Albert Hammond Jr’s favourite song from every album by The Strokes
The dawn of the new century brought with it a new wave of guitar music. A revived interest in post-punk and garage rock spawned one of the most influential indie bands of the 2000s: The Strokes. The New Yorkers, led by smooth frontman Julian Casablancas, carved out a distinctive indie rock presence with scuzzy lo-fi guitars and fairly simplistic lyricism.
The band’s debut record, Is This It, remains one of indie history’s most well-loved and referenced records, prompting countless budding musicians to pick up a guitar and a pair of skinny jeans. The Strokes continued to prove their sleazy, indie prowess for the next two decades, with each new release further proving their rightful place as pioneers of the new scene.
With six albums to their name, it would be impossible for many fans to pick out the songs that represent them at the best. From early singles and enduring indie staples like ‘Last Nite’ and ‘Someday’ to more understated tracks like ‘I’ll Try Anything Once’ to their most recent release with The New Abnormal, their propensity for indie hits is unparalleled.
Though it seems like a mammoth task, The Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond Jr once named his favourite song from each of their six records during a conversation with Spin.
Starting with their iconic debut, Hammond Jr picked out ‘Someday’, one of their earliest singles but one of their most well-loved tracks. Comparing it with another of their most enduring hits – Room on Fire’s ‘Reptilia’ – Hammond Jr suggested it has slightly more staying power.
“I love ‘Reptilia’. ‘Reptilia’ is really fun; I think it’ll always be fun. I don’t think it’ll ever age as well as ‘Someday’,” he commented. In fact, ‘Reptilia’ doesn’t even take the title for Hammond Jr’s favourite song from their sophomore record. Instead, he picked out the slightly more subdued ‘Under Control’.
From their third album, First Impressions of Earth, the guitarist picks out ‘Ask Me Anything’, another slower tune which charts survival and shyness. Hammond Jr picked up the pace again for their fourth record, 2011’s Angles, selecting out ‘Gratisfaction’ as his favourite entry into the album. Evoking the sounds of Steely Dan, it’s slightly more optimistic than much of their sound.
‘Call It Fate, Call It Karma’ takes the title for Hammond Jr’s favourite song on Comedown Machine. Forming the closing track on the record, it finds The Strokes at their most muted and contemplative, as well as at their most sonically beautiful. “Can I waste all your time here on the sidewalk? Can I stand in your light, just for a while?” Casablancas sings over intricate instrumentation.
Hammond Jr rounds out the list with ‘Not The Same Anymore’, the penultimate track from their most recent full-length outing, The New Abnormal. It features gloomy guitars and lyrics to match – though Hammond Jr does name ‘Someday’ and ‘Gratisfaction’ as part of his list, he seems to gravitate more towards The Strokes’ more sombre soundscapes.
Albert Hammond Jr’s favourite Strokes songs:
- ‘Someday’ – Is This It (2001)
- ‘Under Control’ – Room on Fire (2003)
- ‘Ask Me Anything’ – First Impressions of Earth (2006)
- ‘Gratisfaction’ – Angles (2011)
- ‘Call It Fate, Call It Karma’ – Comedown Machine (2013)
- ‘Not The Same Anymore’ – The New Abnormal (2020)
