With Found Footage, we dig through the depths of archival video on the internet. From performances to interviews to music videos, we uncover the best visual documents floating around the web.
Since there's a new Strokes album on the horizon (Comedown Machine is out March 26 via RCA), we're taking the time to look at some of the band's finest moments in filmed performance and interview form. For a deeper exploration of the history of the Strokes, read Jonathan Garrett's 2011 interview feature chronicling 10 years of the band.
1) Performing "New York City Cops" in Toronto, 2001. The Strokes' debut album Is This It was released internationally in the summer of 2001, with plans to release it in the States in September. Then September 11 happened. After tragedy struck in the band's hometown, they removed the track "New York City Cops" from the album. (The chorus: "New York City cops / They ain't too smart.") Cut to one month later: the band plays the album in its entirety at a show at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto. Introducing the song, Julian Casablancas says, "The cops killed a lot more people than they say, that's the fucking truth." (More videos from that show are available here.)
2) "Last Nite" on "Saturday Night Live", 2002. By the beginning of 2002, the Strokes were well on the rise. "Last Nite" was on the radio and its video was in heavy rotation, and sure enough, they got booked on "Saturday Night Live", with host Jack Black, on January 19. It was the beginning of a long relationship with "SNL" for the band. Years later, Julian Casablancas would sing the hook on a Lonely Island song and perform a Christmas song with Jimmy Fallon and Horatio Sanz, and the Strokes would perform again on "SNL" in 2006 and 2011. But it all started with this performance of what's arguably still their biggest song.
3) Live on MTV's "$2 Bill", 2002. "$2 Bill" was live music show on MTV that aired in the early-mid 00s. It was christened by the Strokes, who headlined the first episode with a beautifully shot half-hour set of Is This It songs. Keep your eye out for a Cody ChesnuTT cameo.
4) "I Can't Win" on "Late Night With Conan O'Brien", 2003. By the time the Strokes' second album, Room on Fire, came out in 2003, they were practiced hands at the publicity, touring, and TV circuits. In November 2003, the band performed every Tuesday night on "Late Night", and as this video shows, they were tight as ever at that point.
5) Interview with the band, 2010. While making their 2011 album Angles, the members of the band sat down with TDK to talk about the music they taped off the radio growing up. Here's a quick list: Pearl Jam, Wham!, Poison, Radiohead, Living Colour, AC/DC, Nirvana, Def Leppard, Jane's Addiction, Built to Spill, Guns N' Roses, U2, Warrant, Vanilla Ice, and Bon Jovi. They also talk about their favorite new stuff: MGMT, Grizzly Bear, Crystal Castles, Arctic Monkeys, Radiohead, and more.