert Hammond Jr. charts the untrodden—and sometimes rocky—path of The Strokes. The interview balances candid self-reflection with a sense of optimism and artistic drive. Despite challenges, changes, and decades of evolution, the band’s essential energy and camaraderie keeps pushing them forward, with much more music left to make.

Transcript

[Narrator/Host]

Tetragrammaton.

[Sam]

I did that yesterday today. I heard that years ago when I was a kid. I didn't want to do it years ago, but I did. I did that yesterday when I was a kid. Weekend. I like your outfit, yo, you only live once dude Kept the beat as it was John Legend that's just co I guess I'm planet maybe all good we y' all still Baby, you're ready for the next f. Chris said she's next. I did that yesterday. I did that years ago when I was a kid. I didn't want to do it yesterday, but I did. I did that yesterday when I was a kid. You don't get it It's a bit Maybe you catch up soon it rather than later Baby, it's lonely in the future. You don't get it It's a bit but maybe you catch up sooner rather than later. Sorry it's lonely and 20 years ago I did antenna work the word when I was a kid. Stick to the technical. That's great. You would not recognize art in any. On the first day we had I jumped in the water. Yeah. God's doom is soaking wet I'd like to dry it no, I'm not praying for the grass till they were so help me not lay w Cuz it's my fault I don't care I don't care. I wore that years ago. I did. I like that. Years ago when I was a kid and in 100,000 years from now I say I did that yesterday when I. I was.

[Interviewer]

Wow, this guitar sounds so cool.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Thanks, man. Yeah, that was. I. I did that in Hawaii. Nice. Yeah. I was just thinking that that song has had a long journey.

[Interviewer]

How'd it start? What do you remember?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It was a song I had that I sent the band a long time ago. And then Julian liked it and we jammed on it at, like, I want to say 2019 at this festival in Paris, but then it took its own life in Costa Rica because it had multiple parts. And you were like, actually, that chord progression is verse and chorus. And I was like, oh, yeah, that makes sense. And then the melody kind of grew and the breakdown and then the. I think that that guitar part makes the chords feel like they're not just continuing, you know?

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Or just even the way it starts, it's like, what's happening? But it's so catchy. It's very cool how this, like, thing that's put together over time, little bits here and there. But it just sounds so fluid as a song.

[Interviewer]

It sounds Free. Like, it just kind of happened.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, that's what I mean. But it's like all these little things that kind of, like.

[Interviewer]

Because you.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Because you could beat the. Out of a song.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

And be like, I killed it. How did I kill it? But it's the opposite. It feels like this one, like, became free. Yeah. It was like it needed help to get the shell off or something.

[Interviewer]

This is an example of what's happening now for the band. What was happening around the time of the birth of the Strokes.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I was the last member. Well, they weren't the Strokes. They weren't called the Strokes yet, but they had known each other in some form, probably a few years, because I met them when I was 18.

[Interviewer]

What year did you join?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

98. September of 98. So it'll be 28 years in a few months since I've met those guys.

[Interviewer]

Congratulations.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Which is insane.

[Interviewer]

Insane. Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I moved across the street. I went to a film school. I took a year off before going to college. And I ran into Julian. We moved in together, like, right away.

[Interviewer]

Did you know him from before that?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I had gone to school with him when we were younger. He's kind of gone to school with everyone. He's known Nikolai since he was, like, five.

[Interviewer]

I see.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

And Fabit, Nick, since they were, like, early teenagers.

[Interviewer]

And when you knew Julian the first time, did you ever talk about music together or play music together or. No, no.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I was. I think I was 13 and he was 15. Felt like a Big Brother vibe with

[Interviewer]

someone you want to hang out with.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Learn stuff from the guy who's a

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

little older, like, doing stuff that you don't really know, like. Like, what's that?

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

So I had. It. Had that kind of energy. And when I met him again in New York, he was very advanced musically from a young age. I kind of, like, very smart with it. We had a similar. Like, it both felt like we wanted to play music or be in a band.

[Interviewer]

And what was going on in New York in 1998? What was the scene like?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

So funny. We always make this joke because we always tried to have a scene, but no one wanted to play with us. I think we rubbed people the wrong way. But we always thought, like, if we can just get a few bands, we can play one place, people will come to us. Like, why tour when we're in New York City? Like, everyone comes here. The idea was if we hung out together at places, people would start to recognize us. Five guys hanging out in the same place. It's like, who are those guys? Oh, yeah. Always hanging out. That's kind of the idea. And there was this place called Bar 13. And I guess the vibe was like a 60s revival. Like, also Don Hills had it, where it's like people fully dressed up, like the 60s and dancing. And that's kind of like where there were girls and. Could we get in? We weren't 21. Whatever. You figure out a way to get in right when you're not of age. But that was kind of like the biggest scene that I could remember that wasn't a musical scene, because once we started playing, the musical scene was. Felt very different to us.

[Interviewer]

Do you remember the first show? Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Spiral Lounge? Yeah, I remember. Julian and I went to go see. I think it's Bowfinger with Steve Martin. Eddie Murphy was, like, nervous for, like, four days. I think we had, like, seven people that were friends, and we must have played everything at like a thousand miles an hour.

[Interviewer]

Where would you guys practice?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

There's a place called the Music Building, and Madonna used to practice there. It's a famous building in New York where the whole building must be, like, eight to ten rooms per floor, depending. 12 floors, all rehearsal spaces. You could rent, like, four bands would rent one and you'd lock out hours. And so it would be really inexpensive to rehearse per month, you know.

[Interviewer]

Did you know any of the other bands in the building?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Once again, we weren't terribly liked.

[Interviewer]

Do you know why?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

We were probably, you know, kind of obnoxious or full of. I think we believed highly in ourselves.

[Interviewer]

Would you discuss what you were going to wear before you went out?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It's weird to talk about it because you would talk about things, but it's not like if you see a movie about it, they, like, dramatize it. It feels, like, overly done, but for sure. I remember, for some reason, I have one memory of about to play Baby Jupiter because I live with Julian, and I was like. It was something like this shirt or this one, or, like. And he would be like, these shoes. And you still kind of do it, you know, like glasses, no glasses. When you hang out that much, which you can only do at that age, you just. You're just always up in each other's shit.

[Interviewer]

So you.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

You don't even need to talk about it. You just kind of feel it or see it.

[Interviewer]

In those early days, what was the time commitment to the band?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

That is interesting. I mean, the time commitment, mentally felt like all the time. That's all. That's. That's all I thought about. We would rehearse a Lot. I met them in 98, and our first show was in 99. And then 2000. Maybe a little before then is when we started to have songs from. Is this it? So it was like these year periods where we would transition and we would make little goals and we'd meet certain people. There was a band called the Mooney Suzuki that we kind of looked up to. Like, they played such a great show. They were such. They were showmen. The drummer had a brother who recorded. So we went to him and did, like, an ep. And we'd always try to, like, grow and I. What was the first song? I remember it was Arlene's Grocery. We played like Snowing. I think it was Soma. I remember one of the shows too, was Last Night. In Modern Age, we played for the first time.

[Interviewer]

Before you guys wrote songs, did you play covers?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

No, we never really played covers.

[Interviewer]

But in the early days, would you just jam?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Well, my first memories was I came in, I met Nikolai and Julian. Up town, there was a place called Rudy's, because they would have free hot dogs. You'd get a pitcher of beer and free hot dogs. And then we'd go to practice. This was my first time going there. I had, like, a fever. And they had two songs, I think two songs they were playing. They were just, like, showing me the parts. I was not equipped yet to be in a band. It was so. So because I was just playing by myself. It's so different when you play with people. So everything's faster. People are waiting on you. This stress.

[Interviewer]

And would you guys play quiet or would you play, like, stage volume?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I imagine we learned dynamics over time, I think, at first, like, anything when you're. It's a nervous excitement or an energy. You're just. It's like full blast. I remember hearing or saying. Or someone saying. Or it being an energy of like. Until we get it better, let's not play it with all the pedals and all the sound, because we'll get tired of. Of it. And by the time we play it good, we might not like it, you know. So I remember, like, discovering as a band those. Those kind of moments which are actually, like, really deep, impactful things to know about creating music.

