The Strokes’ frontman, Julian Casablancas, recently confirmed that the he and the boys are back in the studio to record their sixth album — a follow-up to 2013’s Comedown Machine .
According to NME , Casablancas announced the news to The Strokes fans at the Landmark Music Festival held in Washington, DC on Sunday, September 27, during their headlining set.
If you missed @thestrokes set at @LandmarkFestDC you can watch it back in all its glory right here https://t.co/IU8fsDx5AQ via @shesfixing
— The Strokes Fans (@TheStrokes_Fans) September 28, 2015
The Strokes formed in New York City in 1998 and consists of five members — Julian Casablancas, Nick Valensi, Albert Hammond, Jr., Nikolai Fraiture, and Fabrizio Moretti. The Strokes is credited as one of the bands from the 21st century who revived garage rock. Their first album, entitled Is This It , is included in Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and sits at No. 199. Since their debut, The Strokes have amassed a steady fan base from different countries including the U.S., the U.K. Brazil, Australia, France, Canada, Ireland, and Argentina. After a few albums, all the members of The Strokes went on to pursue different projects on their own, including both solo efforts and with other bands. However, they regrouped to release Comedown Machine . Afterwards, they haven’t been in the spotlight together for sometime, but The Strokes haven’t broken up either.
Julian Casablancas released a solo album, Phrazes for the Mind , in 2009, centered on electronica and new wave music. Casablancas has also been with his new band, The Voidz, but has recently cancelled their tour, saying that they are not able to “create more of an experience that would be inspiring to our fans.”
Albert Hammond, Jr., released four solo efforts, Yours to Keep , ¿Cómo Te Llama? , AHJ , and Momentary Masters in 2006, 2008, 2013, and 2015 respectively.
Nick Valensi has collaborated with different artists throughout the years including Devendra Banhart, Regina Spektor, Sia, and Kate Pierson, often lending his vocals or his guitar skills.
Nikolai Fraiture formed his own band called Nickel Eye and released an album in 2009 entitled The Time of the Assassins .
Fabrizio Moretti also formed a band called Little Joy. Little Joy released a self-titled debut album in 2008. For a time, Moretti was also the center of headlines and paparazzi shots when he was in a relationship with comedienne Kristen Wiig. The couple called it quits in 2013.
Despite their solo projects, it seems that The Strokes are not yet done creating music together. As Gigwise reported, Julian Casablancas announced to the audience at the Landmark Music Festival that they will “be back.”
“We’ll be back in the studio and that s**t.”
Fans present at the show took to Twitter to spread the good news to other The Strokes fans.
Waking up to hear The Strokes are back in the studio working on new stuff is quite possibly the best Monday morning news to wake up to
— O (@_super0Iysonic) September 28, 2015
THE STROKES ARE WORKING ON NEW MATERIAL pic.twitter.com/cVle7hqOvp
— adrianna (@shampainadi) September 28, 2015
At @LandmarkFestDC , @Casablancas_J just confirmed @thestrokes are in the studio. 😃😎😃 pic.twitter.com/ooNKCvZtpO
— Rob Duffy (@rob_duffy) September 28, 2015
In a separate interview with Gigwise , Albert Hammond, Jr. shared his views on working with The Strokes and making a solo album.
“I think the biggest competition with that is more trying to create something where Strokes fans can like it but you’re trying to find new fans too. I guess it’s always been a healthy competition.” “You’ve got to try and conquer. Maybe if we made a new record we’d try to conquer but right now, it’s just not as much of a challenge. It’s fun, but it’s not a challenge.”
The interview was done back in July. Maybe Albert Hammond, Jr. is ready for some fun in the studio with The Strokes once again. Considering the time The Strokes took to make their last album, fans can probably expect the sixth album to drop sometime next year or in 2017.
[Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images for T-Mobile]
