EASE DOWN THE ROAD

After clearing the way for other (often comparable-looking and -sounding) modern rock acts such as The Hives (R.I.P.) and The White Stripes, Julian and his band of greasers seemed to run out of steam. In due course came a second (excellent) album, Room on Fire, which at the time was criticized for “sounding too much like The Strokes.” Now, with their third album, First Impressions of Earth, being criticized for “not sounding like The Strokes,” I’ve decided that I hate rock critics.

Anyone lucky enough to have spent an ample amount of time in my company has likely heard a good number of my oft-lackluster stories. Of those folks with a penchant for music, most have certainly heard one in particular, entitled “My Night to be Peewee.” To make a long story short, once upon a time I was in the right place at the right time. Not only was I able to see the tallest band alive perform in a small bar before they had released anything in the U.S., but being that my friends and I were in vast minority in the bar who knew The Strokes’ music (we had all bought both the UK EP and LP from Ebay on the strength of Joe Strummer’s final endorsement) we were able to impress and thus hang out with the band after their 30-minute, five-dollar set.

Soon after the band blew up and took the stage for MTV’s “Two Dollar Bill” program in front of millions of hipsters in search of new heroes to emulate. Within a year at least 50 percent of all male high school students were sporting shaggy haircuts.

As implied earlier, things are a bit different for The Strokes’ make-or-break third album for RCA Records (remember, this album apparently doesn’t even sound like The Strokes). The vocals are much cleaner and occasionally multi-tracked; Nikolai Fraiture’s bass lines no long veiled behind the guitar interplay; keyboards and pedals make their fair share of appearances; and, most significantly, the band has left a big part of their formula behind by parting ways with producer Gordon Rafael. Where both of their previous albums clocked in at around 30 minutes over 10 songs, Impressions contains over 50 minutes of music spanning 14 tracks. With their sound more full than that of Room and Is This It, The Strokes come off more like a Cars/Gang of Four crossbreed than Stooges or Velvets clones, and, believe it or not, that’s a good thing. They did in fact need a change. Otherwise they were looking to become the new Ramones (who released numerous identical, albeit outstanding albums earlier in their career.)

So how did The Strokes come to leave their Ramones days behind them? Mostly, they matured. Not only have their lyrics evolved with each release (hook-ups are so 2001, and 2001 is so post-retro), but the band’s songwriter/control freak Casablancas has washed his hair, married, quit smoking and, ultimately, decided to take his “art” a bit more seriously. Hardly the stray dog he appears, Casablancas has forever been at the head, which in the past has held them back. With a more collaborative and serious stance, The Strokes have released a fully realized rock album of dense guitarwork, unadorned yet effective lyrics and catchy, hip hooks.

So what will snobs like Christgau say when looking back on First Impressions of Earth? Don’t be surprised when Earth is reissued as a double CD (future vintage), called a classic and plastered with a quote from Christgau, most certainly declaring it a “fan favorite,” “lost treasure” or “underrated masterpiece.” Easily the best album rock of the young year, First Impressions of Earth will be appreciated in time, you’ll see, once The Strokes are just a band and not a fad (yes, that time will one day come). Cut Earth down to its 10 best tracks and you might even have their best album to date.