[Interviewer]

Yeah, that's real progress. Because I think there's something. When you're first starting just the sound of an electric instrument, there's a lot of excitement in that energy. It's fun to play loud.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. Well, it kind of like, can hide mistakes, everything.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

And you gotta remember, too, if you're playing with Drums. It's almost like you have to be loud. Like, everyone. It's like at a restaurant where everyone's just talking louder and louder. Looking back at many things about us as a band, we're pretty good at discovering things you would need to survive. Like, it makes sense why that we survived because it was like little things. Whether it's how we communicated about life issues or musical stuff, or understanding that you're only as good as you are as a band, you know? And we all liked rehearsing. We would go at weird hours because we weren't great at planning. And so we'd go at times that we didn't pay for. Hence why they. Sometimes they'd come back from shows and they're like, what are you doing here?

[Interviewer]

After the first show, what was the first special show? You remember?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, maybe like a year after we were playing, you just started to notice there was people there you didn't know. Because a big thing we would do is before we'd play, we'd run out and just try to grab people last minute, too, and say, we were. We were playing. But December, before 2001, we were doing a residency at Mercury Lounge. You know, if you. If you took it in for a second, you're like, wow, there's people there we don't know. And then the last one was sold out before we went on stage. That moment is as big as, like doing snl. It's just a different hill, but it's the same. Might be a higher mountain, but it's still going to the top of the mountain.

[Narrator/Host]

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[Interviewer]

Did you guys have like a demo tape?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Well, before that we had. There was this place called Luna Lounge. Gordon, who's our first producer, he came to see another band and this girl, Carrie Black, who was kind of like trying to help promote for us and something like. And stuff like that, was trying to tell him to come see us. And I went and visited his studio, which is where we record it is to sit. And it just felt like there was cool energy with him. And when we all went there, we made. We made the ep, which wasn't an ep. It wasn't. It was just. We just thought we were trying to make something else, to sell or do something. And it became something Rough Trade put out. And then beggars the label in America. And it became Modern Age, Barely Legal. And last night, I think listen to a song from Matt that was like the first recording where it was like. It's like we found ourselves. I felt invincible, like there was nothing. Even if you didn't like it, it was like, yeah, it's fine. Like, this is cool.

[Interviewer]

Let's see. Should I just play it from the top?

[Sam]

Yeah. Sam. Walk on a hill here's where we begin this little story A long time ago. We stopped to pretend Stop pretending It seems this game is if we never ended. In the sun, sun have it in my blood I just can't help it who wants you to see no, let me go oh, let me go. Go, go, go, go, go, go, go. Leaving just in time Staying for a while Ro in the ocean Trying to catch her eye we're caught in say it's easy do it just to please me Tomorrow it is different so I pretend I pretend I'm leaving. My feelings are different now we train in the game I wish you hadn't stayed my vision but I'm unafraid. Flying overseas no time to feel the breeze or to a many of varieties. Well in the sun Having fun It's in my blood I just can't help it don't want you anywhere now let me go let me. Leave it just in time Stay there for a while Rolling in the ocean Trying to catch her eye Work hard and say it easy. You wish us to please me Tomorrow is different and this is why I'm leaving

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It almost like made me cry.

[Interviewer]

You guys sound exactly the same. It's weird. It's like fully formed.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I know. What's crazy is you could the album version, because we redid it. It's like. Tries to be a little more put together, but you can hear Gordon's just trying to capture like a band exploding.

[Narrator/Host]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It's just. You feel like the push and pull we have. That's just like us trying to find your rhythm between the guitars, bass and drums is like uniquely our personalities. It's crazy.

[Interviewer]

Right out of the box.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Well, not totally out of the box because it was songs like song wise. It was like much later. Like the earlier songs were. Weirdly, it's like a full circle. You kind of like were more proggy.

[Interviewer]

So the songs were more complicated before this?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Oh yeah, they're really complicated. Like six minutes with the big hearts.

[Interviewer]

Was there a decision to change or did it just sort of happen?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I feel like you have to. Everyone's gonna probably have their own version of it. I feel like my version might be skewed and I might get roasted for it. But like. Yeah, whatever.

[Interviewer]

It's your experience. What do you remember?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I just remember I listened to a lot of Guided by Voices when we came in. Julian and I were hanging out, talking about music. He just absorbed a bunch of that and like did amazing things with it. I remember even doing is this song itself Sound wise was like. And even modern age. The way the distortion comes in the guitar. The rhythm guitar was based off a guy about voices song. Like 8 track thing. But then is this it? Kick drum was like watching the wheels go around. John Lennon like. Which is a super high fidelity. Right. So it's like a mixture of. Of those things. I don't know what. I mean, I wouldn't know. You'd have to ask Julian what made him do that. But that's like. Yeah, I guess in. In my mind there was elements of listening to different stuff, you know. Or maybe he listened to something and I wasn't around and he just like. It just felt different when everyone was there. But it was like he started writing different songs.

[Interviewer]

Where was this recorded?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Do you remember this? Yes. Avenue A and Second Street. I remember he was in. I think he had. He went out to Long island and he was playing that opening guitar riff. It's so funny to have these memories of certain songs. I remember. Hard to explain. Like he was playing with the chord progression. I thought it was awesome, but I didn't like fully get it. It was like in his head. And also like. Because we. Our room was like a weight. So he's over here like a dumbbell you know, had the kitchen in the middle and we each had our own room. I remember hearing him play Someday for. For a while he didn't record things on a Dictaphone. So he's just like. If he had an idea, he would

[Interviewer]

just keep playing him.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. He just thought if he had to record it, then it wasn't worth keeping. Which is the opposite of how we are now.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. How long of a period of time was the EP recorded?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Oh, it was fast. That's all live.

[Interviewer]

If you'd played the night before, would it have been similar to what you'd have heard at the club?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

That sounds like how we would sound live.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

This actually sounds incredible. I really got it.

[Interviewer]

Sounds great.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Forget Gordon. His techniques to capture certain things recorded. It always bummed me out. People always just lumped us into, like, a lo Fi thing where I just thought we sounded cool. Lo fi. Hi, fi.

[Interviewer]

Did people call the Strokes lo fi?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Oh, man. Yeah. They're like, yeah, cool. But, like, oh, man. Early on, success was like. Sounds a bit of a bummer because people would just go to a bar and they would just hate you. And you're like, I don't even know you. And then you talk to them for two hours and they're like, you're. You're a nice guy. And I was like, what you.

[Interviewer]

Do you remember some of the other bands you might have been playing with at that time?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I have a poster where the az were on it, and I think that was at the very end because I don't remember. Some of the bands from that scene I don't remember playing with. I used to cut out our. Our name there. It was like my mission. Because sometimes they would just write Strokes and it would drive me crazy. There's like an angry exchange. It. Maybe it's even in the book. Maybe in the bathroom where someone was just like, yeah, they were so annoying. Like, we forgot the. The. I think they said that I called and was, like, really upset. He was like, who cares? Details matter.

[Interviewer]

Details matter. It's like the opposite story of the Eagles, where people called the Eagles the Eagles. And they were like, it's not the Eagles, it's Eagles.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Really? Yes. I guess when you, like, have something in your heart, it's hard to. I have that with my last name. When it's like. When they don't say Hammond Jr. I just. I don't feel like. Just Hammond. Yeah. It's just funny. I know. I don't remember those. Who do we play with? I mean, once we kind of like, that EP happened. Our first tour was with, like, band called Doves, or the Doves, I think it was Doves, British band. Kind of never looked back.

[Interviewer]

Do you remember the first time you played in the uk?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Oh, yeah.

[Interviewer]

What was that? Like, was that EP time?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. I remember when Ryan was our manager then was like, this guy, Jeff Travis. We didn't know Jeff Travis was. But he was known to people. He's like, yeah, really loves the music, wants to put it out. Everyone's like, wants to put it out. Kind of excited. But, like, who is this guy? What does that mean? And like, he wants to you guys to come over and do shows. And it was like, I was just like, ready to go. And everyone was, like, seeing if we were being scammed, you know, the shows were, like, in rooms like. Like this. Like flat rooms. No stages. Some kind of, like upstairs pubs where people. 100 people were just, like, right in your face.

