Polyphonic Press - Classic Album Reviews · Jeremy Boyd & Jon VanDyk

Is This It by The Strokes: Garage Rock’s Modern Revival

·42 min·2 clips

The Strokes made the hosts feel like "this is my music" after years of Creed and similar rock.

1. Polyphonic Press reviews The Strokes' Is This It as the show's 100th-episode pick. 2. Jeremy Boyd and John Van Dyke host the episode, and their shared music-nerd roles matter because they choose random albums and compare notes on production and memory. 3. The episode asks what made The Strokes' 2001 debut feel like a "special treat" and a turning point for early-2000s rock. 4. Jeremy says he picked Is This It because The Strokes were part of the garage rock revival he heard as a teenager alongside The White Stripes. 5. The hosts note the album was released July 30th, 2001 on RCA Records and produced by Gordon Raphael. 6. They describe the album as 11 songs that they plan to split into first five tracks and last six tracks. 7. They point to "raw production," "garage rock revival sound," and Julian Casablancas's detached vocals as key parts of the record's identity. 8. They connect tracks like "Last Night," "Someday," and "Hard to Explain" to influences such as The Velvet Underground and Television. 9. They explain that "Hard to Explain" used sampled drums, with Fabrizio Moretti's playing cut up into a beat. 10. They contrast the album with shiny early-2000s rock from bands like Limp Bizkit and Creed. 11. They single out Julian Casablancas's request for the sound to be "more dirty" and compare it to a favorite pair of jeans. 12. They say the guitars are "clean" but still "gritty," which keeps the record from sounding polished. 13. They argue the album sounds almost like one long song because the production stays so consistent across tracks. 14. They mention that "New York City Cops" was removed from the American release after September 11th and replaced by "When It Started." 15. They discuss the original UK cover's nude hip image and the U.S. replacement using a bubble-chamber particle collision picture. 16. They say the album was initially rejected by several major labels before Rough Trade and RCA picked it up. 17. The hosts describe the record as one that made them feel a new band was playing the kind of music they wanted to hear. 18. Their conversation stays conversational and reflective, with repeated side comments, technical production notes, and memories of hearing "Last Night" on Much Music, the radio, and The OC. 19. Listeners who like early-2000s indie rock and production details would enjoy this episode. 20. Listeners who want track-by-track analysis without nostalgia may skip it.

As heard by us

A relaxed 100th-episode pick that turns a Strokes album into an easy, comparison-rich listen.

Polyphonic Press uses its 100th episode to circle back to a Strokes album, and the best part is hearing Jeremy Boyd and John Van Dyke sound fully at ease with a record they clearly like.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

A relaxed Strokes album chat with Tom Petty, AC/DC, and a bit of release-history trivia.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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