By: David Schultz

After years of giving audiences fierce, stadium-shaking renditions of "Born To Run," Bruce Springsteen switched gears in the late eighties, offering instead a sparse acoustic reading of his classic rock anthem. Crowds had mixed feelings towards Springsteen's softer, more introspective interpretation. Most fans relished the new arrangement, enjoying a version that differed greatly from the studio recording. Others, albeit a small minority, felt a twinge of disappointment, wondering if they were shortchanged by not getting to hear "Born To Run" in the form and fashion to which they've become accustomed. Such is the quandary for any fan when presented with an alternative take on a beloved but familiar tune. Anyone sympathizing with the latter group will find rapture with The Strokes' live show and delight in their 2006 tour as they forthrightly deliver exactly what their records promise.

Proving the old adage that there's no place like home, The Strokes kicked off their tour in support of their third album, First Impressions Of Earth, with three shows for their hometown fans at New York City's Hammerstein Ballroom. While every Strokes discussion seems to involve a grudging concession of the band's enduring success, even their biggest detractors must grant that The Strokes have expertly honed their ability to craft crisp three minute songs with energetic vocals and pulsing, pseudo-hypnotic guitar riffs. Feeling no need to repair what they haven't broken, The Strokes do not rearrange, expand or reinterpret their songs during their live shows. In fact, they reproduce their songs with such skill that, in the absence of seeing them on stage, you might be tempted to wonder if there was some Ashlee Simpsonish chicanery afoot.

The set list provides few surprises. While the band's image seems to belie a chart-conscious sensibility, they gratifyingly included all of their more popular songs. In replicating each song, practically to the note, The Strokes enhanced their greatest strengths but also magnified their most glaring weaknesses. In a testament to the production values of their albums, lead singer Julian Casablancas' voice sounds every bit as strong on stage as it does in the studio. Nick Valensi, Albert Hammond, Jr. and Nikolai Fraiture deliver the uncomplicated but hard-hitting guitar riffs without diverging from the tight knit structure of the song. However, their ability to stay true to their material also highlights their rigidity as musicians, seemingly unwilling, or possibly unable, to take a song in a different direction. On thing for sure, anyone unequivocally in love with The Strokes' studio recordings will find no qualms with their current stage show.

The Strokes refusal to improvise falls far short of becoming an issue in light of the visceral punch their music provides. Focusing primarily on Is This It and First Impressions Of Earth, the show began with First Impressions' opening track, "You Only Live Once." From thereon, the band tore into their songs with a restrained fury, quickly running through the standout tracks from their catalog. For the majority of the show, Casablancas seemed to be the only one prowling the stage, with the guitarists remaining relatively stationary, cranking out riffs with detached, often bemused, interest. Although he may not be invited back to the opera anytime soon, Fabrizio Moretti found a place where he could be more at home, enthusiastically pounding away on the drums. Fraiture's rumbling bass line from "Juicebox" loosened up the hipster crowd and by the time the band reached "Last Night," even the most reserved, ultra-hip Strokes fan couldn't help but break down and dance in place. For close to two hours, the band kept up a frenetic pace, offering very few pauses or quiet moments. The calmest selection of the evening was the guitar free reading of "Ask Me Anything" with Valensi, on keyboards, providing the sole accompaniment for Casablancas.

While hardly the type of band suited for covers, they found room in their set for a rave up of The Ramones' "Life's A Gas." Though the band typically avoids indulging the commonplace comparisons to the New York bands that preceded them, their tip of the cap to The Ramones seemed very much in step with the rest of the show.

Evidencing the ever-changing attitudes in the Big Apple, The Strokes broke out the once apocryphal "New York City Cops" in their encore. Hardly flattering to the NYPD, the song was abruptly removed, with the band's consent, from their 2001 debut in the aftermath of September 11th. It's inclusion in the set provided the only slightly political bent to the show and paradoxically seemed both in line and at odds with the band's normal removed, laissez-faire demeanor. As if remembering to exhibit some rock star attitude, Valensi jumped up onto the drum riser during the night's closer "Take It Or Leave It" leaping off just before Moretti finished the song by hurdling the drums and letting his band mates carry him off stage.

The United States leg of The Strokes' tour will continue through the end of April. After which they will head overseas, appearing at multiple European Festivals.

Labels: The Strokes