[Interviewer]

Did the people there feel like they knew who you were or.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

No, no, just from, like. I don't know what it is when we're all together. I felt it when I first met them, but I was like, we're all together. Like something in the universe, like, moves and allows things to happen.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

You just got, like, press. We didn't understand what press was. You know what I mean? We just got press. And I think just us, the way we hung out and just chatted and being ourselves, they just, like, ate it up. But it wasn't like we weren't doing anything. Even, like, you know, they thought our names were fake. It was a whole thing. So I think people were just curious and actually hearing it now. If I was a kid, I'd. I'd want to go to that. I mean, I was. I'm in that band, but I'm listening to it now and I'd be curious to know what they know or just to see them.

[Interviewer]

It sounds both traditional and new at the same time.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, there's like nostalgia in there. It sounds like dangerous, but sexy. Like, you know, sexy is such a wrong word. It sounds cheesy, but it just sounds like, you know, if you're going to fight or kiss someone.

[Interviewer]

Charged.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Charge.

[Interviewer]

Charged.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I think that's exciting. I mean, now, I didn't really get it then, but whatever, 26 years or 25 years later, it makes sense to hear that and be like, yeah, yeah.

[Interviewer]

So you record that probably in a day.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Thinking it's something you would sell at shows.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

That's it. The other thing we sold, like, Julian would go try to find them and, like, throw them away. Like,

[Interviewer]

I don't understand.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

We recorded this other one and it was like we were gonna sell it. It's so funny. I mean, I get it. Because he wanted, like. It wasn't right.

[Interviewer]

Yes.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

If you listen to the songs now, the other. The other EP that we made. But if he saw it at someone's house that we went to, he would try to take it and throw it away so no one would have it. It's kind of. It's kind of.

[Interviewer]

Was that before this one?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, before this one. There was one that had a song called Rhythm Song in her prime and a version of Trying youg Luck that was called this Life.

[Interviewer]

Should we hear one of those? Just as a reference of what didn't work or. No.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. Inner prime is probably the closest to where we were going. Rhythm Song was more like a Mooney Suzuki trying to, like, be like that 60s revival thing. I got it.

[Sam]

This house was built on mama's broken dreams I put it all in. And give all your money to the living dead Like a conqueror well in a just in time. I am a sentimental man I try to reach the God with just one hand Rejecting offers to be with you Only does it do get you by your side A new way to rectify and I'm waiting my la. What they could not perceive upon their big arrival in 1803 they took them to his side and he could not wait to hide. I am a sentimental man I try to reach to God with just one hand Projecting offers to be with you to keep you by your side on the way to say goodbye. Live this life and I was just 17 this house was built on my mom's broken trip dreams I put it all aside and she love me in the eye.

[Interviewer]

How much before the EP that came out was that.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

So we're doing the songs. When I joined, there was these few songs that we were doing. Then we did some others that added to the set. And then this one was the beginning of something different mixed with the other two songs that were on the cp. That was the beginning of Trying your Luck. Maybe, like, in that year, slowly, over time, I think every time we had a show, we tried to have a new song or something slightly different.

[Interviewer]

And in those days, was there a feeling like someday we're going to make an album, or was it more just we're writing songs and get some shows?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

In my mind, it was like it was dream of everything we're doing now. Yeah, it all. It felt like it all existed. You don't know and you don't. It might not happen, but the feeling I had was the same feeling I have now. I just. There's an immense gratitude to. Of like, knowing these guys and feeling like I had found a home with a. You know, at first a bunch of strangers and now like family.

[Narrator/Host]

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[Interviewer]

Describe each of the band members.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

So much changes when you. After, you know, people like Fab and I are so close. Talk to him all the time. Not that we weren't close at the beginning, but I was just like living with Julian. He was the first person I met and had gone to school with him and Nikolai had. They were older and so like it was kind of like the older two villain and Nikolai and then the younger two, Nick and Fab and I. I'm in the middle. Let me see. When I first got to the studio, Nick was. He's funny but like aggressively cocky and almost like I also have to play guitar with him. So there's like an intimidating factor. Like no one else has a competing instrument. Right. Nikolai would come down to our house all the time because he worked at a video store and we had this like shitty projector we would put against the wall. We would watch movies, the three of us. We'd get stone and watch movies all the time and like talk about them. So that was like that bonding circle. And Fab actually was. Went to school in New Paltz. So he was the only one in college. I remember when we had to talk him. He Was like, I don't know if I can do it. I'm close to finishing school. And it was like, dude, you gotta quit school.

[Interviewer]

Did he quit school?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, he did. He was like, this is happening.

[Interviewer]

I'm glad he did.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

This is happening. We all. That second year, we all knew to give it a shot. There was. There's unspoken. Maybe when you're young, you just. You bold like that. I don't feel as bold like that anymore. Or at least there's like, a little more nervous energy around it. Then it was just like, no, no, we're like, we're gonna do it. Which is a strange thing, because the whole time, even though we. We thought we were amazing, like, people were like, yeah, you don't really fit in anywhere. Our first album, I was like, this is so good. And they're like, yeah, radio's not gonna play it. And so that's kind of why, when we get to the point where we are now, and they're like, radio might not play. It's kind of like, who cares?

[Narrator/Host]

Exactly.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

We've gone this far.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

We've done all this. And the whole way has been like swimming upstream. Yeah, I know. People look at it and they're just like, oh, it looks like it was so easy, but it was always against the grain. We didn't fit anywhere.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

And we're still here. So.

[Interviewer]

So, Nick, you were a little intimidated of.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Sure. Fab was very happy that there was someone else with curly hair. We were like. I think I bonded maybe the most at first with Nikolai because he had joined almost last, like me.

[Interviewer]

I see. And, like, you were the new guys.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I was, yeah. And so there was a. There was a certain element of, like. I just remember, like, when I first saw him, he stood still with. With an energy and a look that was striking. So it was like, he didn't need to say. You don't need to say much when you're. When you're like that. I remember walking into that room, I was actually nervous because afterwards that was like, back in the day with phones. Julian didn't call me, and I was like, maybe I didn't make the band. And I called once and I woke his mom up. As you do when you used to have to call housebots.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

But then I found out, no, he was just busy doing something else. And he thought I was in the band from before I went in. So I was like, okay. He was like, what?

[Interviewer]

That's amazing.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

You know, when you find someone, doesn't matter, like, the level they're at. You're like, we'll figure it out. There's a certain vibe that fits. Everything else can work itself out because you can be amazing guitar and if the vibe doesn't fit, you're like, this will never work out.

[Interviewer]

Nick told me a story that he remembers the first time you walking up to the first rehearsal.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

And he thought, oh, this guy looks so much cooler than any of us. It's like he's the cool one. What are we doing?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

That's so funny. There was a friend of mine in high school who I was like friends with like 5th grade. And then I re met him at 16 and once again like a Julian type personality, like a slightly older brother and he looks so cool and I just kind of like mimicked him in my own way. And then I started to feel like as I was doing that people responded to me differently. So I was like, if I dress with where I want to be, then maybe I will get there. Because you don't know how to get anywhere. And your ability isn't.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Isn't something that you can like push you in any direction. So I was just like, if I maybe I'll find like minded people by looking a certain way. They'll be like, who's that over there? And it did work. I mean I would go to shows and sometimes people would let me backstage accidentally. They would think was in the band or. There's definitely an element to that. It's funny, I didn't feel that way about myself. Maybe in one one's own head, you know, you have all your insecurities and stuff like that.

[Interviewer]

And tell me what happens between the EP and the first album. What's that period of time like really?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Very, very, very, very short. We made it thinking it was going to be something we sell. It turned into like a release at first. Like I was saying, people were confused because it was like, wow. It's not really, you know, like it's not. Can you release that? Is that good enough? He wants to release it. They really. England's fast. They release it in January. We go and play some shows and things start, you know, we start. We open up for doves, kind of have voices and things start to like go faster and faster. American record labels are. Are looking at as we do, south, southwest. And then it's starting to build up and it's like we have to record the record before we do more shows. We're not going to find it. So by April we're already late March, April, we're already Recording.

[Interviewer]

Tell me about the experience of recording the first album. Where did you do it?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Same place. Avenue. Transporter Realm. It's still there. Actually. Someone sent me a graffiti we did in the elevator that goes down. It's underneath the deli of fifth Avenue. A and second Street.

[Interviewer]

Cool.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

That corner. And across the street was the bar we would hang out called 2A. We'd go listen to, like, our songs in there after. After playing them. It was basically like our live set sometimes cheated in certain ways. But it was. It was our set list that we did live.

