The Strokes are well and truly back, performing a brand new song during their first live show in two years.
Late last year, The Strokes revealed that 2019 was set to be the year of their “global comeback”.
Announcing a few live dates for the year, the group hit the live stage a little earlier than first planned, performing at Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theatre on Monday night.
The first performance since 2017, and first American show since 2016, The Strokes gave fans something of a greatest hits set, performing fan favourites, chart classics, and even digging up ‘Ize Of The World’ and playing it live for the first time since 2006.
Check out ‘The Adults Are Talking’ by The Strokes:
However, fans were undoubtedly most excited by the new addition to the setlist, with The Strokes performing their new song ‘The Adults Are Talking’ for the first time.
Featuring a melodic opening riff, the track is a little more subdued than their most notable works, making use of Julian Casablancas’ crooning voice and flowing vocals, with atmospheric lights being splashed against the backdrop.
Likewise, fans were also treated to a rather unique cover, with The Strokes performing their own rendition of Erasure’s ‘A Little Respect’ for the first time.
Kicking things off with a droning keyboard and minimal instrumentation, the tune was something more of a downtempo ballad than anything else, never quite reaching the poppy sentiments of the original.
Check out The Strokes’ cover of ‘A Little Respect’:
While The Strokes’ last release was 2016’s Future Present Past EP, released three years after their last studio album, Comedown Machine, there’s no word yet as to when we’ll be hearing a studio version of this new track.
Back in July of 2017 though, rumours began doing the rounds that The Strokes had been in the studio with Rick Rubin.
Strangely, the news was actually broken by Albert Hammond, Sr, who told The West Australian that the band were hard at work on album #5.
“They’re making a new album now with a great producer called Rick Rubin,” Hammond explained. “I speak to my son every day and he says that they’re so happy, I’m sure this will be a very successful record.”
Sadly, Albert Hammond, Jr clarified his father’s statements, explaining that there’s still quite a while to go before we see a new record. “We met and played a few music ideas for Rick to feel out a vibe but even a theoretical album plan would be years away, if at all,” he explained.
Although Hammond, Jr has since been in the studio with Natalie Imbruglia, we’re yet to hear if any of the Aussie’s vocals might make their way onto The Strokes’ long-awaited fifth album.
Check out The Strokes’ ‘Hard To Explain’:
The Strokes @ The Wiltern Theatre, Los Angeles, USA 13/05/19 Setlist
‘Heart In A Cage’
‘You Only Live Once’
‘Ize Of The World’
‘The Modern Age’
‘Happy Ending’
‘Hard To Explain’
‘The Adults Are Talking’
‘One Way Trigger’
‘Meet Me In The Bathroom’
‘I Can’t Win’
‘On The Other Side’
‘The Way It Is’
‘A Little Respect’ (Erasure cover)
‘What Ever Happened?’
’12:51″
‘Automatic Stop’
‘Soma’
‘Last Nite’
Encore:
‘Is This It’
‘Someday’
