I have five hours to decide if I want to see The Strokes live.

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This is not a Strokes classic or dud thread. I like them.

A girl in my class got two tickets to see the Strokes, but couldn't find anyone else to go with her. She'd be willing to sell me the ticket for less than she paid (though probably more than I should be spending) but that's not the big issue. I don't really like big concerts too much, at least not the last ones I can remember, from about 8 years ago. And I'd be missing class, which I did pay a lot of money for and which I enjoy. On the other hand, it might be fun to see The Strokes live and I'd hate to make this girl go by herself.

Also I wouldn't know what to wear.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:39 (twenty-one years ago)

Oh right, the point of this thread: help me decide, class or Strokes?

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:40 (twenty-one years ago)

And like I said, no knee-jerk anti-Strokes comments, you will only reveal yourself as being dreary and unimaginative.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:41 (twenty-one years ago)

What are big concerts like in Paris? Same as anywhere else? Or do people like piss in the seats during songs or something?

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:42 (twenty-one years ago)

OHMIGOD I SUDDENLY REMEMBERED THAT JULIAN CASABLANCAS PUT IN A GUEST APPEARANCE IN MY DREAM LAST NIGHT, DEMANDING TO KNOW WHAT WAS WRONG AND WHY I DIDN'T LOVE HIM ANY MORE!!! That was so strange.

The Strokes are possibly the worst live band I've ever seen. That's not a kneejerk comment, they're just really unappealing and unexciting live. So unless there's some kind of crushworthy thrill involved (obviously, JC's ass doesn't hold the same thrill for you, but you might like the girl or something) stay home and save your ears.

― Kate 22 (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:43 (twenty-one years ago)

How about knee-jerk pro-Strokes comments -- like 'they totally put 'Marquee Moon' in perspective'?

― Enrique (Enrique), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:43 (twenty-one years ago)

Kate do you remember what you told Julian?

Hm, no the girl is cute but I've no kind of crush on her, so maybe the shittiness of the Strokes live will put me off this one.

However I don't know if I could face her in class on Friday having flaked on her like this. Or would this count as a flake? She mentioned the show last week and I gave her my number and said I might be interested.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:45 (twenty-one years ago)

did anyone go to alexandra palace the other week? my friend went but i havent heard from her since...

― charltonlido (gareth), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:47 (twenty-one years ago)

I wish I could remember. It was just really bizarre.

I think you should ring the girl and tell her you're sorry but you have class. That way you're not flaking. If you're sure that you don't want to go.

Then again, the Strokes may have changed their live performance, mind you, it has been ... oh my god, about three years!!! ... since I last saw them, so perhaps I'm not the best judge.

Sorry, I'm just having a bit of a weird moment about that "three years in January" thing, considering the whole circumstances of everything.

― Kate 22 (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:48 (twenty-one years ago)

she knows i have class because she's in the same class! and she knew that i had class when i told her i might be interested. so it's less a matter of "i have class" than "i'd prefer to go to class".

"the whole circumstances of everything"?

p.s. i saw a guy pissing in the metro today, it wasn't even really in a far off corner of the station it was like right in the middle, and he was singing to himself, and it was like 10 in the morning.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:50 (twenty-one years ago)

Oh, well, erm, so much for my polite excuse, then.

It's just everything that was going on in my life around the times that I saw the Strokes, (both unintentionally, at "landmark" shows, because I was there for the support band) and I am really quite surprised to find out that all of that is three years ago now.

Perhaps Dream Julian wasn't even representing anything about Julian or the Strokes or anything at all, but more how I've come to terms with all of that (I hope) and how the obsession with him was my way of dealing with everything that happened around this time, and the fact that I've actually stopped obsessing means that I'm well and truly over all of it. But my neurosis misses me and wants me back!

HOwever, anyway... erm, maybe it would be fun simply from the perspective of seeing a Big Concert in Paris, that's got to be an experience, so perhaps you should go after all.

― Kate 22 (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:53 (twenty-one years ago)

is the girl hot?

― charltonlido (gareth), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:54 (twenty-one years ago)

yeah kind of but i don't really know her and she's kind of young

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 11:59 (twenty-one years ago)

i agree that while i think they're OK on a CD, i was pretty disappointed seeing them live. and that was at a pretty small gig. in iceland.

they could have been lip-synching to the album, it sounded exactly the same. but with flashing lights. and they looked like they'd rather be dead than be playing. which i never like.

but yeah, maybe they've changed in the last year or so. although from what i've heard of the new album, maybe not!

i think you should arrange to meet her after class and the show and talk about how the show was.

