The Strokes - Room on Fire - RCA Records


The Strokes Room on Fire

Released: October 28, 2003 Origination Year: 2003 Time: 32:00 Tracks:11 Produced by: Gordon Raphael Style: Studio Format: CD Enhancement: None Label: RCA Records Website: www.thestrokes.com

Track Listing Whatever Happened? Reptilia Automatic Stop 12:51 You Talk Way Too Much Between Love and Hate Meet Me In the Bathroom Under Control The Way It Is The End Has No End I Can't Win
The Strokes Julian Casablancas: Vocals Nikolai Fraiture: Bass Albert Hammond, Jr: Guitar Fab Moretti: Drums Nick Valensi: Guitar

The Strokes, the neo-new wave outfit from New York, did it for me when Is This It came out. The cultural pundits were proclaiming that, yes; the rock renaissance was back in the spotlight with fellow groups like The White Stripes and The Hives. It was cool again to have a band that used “the” in their name, but something happened on the way to the revolution. Equal numbers of fans were stolen away from freshmen punks, pre-school rappers and Justin Timberlake. Put the banners away; it’s all horseshoes and hand grenades.

So it’s actually a better climate that meets the latest Strokes offering, Room On Fire. They no longer have to be the new Richard Hell & The Voidoids, the new Television or anything of the kind. They just have to make a record that doesn’t sink fast. And if that sounds like an overly negative statement, consider this: amongst critical praise, much initial excitement and a sizeable release week, The White Stripes' Elephant has not had the same longevity as their previous disc. Could another single relaunch it? Sure, but it shouldn’t have to be so hard for a group with so much press on their side. Perhaps another casualty?

Returning to producer Gordon Raphael after aborted sessions with uber producer Nigel Godrich (Beck, Radiohead), Room On Fire is Is This Part Two in some respects, but it’s not so bad. In fact, would it really have been so much artistic growth to hear songs like the first single “12:51” with the odd backward diddles and swoops Godrich is known for? Is there a “Godrich Sessions” in the offing? And such a radical change of sound wouldn’t have fit the material, which is also very close to the previous release. Short, tight songs reflecting the NYC SoHo/Boho lifestyle, loveless sex in the loo, ruminating about the emptiness of the fast lane, there is nothing here that comes close to epic. These are “Short Cuts” vignettes set to a jangly guitar and a catchy beat.

But is there any growth? Yes, there is but it’s not an immediately seen one. Writer-singer Julian Casablancas seems to be looking into the underside of the New York hedonism and has in him the possibility of emulating another underground luminary, Lou Reed. These songs will be looked back upon as his formative period, so enjoy their breezy bounciness. I predict dark times ahead. Musically, there are touches of handclaps and synth, the synth possibly being a holdover from the Godrich work but I prefer to think it’s the band tapping into yet another new wave group, The Cars. No, it never gets that lush and layered, but a couple cuts do get a bit of kick from it.

For me, the best cut is “Under Control” which has a slowed down, almost 50s-like high school dance gone sour feel. It has a tendency to stick out amongst the other songs and that’s probably its most attractive point. What it points to is a very promising future of different sound and tempo, while not disowning what they have now. Having gone with Godrich over Raphael would have had that tinge of betrayal, so for now the band seems to be making all the right strategic overtures.

If you liked Is This It, you’ll like Room On Fire. It may leave you wanting more, and something a little meatier, but it’s nice to want more than to feel you’ve had quite enough, and in the end it’s stamina, not firepower, that fuels a real revolution.