[Interviewer]

And how quickly did that record get recorded?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It was pretty fast. I remember, like, Gordon almost having a nervous breakdown. Julian being there late, tweaking levels with. I mean, it's like. It's funny when people say, are you guys different? When we're kind of the same. It's just older. I don't remember if it was the end or the beginning, but my 21st birthday, April 9, 2001, and they got all the parents together, and we all went to dinner together. And it was like. I didn't realize how special it was until looking back. Like, everyone's family was there.

[Interviewer]

So cool.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, it was so cool. And we were in the middle of recording our first album, so, like, the dream of what we would have told our parents was, like, kind of taking shape. And so everyone was just kind of couldn't believe it and excited and proud. Probably nervous, too, because it was just

[Interviewer]

like, let's listen to something from the first album. You can pick. What song do you think would be good representative of this time?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It's hard to explain,

[Sam]

Sam. I try to take control oh, I don't see it that way I don't see it that way. Always share some ideas. All obsessed with fame. I'm not like that Trying to reminder when we go back I miss the last bus I take the next train to try but you see it's hard to explain I said the right thing but act the wrong way I like it right here but I cannot stay I watch the tv forget what I'm told well, I'm too young and they act too old the joke is on you this place is a zoo. You're right, it's true it. Oh, I just can't remember I just can't remember. Through my love she says I'm not like that Trying to remind you when we go by I say the right thing but act the wrong way I like to ride here but I cannot date I watch the tv, forget what I'm told I'm Too young and they are too old man, can't you see I'm never so pleased Pretend to be nice though I can be me amidst the last but you take the next train I try but you see it's

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

hard to explain I was just thinking, hearing that, I feel like part of us being a band is actually. Even as, like, Life Gets Hard has its own things. Is. It feels like we still have our best songs yet to write. If anything, we're like, unlocking new things we couldn't do. They weren't our strengths in our youth. We had a different strength, which was cool. Has a certain energy revive that we were going somewhere. And now, like, when I hear the last two records we did, the ones with you, which is. We sound so much like us, but so not like that. But it still to me sounds like us, almost like even before we. We made this. So it's like a weird full circle. And I still. I can see everyone's, like, energy and creativity and it really just. It doesn't feel done just the opposite. Yeah, I know. And that's why I love it. And I'm curious to see, as we age, where we can go with that, because there's an element of aging where, like, takes away some of that energy that's in the first one, but that. I'm just curious how we'll replace that with what kind of music and what will that mean for our shows. And the possibility is really exciting. Yeah.

[Interviewer]

What was the reaction to this first album?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I mean, I remember when it was done, I couldn't have felt more successful. Like, no one had heard it yet, but it was just. It was everything I could have possibly wanted to be part of. When I'd fallen in love with music, when I fell in love with music, it was like I looked up to these people that were part of a fabric that I wanted to be part of. Now it felt like I was in a really cool way. Like, I'd want. I can go up to someone and be like, look. Yeah, I was. I made this part of this. I'm part of this, you know. But going back to how was it perceived? I think it was. Well, I think it was. We got a lot of press, which was cool. And then we got a lot of hatred because. Because you're like, who do you think you are? And I was like, I don't. I don't really think I'm anyone. I didn't write this stuff.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

They made it sound like I was writing the articles myself, you know?

[Interviewer]

Right. So the press was on the good side.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, the press was good, but I'm just saying they would, they were so excited. I think it was a combination of the music's really cool and a combination of we were young, we're all good looking, we look cool. It's just like looked like a group, right? You just like. Once again, early on people really just wanted to hang out and get up with us, which was fun, but it was kind of, it was kind of funny. It was like that element of it excited them so much that they would write stuff that was just a little felt over the top.

[Narrator/Host]

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[Interviewer]

So first album comes out. Do you remember touring for the first album?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Oh yeah. Great touring. Tell me about that all summer. The record came out in Australia first already cool and interesting. Also crazy because Fab broke his hand then and couldn't come to Australia.

[Interviewer]

What'd you do?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

We got a friend of our manager who then became Fab's drum tech. Matt came and played for like six weeks and it was. It was stressful. Yeah, it's really stressful and. And sad. And I imagine for fan it's been hard too.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. How do you break his hand?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It was so silly. We were touring with moldy peaches and Adam Green dressed up as Peter Pan. British people are just in, you know, bars are intense. I wasn't there but someone said something. He jokes about it now. Cause he was like. Maybe they were just like saying that he was dressed like Peter Pan, which he was. So I think someone was like why are you dressed as Peter Pan? And Fab was like, don't talk to him like that. And he went to hit him and he punched a wall and broke his hand. It was funny. We have video. We made this movie called In Transit. And with this video where he broke this bone here by the pinky. And he's looking at it, he's like, yeah, I don't think it's that bad. Thinking it might heal. And it's like a ball.

[Narrator/Host]

Wow.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

So where'd you tour first when the album came out?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I guess Australia. I mean, it was incredible. It was also terrifying because all they spoke about were all the bugs that could, like, bite you. This is. But what they didn't tell us is that a hotel on the 40th floor doesn't have redback spiders in the toilet. But I couldn't go to the bathroom there for like two weeks because I was kept skin scared that a bug was going to bite my balls. Checking my bed every night. And it's like. It's so different touring there when you first go, because they put you in these, like, mini apartments. Julie and I would share a room. It felt like being at home, really. It was like the same. Same thing. And then we did America. Our album came out in America on 9 11.

[Sam]

Really?

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

On vinyl. There's actually. I have the Village Voice that has. From the week later. It has the front covers of the two buildings exploded on fire. And then the music cover inside is a picture of our faces smiling. And I framed them side by side because it was like, you couldn't have.

[Interviewer]

That's wild.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. And so that first part of that tour, it was strange. Just strange time to exist in. But playing music was always a safe place for us, you know, even that. I think we went and rehearsed that night.

[Interviewer]

You in New York When 911 happened?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. Yeah. I saw it fall from the roof of my building. Yeah, it was crazy. Walking the streets was also scary. You heard like a bell or any kind of alarm. You know, everyone would slowly start running.

[Interviewer]

And it's the day the album came out.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, the album came out on vinyl. It came out on 911.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. And then on.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

On CD, it was, I think the 25th of September. Yeah, I totally forgot about that.

[Interviewer]

It might have been like a bad omen,

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

but we had that. Even with the new abnormal Covid happened.

[Narrator/Host]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It's kind of like we always make jokes, like, be careful what we name the record. Like, everything is fine.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. So 911 happens. You guys are in New York and then you tour the US.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, we did SNL, like January of 22 for the first album. Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Most bands doesn't happen on the first album.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. SNL has been like a very cool home for us. I grew up watching that, so I love playing it. It's maybe one of the most intense things to play for such, like, a. Like, when you get off, it really feels like you did drugs.

[Interviewer]

Like, because it's live and everybody watches.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. And it's so intense and it's three minutes. So, like a show, that intensity dies down by the end. So it's different. This is like you're on, all of a sudden you're off. And so, like, you're high. You're high as a kite. Like, if they had a camera in there, the bands would just be pacing in a circle. And then when you get off, you're just like, can't stop talking.

[Interviewer]

Writing the second album, how was that different than writing the first album?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It's funny, I feel. I feel bad that I didn't. I wasn't aware, or at least in my mind. I don't remember being as aware or I didn't want to think about it. I know that Julian felt pressure. At least I think he did.

[Interviewer]

It's common, that second album thing.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. I didn't know how to sit in that space. It's. You know what's funny with that, though, looking at it from a different angle, is how upset people got about certain parts of the second record. And then how over time, people are upset that we don't sound like the second record. So it becomes like, you see the

[Interviewer]

second record makes you think you shouldn't listen to them.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I mean.

[Narrator/Host]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. The second one was so fun to make again. It was fast. And, like, the one thing I remember is a label making you feel like if we don't put this out soon, like, people are going to forget about you. And that's probably not true.

[Interviewer]

How much time was there between the first and second album?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

On the Road for, like, two years. And it came out 2001, September, I think the second one came out in 2003. There wasn't a lot of time, I mean, in Julian's lyrics of that. It's just like, you know, basically, you don't. No one's giving me time.

[Interviewer]

What would be a good representative song for the second album?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Probably Reptilia was probably like. It's funny because that's such a big song at festivals and, like, you would think it was, like, a song that would have done well on radio. And I don't think any of these songs were really on radio.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. Let's hear Reptilia.