― colette (a2lette), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:00 (twenty-one years ago)

Well, she's just asking you to go to a concert with her, not marry her! An evening in the company of an attractive member of the opposite sex - even if you're not particularly interested in her - can still be great fun.

― Kate 22 (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:00 (twenty-one years ago)

I pronounced "live" wrongly when I read this thread's title, whereupon it wasn't as good anymore.

― DJ Mencap (DJ Mencap), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:02 (twenty-one years ago)

Don't go if you can't afford it and have already shelled out for a class - but meet her after class for b33r or thr33? Ah I see Colette has already suggested this well THERE YOU GO.

― Sarah (starry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:02 (twenty-one years ago)

Well, I want to see them *live* in DJM's sense, in that well, you know, they're attractive members of the opposite sex.

― Kate 22 (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:03 (twenty-one years ago)

i think it would be jerky to say no i don't want to go but would you like to meet after. because i don't know how interested i would be in meeting after.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:03 (twenty-one years ago)

In that case say "sorry no I have a class" and listen to the Strokes on yr walkman on yer way there! Blimey Amateurist this is pimps.

― Sarah (starry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:05 (twenty-one years ago)

"pimps"?

i don't have any strokes records here.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:06 (twenty-one years ago)

Runnig total (including mine)

3 say go
2 say meet her after class
0 say dont go.

― mark grout (mark grout), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:10 (twenty-one years ago)

xpost

― mark grout (mark grout), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:10 (twenty-one years ago)

Gosh I'd forgotten about this. Pimpsy = easy! Has anybody else said this?!

OK: what is the class?

― Sarah (starry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:11 (twenty-one years ago)

You like her, you like the band. It's better to regret something you have done etc. etc.

― Markelby (Mark C), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:13 (twenty-one years ago)

But he doesn't really like her, the tickets are pricey and hey, BONJOUR LE MONDE might be on "le tele"!

― Sarah (starry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:14 (twenty-one years ago)

Personally, I'd just go to the gig. You wont be able to concentrate in class anyway. Dude, just go!

― Pinkpanther (Pinkpanther), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:18 (twenty-one years ago)

Plus, you know. Julian Casablancas' ass is pretty hot. ;-)

― Kate 22 (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 12:22 (twenty-one years ago)

Well, the clock is ticking. What have you decided?

― Spontaneous Existence Failure (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 13:35 (twenty-one years ago)

i saw them last year and they were boring. i also threw up.

― Chris B. Sure (Chris V), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 13:39 (twenty-one years ago)

when i saw them the lead singer of the band they were supporting pissed his pants on stage! so there might be piss. on the other hand kate said they were dull live and i have to agree, they were, and i like them enough to have not taken down their poster from my wall yet.

― minna (minna), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 13:43 (twenty-one years ago)

"Last night
She said
oh honey don't you be so dumb
there'll be another class
well I feel left out

So I
turned round
oh honey dont care no more
I'm gonna ask a board
yeah the ILX board."

tum tum tum
tum tum tum tum tum etc

― mark grout (mark grout), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 13:46 (twenty-one years ago)

Zenith is a pretty big venue, but a decent one as far as large venues go (ie. no assigned seating, pretty easy to rush to the pit part and just forget you're in an arena). I wasn't too impressed last time I saw them, but I'd be curious to hear them do the new songs an dplay with a larger repertoire. I have a lot of friends going tonight. So I say go for it.. (how much are the tix btw?)

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:16 (twenty-one years ago)

Shit, only 2 hours to go! What's the current verdict, Amateurist?

― Markelby (Mark C), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:18 (twenty-one years ago)

DJ Mencap struck at the heart of the matter.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:21 (twenty-one years ago)

What DJ Mencap said. I imagined amatuer!st was holding the Strokes hostage.

― Sarah McLusky (coco), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:24 (twenty-one years ago)

I was getting all excited and stuff! Strokes in Bondage, that's a pron flick I'd like to see!

― Spontaneous Existence Failure (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:24 (twenty-one years ago)

stop pi$$ing about and get on with it, you want to go, we all know you want to go, just bloody well go.

