The Strokes Reunite For Gig Practice...

My real question is: Does anyone care though? Or is actually just me who is beyond the anticipation that awaits album number four from the New Yorkers?

2006 [and it was early that year too!] saw the release of First Impressions of Earth - the simply abysmal third offering from the quintet. It ran at close to double the length of either of the first two, and aside from the lead single [Juicebox] and a handful of others, the disc is best confined to the annals rather than actually taking residence in your stereo. This followed the mixed Room on Fire [It started strongly put peters out after the first five or so tracks I think] and the now classic Is This It?

Unfortunately, it seems that WAS it from the Strokes [Yeah I'll get my coat...] In the ensuing period following First Impressions of Earth, we have had two (surprisingly) decent solo albums from Albert Hammond Jr., a pretty forgettable work from Julian Casablancas and I wont even mention the others. Though it is safe to say that all the works put out by Messrs Casablancas, Hammond, etc. just added to the notion that Is This It? was a once off - a genius debut album [that seems less and less "genius" in the wake of work that came out afterwards. Don't get me wrong, I do like it and you cant deny the impact it had, but if you were to just sit down and listen to albums from the last ten years or so ignorant of release and impact, I'd be surprised if it stood out] and nothing more.

Last year, we were told that album number four was in the works. After a few months of letting the anticipation build, this was dismissed and the album out back. Early this year, a similar announcement was released. Album number four would be in studios before the end of 2010 - we were foolishly duped into believing this as a result of the confirmation of a number of festival dates, but the album has in fact been put back to 2011 at the earliest. Early indications were that the band had actually gotten together without Julian in order to thrash out a record and simply cut him in later. Ultimately, whatever the plan was - it did not work.

Five years have passed since we last got some new work from the Strokes. Given that the highlight from Is This It? was the raucous Last Nite, it is now TEN years since we last had some really good work. And I'm supposed to still care that they are reuniting for gigs and festivals this summer? I'm afraid they are confined to the same bracket as the Libertines in my head - irrelevant. And until they release something new and decent, that opinion wont be changing.