[Sam]

Sam. He seemed impressed by the way you came in. Tell us a story. I know you're not boring. I was afraid that you would not insist if you said I so sleepy just take this now leave me I said please don't slow me down if I'm going too fast you're in a strange. Over you I'm not trying hard enough Changing things yeah. Sam, You I thought I told you this world is not for you. With. There's a change of lanes yeah Ra me off the road the way is over now taking over you no longer laughing fast enough.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

So funny Time gives you that perspective of, like, people would always talk about either our sound or Julian's vocals and kind of like, in saying something negative about it, blow off the songwriting or, like, the bigger picture, right? It was just like, well, you're cool, but you're lo fi. Or like, yeah, it's great, but his vocals are distorted just like now. Like, yeah, cool new song, but it's got a vocoder on it. And it's like. And then as time goes, it gets a bigger life than it did.

[Interviewer]

What do you remember about when this came out?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

There's just a lot of. A lot of darkness.

[Interviewer]

A lot of, like, within the band or outside of the band? Towards the band.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

No, we were super excited about it. And, like, it's the beanie. It was really kind of the beginning of success. It was more just like feeling the. I think when you're younger, you don't, you know, you take all the praise and you're like, oh, cool, great. And then when the praise goes away, you're like, oh, no. However much you take it in, it's going to affect you the other way. So it's kind of like you have to be okay with it yourself and everything else doesn't really matter. But that was the beginning of. In the public space, you know, doing interviews and having to answer questions of, like, whatever they might ask you. How does it feel to not be as good or, like, showing some, like, negative points? You're like, huh? He didn't know how to, like, answer some of that. And we were doing as many, you know, like, the. You'd go to Europe and you'd have two press days and it'd be like 9 to 5 or 10 to 6. Like, press all day. They wouldn't fit in lunch. And then you're dealing with that kind of energy. It's dark.

[Interviewer]

How were the shows starting for the second album?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

We always, like, Connected to the fans. You know, the shows were always growing so it'd be like Bowery Ballroom sized places. And is it sit going into smaller theaters and then smaller theaters into like bigger theaters like in New York? I think it's got some big songs of ours in there, like still big songs. Live in a festival setting too, which is funny. It's like a record that press wise had the opposite. It was the constant like, oh, so you made the same thing twice? And I was like, don't really think we made this. It doesn't feel like the same thing twice. But maybe in the small window of time it did. But in the bigger span of stuff, it doesn't feel that way to me at least.

[Interviewer]

We toured all over the US toward Everinger.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I think we went straight from finishing that record straight to Japan.

[Interviewer]

How different was playing in Japan than everywhere else?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Very different. They'll really watch you and then cheer and then be silent waiting to see what you're going to say or do. And so that was just very strange the first time we had that. It was like, why did everyone get so quiet? Like you almost like want the chitter chatter. So you're, you're not used to it. Yeah. You don't, you don't. It doesn't feel like the spotlight has come back on you, you know, too.

[Interviewer]

And like.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, also one changes, you know, like we just did warmup shows for Coachella and the Warfield. It's like 3,000. It was like too felt too small and like the bigger room felt more comfortable to me. And I think as a kid the bigger room was just like nauseatingly too big. I remember on Real Fire we did Bill Graham and it was like, this is. I think it's 8,500. I was like, this is too big.

[Interviewer]

It felt like you couldn't fill it with your sound.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Or like just like I always, I always compare it to like leaning on the audience or the audience leaning on you.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

And like there's a balance where you want to like give in sometimes and they'll push forward and you push back. But it feels weird when you're standing there and you're just like, oh, they're going to crush me. Which kind of makes sense. Like, why would you just. In Evolution, standing in front of a bunch of people is probably a negative thing.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. It feels unnatural.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I'm going to die.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

You know, that's not why we're. That's not what's going to happen on stage. But it's definitely like it Must be some element of it.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. Just genetically, you feel.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, yeah. Don't get out. Yeah, yeah. Like, I feel the waves of nerves, and I try to, like, not have them, like, grab me or change me. I, I, I, I, I understand. Like, I don't know what tai chi, like, the thing that you, like, you move and you, like, let things go by you. And so, like, you know, I'm really nervous. I, I, I see it, and I try to just, like, let it go past and stay loose. A lot of what I use in life or, like, what I have to do comes up in an intense form before going on stage.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. Once you're on stage, do you forget everything and be in the moment?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It's not natural. Like, the second Coachella, I understood the audience more and, like, how it was going to be, and I, like, chose to remember the guys I'm with on stage. Because sometimes it's so big and you're taking in so much, it's hard to slow it down. So my, my practice is always, like, slowing it down, being in the moment, not thinking what the next song is. And then once I finish a song, not worrying about what I did wrong, the other one, like, it's done. I can get better without whipping myself, you know, I don't need to, like, punish myself for three songs because I made a mistake.

[Interviewer]

Are you trying to connect with the audience, or you're trying to connect with the other band members? When you're on stage, it's hard at

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

that distance to know if you're going to connect with an audience. You can feel it more at your show. I feel like if you get into the songs and you play for yourselves, that will channel to people very strongly, and whatever they give back doesn't matter. And sometimes it's awesome and they give back and you feel it and you're like, oh, my God. I'm like, okay, that's too much. So then, and then you get so riled up, you can, like, it could be too much. You could have a broken leg and just dance on it, you know, like, because the energy that's coming back, adrenaline takes over, but also, like, you got to be careful. It's like you're in a bad mood. It'll turn into, like, get into a fight. You've seen people fight on stage. That's like, the adrenaline went the wrong way.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Pushed the wrong thing.

[Interviewer]

After a show each night, do you feel like either that was a good show or a bad show or. You don't think about that?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I do for sure.

[Interviewer]

What's the feeling like after a show? What do you think about.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It's funny because the show is just what's in between your ears. Right. Because you have your own monitor. So it's like. Like it could have been the best show. The audience and you didn't feel it.

[Interviewer]

Do you hear the audience at all or no. When they cheers.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Pretty sealed from it. I remember taking off my ears once and being like, oh my God, they're so loud. They were singing along. But in my world it was just like. It was like just plugging yours.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Which is a bit of a bummer. But it also, it makes some more precise touring. Not have monitors like that. The consistency of the tightness of the band also. Sure. Yeah. And every venue you go to is almost the same.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Because of. Because of how well you can dial it in. No, I think about it for sure. I'm pushing myself to like. I take lessons and I'm just trying to get better than who I was. So I push myself with different things or certain songs are harder and I didn't get to play it or even, even if I can play it, but I didn't get to perform it like I want to. I want to like. I want to entertain and perform the song in a way that's like. It's more magical than just I know the parts.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Then I just try to hold that for something else to. I feel like it's important to have stuff that you still have to work on. It's like if that just ended, you might just die, you know, Might just be like, well, I finished here.

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[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Warning this product contains nicotine.

[Narrator/Host]

Nicotine is an addictive chemical

[Interviewer]

in the studio. Do you ever think about, I don't want to play this part because it's too hard and I won't be able to play it live. Or do you never think about that?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I try not to not play it because it's too hard. Unless there's, like, something where it's like. There's, like, a balance in that. I think everything I play in the studio, I've pushed myself where, like, I don't really want to play that live because it's, like, slightly above my ability. Like, even on this. On this new album, I. I did some stuff that was, like, pushing myself, you know? Well, which reminded me when I was listening to this, I had a guitar teacher then named JP Bowersoff who also taught Julian and, like, was a big part of those first. Those two records. And, like, being a guru to. To us and even to him as a songwriter and giving. Like, when you have a guitar teacher who's, like, really good, they. They can kind of, like, show you options. You might not be thinking of, you know, different directions where. Of genres that don't normally cross.

[Interviewer]

When you're listening on stage and playing, what are you keying into to play to? Is it drums? Is it Nick's guitar? Is it the vocals? God.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I mean, a little bit. A little bit of everything. I would say drums for either foundation, the backbeat. I would say Nikolai and Nick to see how I'm fitting in, maybe those two the least, because I trust that they're moving in their direction. That I know.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

And then Julian, that's kind of like, sometimes the emotional driver. But though Fab can be too. When he. Certain songs where. When he digs into it and I feel it, I'm just like, oh, okay, we're going there. Let's go. And I know that he's said the same thing about me. Like, I will come up to the drums, and I'm not even thinking about it, and he'll, like, feel it. I don't even know if that's musical or if it's just, like, pacing on stage and also, like, just being in sync. So it's like you might feel an intensity, and then someone isn't, and you just go for it. And maybe they come along, maybe they don't. But then when you don't know, if you pay attention, it kind of guides you and it gives you something good for the mind not to wander about stuff that doesn't matter in that moment.