― chris (chris), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:29 (twenty-one years ago)

But I'm nowhere near Paris!

― Spontaneous Existence Failure (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:31 (twenty-one years ago)

I can't stand the strokes, but if the girl ws hot, I'd still go.

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:31 (twenty-one years ago)

Ned:

And like I said, no knee-jerk anti-Strokes comments, you will only reveal yourself as being dreary and unimaginative.

-- amateur!st (amateur!s...) (webmail), December 10th, 2003 3:41 AM. (amateurist) (later) (link)

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:33 (twenty-one years ago)

seriously though ned is there something in your brain that compels you to deride this band whenever their name is invoked? do you want a cookie for it or something? i have the remains of a piece of flan i had for lunch...

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:34 (twenty-one years ago)

I would probably go -- it would be interesting to experience a concert in Paris, and you would only be missing one night of class.

― El Diablo Robotico (Nicole), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:34 (twenty-one years ago)

WTF? Why are you singling out Ned when someone else actually made the comment and another person said the exact same thing he did?

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:51 (twenty-one years ago)

because as i wrote just above ned does this each and every time the strokes are invoked

i think the other comment at least had the virtue of mild cleverness at its purposeful misreading of the thread title

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:52 (twenty-one years ago)

And Sarah?

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:53 (twenty-one years ago)

but she didn't seem to be making a kneejerk anti-Strokes comment at all!

are there any other posts about which you'd like my opinion dan?

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:55 (twenty-one years ago)

Oh, the other timezone Sarah.

― Sarah (starry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:58 (twenty-one years ago)

i mean i dont know if ned qualifies IRL but i'm always wary of people who wear their dislikes, or worse--"hates" (not a word i use often at all)--on their sleeves.

anyway i'm leaning toward going thanks to all the advice on this thread. although i will miss class, which is a french class and which i do enjoy, partly because there are some nice people in there.

i get the sarahs confused still.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 14:59 (twenty-one years ago)

!!! I think it's fair to say I've been posting here for a bloody long time, haven't I managed to be at all distinctive yet? Back to the "thread where I say" coal-face for you! Sheesh.

― Sarah (starry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:05 (twenty-one years ago)

And now I don't care what you do, cos I thought were Adamski when you first posted.

― Sarah (starry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:05 (twenty-one years ago)

amateur!st, I never post as simply Sarah. That's an easy rule.

― Sarah McLusky (coco), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:07 (twenty-one years ago)

Go, then when you get back, kindly inform us if Julian has added "moving" and "acknowledging the existence of the crowd" to his onstage persona. The fact that he comes off as possibly the most inert frontman in the history of rock is the only thing keeping me from following them cross-country in a ~~psychedelic microbus~~ kitted-out rally-style '77 VW Scirocco.

― nate detritus (natedetritus), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:07 (twenty-one years ago)

are there any other posts about which you'd like my opinion dan?

How about your own? It's bad enough that people treat Geir like he's mentally ill, we don't need to do that to everyone.

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:08 (twenty-one years ago)

(Granted, said judgement has come from ca. 2001 word-of-mouth and their SNL appearance, though their Conan appearance didn't improve things much. Or the "12:15" video. Maybe Julian is really camera-shy.)

― nate detritus (natedetritus), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:09 (twenty-one years ago)

Damn, if he's camera shy, so much for my shooting a pron video using him and his ass, then. :-(

― HRH Queen Kate (kate), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:10 (twenty-one years ago)

mais tu pourras pratiquer la bas avec des french chiXorz..

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:10 (twenty-one years ago)

no its not like i get your personalities confused or anything.

its just that when im reading a thread really fast sometimes i forget to notice which sarah has posted.

see its really because you are both so charming and witty in equal measure. (phew, good thinking amateurist, that oughta hold them for a while.)

(x-post)

i happen to think geir is mentally ill.

as for this post, it's not one of my better ones, i'd have to say. a bit too rushed perhaps.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:10 (twenty-one years ago)

mais que diriez-vous des chiXorz allemandes ?

― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:11 (twenty-one years ago)

ah, j'ai un faible pour les chiXorz allemandes donc..

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:13 (twenty-one years ago)

Hmmm.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 15:24 (twenty-one years ago)

If it's for a girl, do it.

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 17:13 (twenty-one years ago)

It depends what class it is.

