Earlier today, in a post about Amanda De Cadenet’s appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, I ended the post with two awkwardly-phrased sentences about The Black Keys-Arctic Monkeys show I saw on March 19 at the United Center.
In the comments, some readers thought I was insulting Arctic Monkeys. I wasn’t. I was trying to make a point about how The Strokes toured Angles. I just wrote a long response in order to clarify my point. Because the comments section of nearly every post I’ve done since The Strokes’ last date of the Angles tour seems to devolve into some sort of criticism of the band, I figured I’d post my feelings about the Angles tour and defend The Strokes in this space
Here’s my comment, which is directed at reader Gimli, who thought I was attacking Arctic Monkeys with what I wrote…
@Gimli — That’s not an insult to either band. I’m not one of these people who criticize a band just because they get big. It was awesome to see them (Arctic Monkeys and The Black Keys) play a huge venue, and I was 15 feet away from Pat (Carney) and 10 feet away from Nick (O’Malley) at the United Center. It was essentially a club date for me. I saw Arcade Fire and The National at UIC Pavilion last Easter in what is now one of my 2 or 3 favorite shows ever. I’m not complaining about that.
What I meant is that it’s nice to see two bands who’ve tirelessly toured in order to (in TBK’s case, slowly) build their fan bases and not just release new music, play some festival dates and crawl back underground like The Strokes.
With that said, I don’t know what reason The Strokes have for not playing a proper tour in the US or UK. We know three members have small children, so trying to build a healthy home life and strengthen their relationships with their wives is probably a huge part of it. Another part could be to keep Albert on his path to sobriety — where throwing him into the fire of a long, laborious tour would be unhealthy for him and, in turn, the band.
The personal issues formed during the recording and touring of FIOE were probably another reason as well.
I understand that there were likely reasons behind it, it’s just frustrating for me — somebody who lives in one of the three biggest cities in the United States — to only have the chance to see them live at the Pearl Jam Festival, where I had to stand more than 500 feet away because PJ fans were awarded all the good seats.
I guess I’m like most people who comment on here in that I’m kind of angry about the touring of the last record. But I understand there were probably at least two really good reasons for it.
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Why don’t you answer the question, this is not a forum, and why is that so hard to understand? Unless you run the news site which it seems this Eric guy does, you are spamming.
Hey party people, allow me to interrupt.
in case you a) don’t follow Albert Hammond, or b) don’t speak Spanish or c) both, check this little snippet out. A tweet from ten hours ago:
“@Renacuajooo ahora mismo estan ocupados gravando su quinto CD en New York besos oxoxoxoxoxo(*-* )”
Translated, “Right now they’re busy recording their fifth CD in New York.” And then the oxxoxoxox’s are kind of universally understood.
So that’s pretty neat.
@shadey WHAT?! OMG!! But why haven’t they tweeted anything? Why are we hearing it from Albert’s dad? Weird.
@heather, annie isn’t spamming. shes just an avid strokes fan, as is the rest of us on here. spamming would be her saying something completely irrelevent to the strokes or anything strokes related. but i think in almost every post she made she talks about the strokes or something strokes related. which definitley is not spam.
@Heather, Annie isn’t spamming. Do you kn
*know what spamming means? You don’t have to read these conversations you know. No one is taping your eyelids open forcing you go through the thread. Why don’t you go play on tumblr.
@shadey, that’s so cool!! I wonder why we’re hearing from AH. Does he really know these details?
@Nicki, I know, it would be nice to hear from our guys, right?? They are so moody and secretive. I thought I heard somewhere they would be recording in LA. Maybe I’m wrong.
@Annie1251, I’m really enjoying our conversations. Don’t pay attention to people who can’t think of anything decent to add to them. Don’t worry about the Julian solo thing! I’m sure he was great for most of his shows. His attitude was kind of off-putting, but he still sounded great, and H2E was bitchin. Maybe I’m just not as annoyed b/c I got to touch him, hahahaha. I’m sure I’ll get to see another Julian show one day. You too!
@ modern age & @Tommy Pickles
I have been looking at recent videos of there tour last year, and they actually looked pretty happy. If the guys really hated each other they would have not gone on with this album and quit.
@savannah I thought they looked pretty happy at most of their shows too I dunno what people are talking about… Jules was always joking around with Albert and fab and it looked like they were having a good time.
@Nicki. I think people are just over thinking everything. I don’t think Nick and Nikolai have ever really like joking around on stage.
Guys guess what I’ve found.
http://fuckyeahjuliancasablancas.tumblr.com/post/8261457845/musical-notation-for-the-end-has-no-end
A picture of Julian’s songwriting of The End Has No End !
How cool is that ?!
@kingsley
It’s very cool! One of my favorite songs from ROF.
@kinglsey That’s really cool!! I wonder if he has anything else like that on the internet.
@Modernage, good for you, you contribute 400 posts a day collectively with Annie Hall over here, I would have never guessed that The Strokes could exist to stimulate such dull conversation, but you’ve managed to pull it off.
I’m taking a wild guess that you earn under 100k a year.
Lol, Heather you are a real charmer! Has anyone ever told you that? Have a great day
Heather, why are you on here if you are just going to be a bitch. Ever heard the saying, if you’re not going to say something nice don’t say it at all. Try it.
@Heather fuck off, you’re a fucking cunt. Bitch better not hope i find u.cunt.
@Ash s. get the fuck off this site and go to school.
@Kingsley I’ll fuck you where you stand, you pimple faced pig.
@Ash get the fuck off this website you pale, cockney, misogynistic ass-faced twat. Piece of shit.
Don’t tell me who to website nuttin. NUTTIN!!
@Ash You shut up, you shut up right now
Hell yeah I was at that United Center show. Kind of disappointed with Arctic Monkeys, I mean they’re my #2 (The Strokes are my gods, Arctic Monkeys my prophets, Black Keys my pastors), but they didn’t play loud enough. I was sitting far away and you had to try to hear Alex Turner and Co., and their setlist was troubling (what the hell, Pretty Visitors, come on? and I’m not trashing Humbug, Secret Door or Cornerstone would’ve been more appropriate amid classics like Crying Lightning, Flourescent Adolescent, and Hellcat Spangled Shalalalala-never know how many lalalas to add on). But Monkeys had it rough, they had to break the mic, open for a band who’s popularity has taken the opposite route as theirs…. Anyway, still loyal to Arctic Monkeys as ever and now a Black Keys convert, especially with the beautiful encore ‘Everlasting Light’, must be what sex with yetti or alien abduction is like. Rant off!
Don’t tell meshut up, you shut up
@Ash I ain’t shuttin up for noone mate
Bitch better not hope i find
@Ash get the fuck off this website
@Jenny gotohell !
@Ash somebody hold me back bcuz dis bitch gon loose hur weave
@Jenny oh hell no b****
Yo momma so ugly when she joined an ugly contest, they said “Sorry, No Professionals.”
Yo mama so old her birth certificate says expired on it.
POST CODE SE6 B*** bring it!
@Ash you’re a vile, slut
@jen stfu
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I dont even know why you care or write about defending yourself or whatever your trying to do. just write whatever you want it’s the internet. With that said I am fucking pissed they didnt tour for Angles. I sure as fuck wasnt going to go to a festival just to see them and pay 10bucks for a 16 ounce beer.
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