[Interviewer]

If you're playing the same song in rehearsal or in the studio or on stage. How is it different?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Like, for instance, I just had them. So, like, there's an emotion that changes who you are. And that's what I mean by, like, you try to, like, let nerves go through so you can be yourself the whole time. Because it's very easy to, like, lose yourself in your mind overthinking. So practice. You can get there, not have played the songs. You don't care if you're going to make a mistake. You're not thinking, no one's watching. You're just casually doing stuff and you somehow nail it. Or maybe the mistakes you have, you don't really think about it. Sometimes you do, because they're your friends and you're like, oh, is that embarrassing that I just fucked that up? But it's not. It doesn't linger so much in the studio. Same thing. It depends, like, if you're in the room or not. It adds. It adds to it in a good way. I feel like it's just like. Or if you're, like, having recorded the song and it's the 10th time and your mistake is the reason why it's not moving forward. You know, you can feel people's energy in the band or if it's someone else. Like, you root for everyone. Because when it's someone else who's going having a hard time, you feel the weight. And then stage is like the crowd dynamic. It really only matters if you feel like close as a band. The energy is like you through the crowd and it feels good. But if you feel like you're being torn apart as a band, it almost, like, makes you sad. It's being in a band's like, your whole life. Yeah. It's your identity. And so, like, it almost feels like you're crumbling, like you're dying.

[Interviewer]

What happened between the second album and the third album?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

There was this success of having our management got an office. And our management was kind of like us because he was only managing us. So we had, like, a headquarters, and then in the music building, we got, like, the mezzanine floor. So we had our own. We had the rehearsal space. Slash. Oh, we'll record in here.

[Interviewer]

Everybody's living in New York.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Everyone's living in New York still. And so there was, like, this element. It kind of fell apart in the different producers and what we were. What we were doing. But there was this element of, like, we could have more time and that the home base and where we recorded is where we rehearsed. Which made for some awesome music stuff. But it was also from my side. It was just. It was a heavy time. Just a lot of excess and, like,

[Interviewer]

just you or everybody.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I don't know. Maybe everyone. Maybe mine was just more. I had the, who am I in the band? What am I doing? Almost like I had lived too long or gotten away with too much with, like, a natural thing and not, like a practice thing. So I felt behind a band is like. It's a loving place, but it's also like everyone sees your strengths and weaknesses, and you can't really hide from them. And so it's. It's tough. And you can almost kind of permanently stay in certain age groups around each other because it's like that family dynamic. Right?

[Interviewer]

Yeah. Did you feel like the people around you were getting better and you weren't? Is that what you described?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, I guess so. Yeah. And my choosing to kind of, like, party over, focusing on getting better, going back, I would handle that whole time differently. I guess that was the. That's the one where I'd be like, oh, I would. I would do it really differently.

[Interviewer]

Like, and then the rehearsing and recording was the first process where you had more time, I think.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

So That's. That's what I remember. And it was. It started off with, like. I think Julian's idea, if I remember correctly, was like, have Gordon. We would do things slowly and we'd build a home base, kind of like a garden that we could tend to and make songs and like. And, like, grow from a foundation. Like, having your own studio is just different.

[Interviewer]

Right.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

You start to know the room it's cool all and spaces always take no matter it's not money. You could have all the money in the world Set it up and it has got nothing it just needs time. There's like black magic in recording.

[Interviewer]

So what would be a representative song division of division?

[Sam]

You could be Tell me just like me don't turn it my way Happy and free I'll turn it to shame Happier and free. All that I do is wait for you all that I do is wait for you I can't get along with all your friends don't know how to act it's all there is why do I accept the things you say? You know what to change but not in one way how long must I wait? Wait how long must I wait? How long must I wait? How much that way how long? Sam, I don't know you we could have. I'm almost through great success. It's about time of Such a success that you came through no expense. All that I do is wait for you all that I do is wait for you I can't get away

[Narrator/Host]

from

[Sam]

all your friends I'm not coming back that's all there is why do I accept the things you say. But not in what way how long must I wait? How long must I wait? How long way?

[Interviewer]

What do you remember about recording that album?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I guess I picked that song because there's like, it's. It's perfect description of trying to grow in different directions, where it's like hard and you can feel the tension of something not being natural, but a song wanting to go, like.

[Interviewer]

Trying to challenge yourselves.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. You know, I feel like Julian wanting to go in different directions and then kind of trying to find yourself in spaces that's outside of your comfort zone or like. And I feel like there's something in that song that you can feel that tension. It's. It's exciting. It's exciting to look back on. And funny enough, I was thinking on this whole thing, touring this album was. Was amazing. Even though we ended up taking a big break afterwards, it was like we got to a point where we were going and doing a set of like 23 songs. And even if it wasn't the best show, it was a great show. We were on fire. Looking back, I wish I knew how young and awesome we actually were.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. And venues were similar size to what

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

you grew at the end. They were. They were going to start. No, this is where it really. This is where it really changed. Had we continued, we probably would have been in arenas at the second half of touring this album or the starting of the next one had we not given it so much time. But it was like, no, it would have been 5, 10,000 people. Different places we were playing cities we'd never been to. And like, would you say that the

[Interviewer]

live show had a life of its own outside of the records? Yeah. The band kept getting bigger regardless of how an album was perceived.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Totally. Which is funny that now our managers manages Phish, Dave Matthews, Chris Stapleton and us.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

As a live band, we keep growing.

[Interviewer]

And then why the decision for the break?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Well, it was never like a talk about it. I think some of us might have thought we were doing other shows. I feel like it's my fault that I didn't mean it that way. I put out. I put out a solo record. I never thought I'd play shows I didn't want to, and I somehow ended up playing shows. I don't know how Everyone views it. There's a whole journey I took that I wish I was able to express to myself and then within the band and not alone, but such is life.

[Interviewer]

What's the nature of a band?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, No, I guess so. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. I'm trying to be more. I think I would sit with that and like. Like, be more angry at myself. And now I'm just like, well, yeah, you never know. Like, maybe we. You wouldn't be here. You know, you'd be doing something else or it needed it or like.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. And sometimes doing a solo project makes you coming back to the band that much more interesting. In the band, sure. You grow as an artist.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

There was some growth in that. I almost did need to, like, experience completing certain things to know how to bring other stuff to the band.

[Interviewer]

Did you feel that there was negativity from the band for you doing the solo thing?

[Narrator/Host]

I don't know.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I. I can't tell if it's just me or if it feels like I. Instead of using my time to, like, get better, to bring more to the band, I. I did solo stuff.

[Interviewer]

That doesn't sound bad.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Well, look, we finished that in 2007 and that was also, like, a whole drug thing for me, so. But then we. There was a big pause because I went to rehab.

[Interviewer]

You were the only one. Everybody else was good.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Everyone stopped in their own way. I was the only one. I was just, like, destructive with it or like, this band never functioned well on any substances. People think we're fucked up or hear songs and like, Modern Age was like, oh, you guys are doing heroin. It's like, no way. We were, like, thinking and, like, practicing a lot and like, you know, sometimes you might have a drink towards the end, but it was mostly. All the recordings are all pretty sober. Even at times where you did a lot of stuff, it was. We're not a band that functions well

[Interviewer]

up during that time. Do you feel like the band grew more close together?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I think there was elements that grew together closer and elements that grew further apart. Probably, like, different relationships, got a chance to. To grow. I think in a band, sometimes it takes a while to, like, actually talk about stuff and process it or also as you get older, you realize, you know, sometimes these things just need time. You can't just. Just because you want to talk about it doesn't mean it's going to, like, heal a moment, you know? And someone told me a while back that sometimes some of the healing actually happens while you're creating and playing music. It's like a Silent healing. Like, you're lucky. You get to speak to each other without talking, but in a very deep way. And I was like, wow, that's kind of beautiful. And so I think some of the healing took place in those next two records, which I think people could hear. And I think in some of the press, it's just like, whoa, what are they doing? Or they're not as good because everyone's bringing in more stuff. But some of the things in that were really cool, too. And so they. And they. It allowed us to become what we were with you for the last two records. Then, weirdly enough, it's so interesting to see how some people find us who are younger. Like, I'll meet someone, they'll be like, oh, I saw your shirt in Transformers, the movie. And I was like, nine or ten. And they weren't. They didn't think to look up the band. But it's just subconsciously there, right? You just. The guy has a shirt the whole time, and then you're 14 and someone plays something and it's like, that's the record you heard. That's the first song you heard. Like, you didn't hear, like, something on Is this it? And it's like the fifth album was like a song they heard. That's how they got into it. And so they have a love for it. That's like, you don't even understand because it's your fifth one.

