Is This It The Strokes <PRO ⇒>

By: [Your Name]

The genius of the album is its . Raphael didn’t mic the drums to sound like thunder; he mic them to sound like cardboard boxes being kicked down a hallway. The bass on “Is This It” (the track) throbs like a subway train passing through a tunnel. Nothing is clean. Everything is slightly out of tune.

The album was Is This It . The band was The Strokes. And for the last two decades, critics and fans have been asking the same question the title implies: Is this it? Is this all there is? Is this the peak? Is This It The Strokes

But to answer the title: Yes, Julian. This is it. And it’s still pretty damn good. "Hard to Explain" (loud), "Someday" (quiet, on a Sunday morning), "Trying Your Luck" (when you’re feeling pathetic).

Is Is This It the best album of the 21st century? Debatable. Is it the most important ? Arguably. By: [Your Name] The genius of the album is its

We live in an era of "maximalism." Podcasts are three hours long. Movies are three hours long. Albums have 20 tracks. Everything is a "universe."

But after re-listening to the vinyl crackle of “The Modern Age” for the hundredth time, I think we’ve been reading the title wrong. It’s not a question of defeat. It’s a dare. To understand Is This It , you have to forget everything you know about 2000s rock. Before The Strokes, the airwaves were clogged with nu-metal angst, post-grunge sincerity, and boy-band pop. Music was either angry, sad, or polished to a mirror shine. Nothing is clean

That’s because the real cover—used everywhere else—is a photograph of a naked female derriere, draped in a black leather glove, shot from behind.

But more importantly, Is This It taught indie rock that it was okay to be cool without trying. It taught us that imperfection is more relatable than perfection. And it taught us that you don't need a concept album about a dystopian future to capture the anxiety of right now.

On July 30, 2001, five guys from New York City walked into a recording studio with a producer named Gordon Raphael. They walked out with a 36-minute earthquake.