I already had mine...

my best mate in London work for their management so got on guestlist. Seeing them in Cardiff on Saturday. try and sneak on the tourbus...haha.

Anyway The Strokes...(got a copy of the album yesterday as well if you want a copy email me)

The Strokes@ULU Tuesday 29 November

The moment Julian Casablancas, Nick Valensi, Fabrizio Moretti, Albert Hammond Jnr and Nikolai Fraiture burst out of my sleepy Suffolk bedroom stereo in the summer of 2001 around 11am on The Jo Whiley Show it was something I'll remember forever. Last Nite was simply a song I had instantly fell in love with and by the afternoon I had bought the album. I had pretty much lost total touch with music for a couple of years, the radio was full of music I didn't understand and had no relevance to my life and it sure wasn't music to my ears, I have no idea why I even had the radio on looking back on it.

Roll on a few years and I find myself standing with a friend at a cashpoint at 12:05am on a cold Monday morning a few yards from University London Union. The reason being, I'm expecting to get paid and fate has it Strokes tickets go on sale at 9am and we're around number 100 in a queue number that seems to grow at an ever increasing rate. My heart sinks as I see my pay cheque hasn't cashed yet but I keep faith and 3 hours later it's there and the search for more alcohol begins as does a game of football. The game of football helped pass the time and it soon becomes a lot lighter as the sun begins to set, the nerves have set in and then after a long last hour of waiting the doors are open and the queue is moving. We get near the front and suddenly one of the security guys announces that the gig is sold out, I don't know why but I don't believe him and another security guys reassures me that I'll get a ticket. A few minutes I haven't got a ticket but I do have a gold sparkly wristband and that's what counts!

An expectant crowd the following evening eagerly awaits it's heroes from New York City and the 800 capacity at ULU is absolutely packed to the rafters with rock n roll celebrity. Some idiots have become restless and decided it might be a laugh to have a pretend fight, then I remember they're my mates. Anyway moments later the monster bass that opens up new single 'Juicebox' sends the crowd ecstatic and by the end of the song I'm full of joy but also very sweaty, this is it complete with Casablancas in aviator shades and sexy military jacket.

Ten more new songs follow to a decent reaction, we're singing along down the front but not getting many backing vocals. Razorblade is very popular with the capacity crowd, many stand in awe of The Strokes new found sound you feel on songs such as Electrictyscape, Vision of Division and Evening Sun. On The Other Side and 15 Minutes are two songs that leaked early a couple of weeks ago and the band look happy with the crowd approval of The Pogues impression. The coolest band in the world end their new songs with the ever so popular You Only Live Once, probably the next single, it is a classic Strokes song, delivered in typically slurred Casablancas fashion and of all of the new songs it's the most catchy.

The hysteria that greets the following ten songs shows just how much The Strokes mattered to so many people. This band changed many people's lives and also the UK music scene. Last Night sends the heart racing, the band look about as happy as they've ever been. My personal favourite Hard To Explain follows and I'm in music heaven. Live favourite New York City Cops and Reptilia probably get the most wild crowd reaction of the night, crushing, crowd surfing aplenty. They walk off stage on Reptilia and the crowd are left to wonder if they'll be back for me and break their usual 'no-encore' stance. The Strokes know how to please a crowd though and as a reward for those of us who queued 12 hours or more to get into this gig 3 more classics end their set and we'll left still wanting more and that's how it should be.

Setlist:

'Juicebox'
'Red Light'
'Heart In A Cage'
'On The Other Side'
'Vision Of Division'
'Evening Sun'
'Razorblade'
'Electricityscape'
'Hawaii'
'15 Minutes'
'You Only Live Once'
'Last Nite'
'Hard To Explain'
'Someday'
'The End Has No End'
'Under Control'
'New York City Cops'
'Reptilia'
'Barely Legal'
'Is This It'
'Take It Or Leave It'

Review written by Adam Brandon

Posted By: Brandonio, Dec 6, 22:29:12