[Narrator/Host]

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[Interviewer]

What's the first time someone moved out of Manhattan? Nick moved to LA before the fourth album.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

And how did that change things?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I remember thinking. I thought it was gonna change things more. Like now it feels totally fine. Like, doesn't matter where we live because we're just gonna meet up somewhere. Transitions are a weird thing in life, Right. It's kind of like, how are you gonna do it? We all lived in New York. We could just call each other and go. And there's an element to that that I miss sometimes, but it's. It's almost like made the band feel even bigger that we live in different parts and come together.

[Interviewer]

It also probably creates more focus when you are together.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, for sure.

[Interviewer]

It's like it's on.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. It becomes like camp then when you're together.

[Interviewer]

So tell me about what was different about album four.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Well, it was like two parts, right. We kind of like. We did a whole version of the album with Gus, who does our front of house. Felt more like Stonesy. It was really cool. It was just like all in the room in a rehearsal space like this. So it's really live and dirty. And I think we were afraid to put it out afterwards. It was like. I wish it was like that. I think we were trying to polish something too much. It's exciting to produce and, like, think about sounds and get weird sounds. But I still want that first. That first song you played wants to go back to like that. But not with those songs. Just a rawness, but with different songs.

[Interviewer]

Right.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

So that felt like we had that version and then we created this version, this one. We actually. We did this album, I guess, three times because we went with a producer that we ended up not really getting along with. And we recorded an avatar and it felt like spend a lot of money was like there from like 11 to like 9. It really felt like work. Yeah. Felt like, man, I been more fun just for. You know, spent all the money, like going to the south of France and recording on an eight track.

[Interviewer]

Like, was it the first time that it felt like work?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Fourth album.

[Narrator/Host]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Julian was on tour. We were doing it, the four of us. We had already had the songs, but we were recording as a band without him. And I think missing. I think if he was there, he. He did 10 minutes of vocals and the guy said one thing and he was just like. He just. I think he just left and then just did vocals with. With Gus, and then we recorded at my studio afterwards.

[Interviewer]

Is that the first time you recorded without Julian being there?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. We had all the demos, so it wasn't like we didn't know the songs. But it was the first time we

[Interviewer]

played them together in rehearsal.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, but it was the first time his voice wasn't in there. When someone was challenging us in a room, we'd send him stuff and stuff like that. But it just. It feels different.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

You know, I mean, that was like a big part when we first did with you. Of all being in the. All being in the room. Right? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Interviewer]

Pick which song.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Wow. I feel like I'm gonna have to go for gratisfaction because it's the first time we have background vocals in the chorus. So that's kind of cool.

[Sam]

Over and she stands and realize that it's actually not a good thing and it's a tough because you're down to go out again and have another. All her friends in the alleyway shout back but she can't hear them but you're never going to get get my love we can only play get up in the morning and run. He got bites in the mouth but they get another people's business no good solutions Always on the burning chicks never lose ocean what up luck it may take a thousand years but I think we can do it Best friends fight but they never enjoy life as good as when they music. To get better we can only find. He could never mention it here and now without. You get tired when the days are too low you get lonely when the days are long Never going to get this love we roll around in the dark that's the best part. We go.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Funny to have his lyrics. Throughout my whole life. He's like my friend. Which is like such good lyrics that like I have memories and thoughts about stuff he said that we've never spoken about that they live in the same way. A fan might hear it and create their own meaning from. You know, it's kind of. It's kind of amazing.

[Interviewer]

How was this one received the same

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

feeling as like the second record where it was like. Because they made it like, oh, it's their big comeback and it's just too much weight on an album. So as your big comeback. For a band that had that excitement at 21 years old, it's just gonna feel flat because it's all over the place. I think there's great songs on it. It's really cool ideas and production. There's a song called Games in there that's like production wise really cool and a lot of things that we have thought of for a long time that Just never came to. But as a whole, it's just all over the place.

[Interviewer]

And then do you go out and

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

tour right away from the third album until now? This tour, we have not toured like the third album since that one. So 20 years ago we did a tour like we're doing now. And then this album here did like six months.

[Interviewer]

And what was the vibe of the festivals around then?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It was good. It was the first time we were like, not lower off the bill, but put in a different spot. It felt different because I think we were. They had pushed us to grow and grow and grow and then like we missed to grow up here. And so we grew sideways, I see and went to like headline a different stage in the movie. That would be like the. Is it over? Where are they now?

[Interviewer]

And then what happened leading to the next album? Next album was Come Down Machine.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah, I mean, it was pretty positive tours. Great memories from South America was growing there. So it was like the certain areas of the world actually in this time were maybe the biggest they'd been, which is interesting how that happens. I think just in some other spots, mainly America and the uk, they just kind of like felt like they took a dip in some ways, but it felt positive. I remember going into the fifth one, it was going to be our last one on rca. And that wasn't like a negative thing. It was just like you signing the cycle. Yeah, it's just like, oh, wow. The thing we signed that I never thought of again after we signed it is now coming to an end. Like a lot of people think. Think the album cover is like a negative thing because we did like, we put Arce up there, but it wasn't negative at all. The photos being like our first album but like blacked out just. I think it was more like we couldn't get everyone together to do photos for something and it felt like a funny way to end a cycle. You know what I mean? I was shocked when Julian didn't want to. I. I loved that he was like, no press on this, on this album. I was like, oh, man, that's. That's amazing. I started to hate.

[Interviewer]

Do you know why?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I mean, you just hate press.

[Interviewer]

Oh, I see.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Like, after a while you're just like answering like, sometimes you can have a good interview or like, that's not how I meant it. You've tried to figure out so much in life and so you just. You say something one way and then you hear yourself. I don't know. It's just there's so many things with Press. And so the idea of, like, putting out a record and not doing any seemed exciting. But then, then it was like no shows. And it was like, oh, that's a bummer. Because in the studio it felt really positive. And also we didn't like, speak about

[Interviewer]

not doing it for the fifth album. Where was that one recorded?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Electric lady and Good Experience. Glorious. Like six weeks. As you get older, the fact that that's your job and you get to, like, go away from your responsibilities and go to a studio feels like, you know, it's like all you have to

[Interviewer]

do is make music.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I gotta go to work. And you're like, you know, it's like, ah, such a. You know, and you get there and you're just like playing with your friends. Yeah, I know you have to make music, but at the same time, you're ordering food and watching tv. It's not like. It's different than, like punching and nine to five After Work.

[Interviewer]

So what would be a good representative song on this album?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

To me, 80s comedown machine was like a jam. We all just started. The verse all just started doing. And so there's something really special about that. And it's actually, funny enough, one of the few songs I play a lot of from our catalog. Like, if I want to put on a song on the car from our catalog, I put on that song.

[Interviewer]

Let's hear it.

[Sam]

Sam. It's not the first time I'm watching you passing by. I've tried too hard to get back there but you time and you no one try to believe in you for second time. You said the world's closed in but you cried back inside. Sam. I tried to believe it for a second try. It's there in the safe. Why don't you. Close the flies. For the night, Ram? Sam,

[Interviewer]

How would you say the band had changed at that point from the beginning to there?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I joke. We're the exact same. When I was 18, we were opening up for the Chili Peppers. We were in a backstage, we were like talking and being a certain way. We could have just been 18. And the five people outside of a small venue then became a stadium. But the surroundings change. But it's like they just grabbed us and put us in different things. And like you age, but there's a part of us as much as change. There's a part of us that are always there, which is kind of beautiful. Yeah, I think we're more aware. Everyone was kind of. I don't know if we were trying to figure out how to get to the place that Julian had had envisioned, maybe for us as a band or for the instruments of being a band with. With him. And maybe it didn't fully. I know it's always in motion, so it's like you never achieve it. So it always feels like there's elements of what happens next, because there's elements of that in the next record. But.

