The Strokes

Is This It

There's nothing unnecessary here. 'Is This It' is an album by a band that knows its strengths, knows its collective mind. It doesn't sound like one songwriter and some other donkeys.

Accusations of style over substance were heard from some quarters, but really – would we be talking about this album 13 years later if it didn’t comprise a collection of completely cracking songs?

The Strokes have struck an incredible balance between the two extremes of rock music: sentimentality and listlessness.

”Is This It” bows down before all the trademarks of pre-1977 rock: off-kilter guitar solos, half-buried vocals (à la ”Louie, Louie”), attitude-heavy slurring (by singer Julian Casablancas), primitive tom-tom rhythms (shades of the Velvets’ Moe Tucker), and the raw, muddy sonics of garage-band 45s.

This is an outstanding release filled with trashy pop songs about love, hate, lust and the misunderstandings about growing up. With one song it can piss off your mum and at with the next have her singing along.

They may not really be the second coming of the Velvet Underground, but Is This It is exactly what a rock ‘n’ roll album should sound like, equally calling on its influences and pushing forward in brash discontentedness.

Is This It? is a decadent album, and it finds the band kicking ass first and taking names later, and Julian Casablancas' persona is that of the ringleader of the 4 quiet men behind him.

The Strokes' debut album is pure New York rock & roll: all gray-pavement aggression wrapped in black-leather cool.

Is This It is a great debut album, derivative yet posessed of an urgency and excitement of its own devising.

The Strokes aren’t bad, it’s just hard to see what all the fuss is about. They’ve got some decent licks and are probably a good live act. On CD, however, they’re not all that distinguishable.