[Sam]

But.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

And even in the two that we did, there's elements that are so different and so the same. And now I want to do another one because I'm like, oh, I think I get it.

[Interviewer]

What's going to be next?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

You know, like. Or like, where my starting point is, like, it's like, I don't know. Let me try again. I feel like this time I can really hone it in.

[Interviewer]

Yeah, that's great.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Which is. I have to learn. My personality has to learn how to, like, drink that slowly, savor it. Because if not, I'm just like. I can just seem like, let's go. Like, what are we waiting for? Was everyone. What's everyone doing?

[Interviewer]

So the fifth album, no touring, no touring, no press. Did you guys do anything together during that time? Were you all separated?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

All separate? Almost at snl. That was. That was. That was it, yeah. Almost at snl.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Be a good autobiography title. Almost said snl. The story of the Strokes.

[Interviewer]

So how was the new abnormal different than the ones before it?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Well, I feel like it brought an element of us being all in the room for a certain amount of hours. Right. We came in and jammed from 12 to 1, and then you would come from like 1 to 6, and then we would stay afterwards. Sometimes if we had stuff to. If we were almost there, we had stuff to do. I don't know that that element of it was. Was really exciting. It was back in a studio, it was la, so it was the first time we were not in New York. It's pretty magical being out here. Also, there was something in how we worked, the five of us with you, that felt like when we were younger, but different, you know, like, you can never go back to that, but there was an element of, like, you in the room allowed us to be a band. Your just presence allowed us to be like, oh, it's the five of us. Then it's like the band dynamic became new and old at the same time. And that was maybe the most fun part about it.

[Interviewer]

Cool. Yeah. What would be a good song? Representative of the album.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Oh, wow. Representative of the albums. Eternal Summer was the first time we did. Where you were, like, record long time playing one Part and we'll. We'll get a piece that feels right for both parts. And I feel like that was new, new. And also it started to grow and grow. We're like, started jamming more and songs were even taking shape through jams and, like, you want to find many different vocals and then you guys would figure that out later. So I don't know. It feels like a. It feels so different.

[Sam]

Yeah. Sam. So is that my mind? Don't you. Ignore reality be See, I love that feeling too. Nobody's going to stop right now. Some. I can't believe it this is 11 psychedelic life is such a funny journey Mercury, your silence is no longer needed it's just like making believe they got the remedy But I won't let it happen. But I won't let it happen. Sam is. I hate that feeling too. But no one's not afraid don't expect the truth this is a fantasy I find that feeling too. The. Future. I can't believe Life is such a funny journey Psychedelic this is a loving

[Interviewer]

thumb

[Sam]

Silence is no longer needed it's just like make believe they got the remedy they won't let it happen. They got the remedy they won't let it happen. Everybody's on the tank Tell me are you on the t? Everybody's own the time Tell me why you overtake. Sam.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

See, I feel like that's what they wanted in 2011. But once again, like, looking back on stuff, it's always. It's nice to have it all for sure.

[Interviewer]

When it came out, what happened?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Well, Covid was happening, but it was like this big. A whole new generation. I mean, kissing good news. A whole new generation of people found us. We could literally go out and probably play. It's only nine songs on the album, but six to eight songs on it. And we'd get cheers as loud or louder than old songs because they didn't know it. There's a whole generation who came that was like the first album. They were like, oh, look at this new band.

[Interviewer]

Amazing.

[Narrator/Host]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I mean, I mean, surreal for me. We just did. When we did acl, we ended the show with the adults are talking and like this video on, I think Strokes, Instagram or mine where they're singing along so loud you can't even hear Julian.

[Interviewer]

It's got a lot of words. It's fast.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah. And it's just like, not an easy sing along. No, it's not. It's not a sing along at all. I'm so isolated in my world. I didn't like, feel it or hear it, but when you watch it afterwards, it's. It's really moving and cool.

[Interviewer]

During COVID obviously, there were no shows.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

What were the first shows that you were able to play?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Snl. Bringing. Bringing it all back to snl. That was the first.

[Interviewer]

Same as always. Or good experience, bad experience, maybe the best. Oh, great.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It was really cool. We. We know Colin Jost. He was there with Lorne Michaels. Lauren was watching and saying, like, oh, wow, this band's been around for, like. He just. He put two and two together and was like, oh, it's been 20 years. This is the fifth album they're coming here. Like, that's cool. He made it sound like it was like a moving moment. Like he would just like, realize me been in the fabric of that thing for a long time.

[Interviewer]

And also New York band, New York show.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It's just like kind of fits hand in hand in hand. And then afterwards, I think we got to do some. A small run, maybe. Like, it was like Miami and LA and then Peru, and then we got to open up for the Chili Peppers and stadiums.

[Interviewer]

Wow. How was that?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It was fantastic because it was like. It was just a great build. It really gave us a chance to, like, see what rooms like that would feel like and see them afterwards and see, like, the work they put into making their show. And it's just. It just inspires you for the next. And there's like a thing because you. You record them and you record us. So there's kind of like a friendly animosity. I like you. No. So happy you're here. No, I mean, it's. It's. I'm kidding. It's. It's awesome. That's just like, you know, it's a. In a good way. You kind of like, familial. Yeah, it's like. It's like siblings. Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Oh, you think dad likes you. He likes us, right? Reality awaits.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

That's maybe the most cinematic record to make in every aspect. I mean, talk about if you want to live the dream of any angle from your angle, band angle, production angle, anyone's angle, you're a band and you take all this gear, there's probably a million people telling you not to do it. Like, it's too complicated. You take all this gear and you record outside on top of a hill overlooking the ocean in Costa Rica. Something about Costa Rica. There was an energy there that was just fantastic. I just remember the recordings, the sounds we were getting, the songs. And like, I tell everyone, it's. It's my favorite. It's my favorite album. And it's made me even realize even more so.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

How much more we have to give because it's so exciting. And I feel like we just were tapping into it.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

Like, it's not like we got to the end and it was like we got nothing left.

[Interviewer]

No.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

It's like we have, like, so many songs and jams that we did that we might never even see or find it. But that's not even the point of the jam because, like, they're. They're within us. They'll come out in a different way.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

But just when you know it's there, you're like this. It's like we tapped into like, a oil well. Like, we found oil, like, for your family's family.

[Interviewer]

What would be a good song to listen to?

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

This is tough. Also, this album has such a. Like, I listen to it like a. Like you'd watch a play.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

And even though you have, like, certain scenes in the play that you might. Or a movie that you were like, I love the scenes. Like it's the body movie or the. The whole story that takes you into different spaces, you know?

[Interviewer]

Like, I feel I always listen to it as an album.

[Sam]

I wondered if in a sailing pass this way Was a friend that I once knew. Flew in from la A lesson that I learned a long, long time ago. Remind me of my lonesome self at or in shadow When I count my blessings there I know nobody understand. I waste my days away. You don't have love because you don't want pain. Wanna know? You don't want pain. Because you don't match us. Wanna know? You don't matter that's all. You don't ever. Oh no, no you don't match. Cuz I just can't take the pain. There was a time sat there like a dog he was the one. Now he's away right in the radio ways. Get the out the way we can have all the things you want. Okay, listen to the I tell you what to do today. I waste my days of work Instead of giving it a voice. I can't never. Harmonic minority. How can I do it all on my own? Never a secret all down the two Putting your feet up wrong in a two. I didn't see nothing new A reservation din of a something inside us bubbling up. We got to go somewhere to get drunk. The reservation.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

I love that song.

[Interviewer]

It's so cool.

[Guitarist/Member of The Strokes]

This so cool doesn't sound like anything else. No. And also this one was cool because it was. We had. The song was all one way. And then when Julian was doing the singing, he sent me a thing, and he was like, if you have any ideas. And, like, with my guitar teacher, I was like, what are the different ways? And we were doing certain. Like, kids, but we were doing certain things that I, like. Like, my ear just picks up on. And I was like, oh, it fits in this song, but it's so different. And so I got it, and I got to add my guitar at, like, my own speed and, like, dive into, like, different verses of different stuff, the chorus. And I feel like I'm just playing. It's really intimate. I'm playing to Julian's singing. Yeah, it's just really special to me.

[Narrator/Host]

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