― Dean Gulberry (deangulberry), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 18:09 (twenty-one years ago)

I enjoyed their show a couple years ago, but then again, I don't tend to enjoy bands that are supposedly "good live". If you remember seeing the Jesus and Mary Chain live during Darklands or Automatic, this is about the same thing but with dueling guitar lines.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Wednesday, 10 December 2003 18:18 (twenty-one years ago)

it's NOT for a girl do you people have anything else on your minds?

anyway i went, it was good, i really like the strokes, except for a few songs here and there (new york city cops and you talk too much or whatever it's called), they did a clash cover which im sure would appall many of you, the opening band was kings of leon who were forgettable bordering on annoying, julian asked the crowd if they spoke english and there was a defeaning silence, julian tried to speak in french but mostly failed, julian cut his hair short, there was no encore, company was nice if a little boring, she has bad taste in music (aside from the strokes) but has lived in china which provided enough conversation to get us through, i got fined 30 euros for not having my carte orange with me when we left the metro (fuck), the end.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Thursday, 11 December 2003 00:16 (twenty-one years ago)

i mean he didn't cut his hair short in front of the crowd, he must have done it a while ago, i would say it looked good except i couldn't really get a good look.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Thursday, 11 December 2003 00:16 (twenty-one years ago)

also the contrast between the strokes and their opening act was such that it reminded me of the pop smarts of the former band, almost every song has a really nice way of filling up space, it reminded me of nabisco's wise description of pop music as a kind of puzzle which has to be tricky enough to hold interest but not so tricky as to be impenetrable, the strokes songs are deeply satisfying in this regard, also the lyrics don't matter at all, i could hardly recite two lines to you, it's a very formal sort of thing, they are formalists in a sense, to the extent that the lyrics have any power they remind me of the new york dolls or something where it's just sort of cheeky variations on phrases that don't mean anything really, which is fine with me anyway the strokes are better than the new york dolls.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Thursday, 11 December 2003 00:19 (twenty-one years ago)

also more cute french chicks than you can shake a stick at keep in mind that i don't advocate shaking sticks at cute chicks.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Thursday, 11 December 2003 00:21 (twenty-one years ago)

I think I know why you really got fined

― s1utsky (slutsky), Thursday, 11 December 2003 05:56 (twenty-one years ago)

"it's NOT for a girl do you people have anything else on your minds?"

Not really.

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Thursday, 11 December 2003 06:29 (twenty-one years ago)

julian cut his hair short

::cries::

OK honest, I'm going to go and do some work now.

― HRH Queen Kate (kate), Thursday, 11 December 2003 09:08 (twenty-one years ago)

Isn't the bassist half-French or something?

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Thursday, 11 December 2003 10:57 (twenty-one years ago)

i really got fined because they knew that a zillion people would be getting off at that metro stop for the concert so they thought they'd milk us by levying stupid fines for shit they never otherwise bother to check, like if you actually have your carte orange on you. i tried to argue with the guy but he wasn't having it, he just whipped out his little book of receipts and kept saying, "30 euro, 30 euro."

― amateur!st (amateurist), Thursday, 11 December 2003 12:27 (twenty-one years ago)

Other than the fine, it sounds like the show was worth it, huh?

― Sarah McLusky (coco), Thursday, 11 December 2003 12:32 (twenty-one years ago)

i guess. it wasn't earth-shattering, and i'm out 50 fucking euros.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Thursday, 11 December 2003 12:36 (twenty-one years ago)

but i'll just choose not to think about it and move on.

― amateur!st (amateurist), Thursday, 11 December 2003 12:36 (twenty-one years ago)

It was a cultural experience though.

― Sarah McLusky (coco), Thursday, 11 December 2003 12:37 (twenty-one years ago)

That's frightening... i reviewed that show for NME, initially for Life Without Buildings, but then the Strokes review obviously got the beef. and i have to say i thought they were amazing, but that had more to do with the excitement of first exposure to what i still maintain were/are great pop songs than their actual performance...

but Life Without Buildings were definitely the better band that night, and i still find the strokes so static and dull live.

― stevie (stevie), Thursday, 11 December 2003 13:13 (twenty-one years ago)

I'd seen The Strokes in NYC a few weeks before, so I kind of knew what to expect from them in terms of dull live performances. Instead of an atmosphere of excitement, I felt an almost unbearable atmosphere. I have to say I left the room very early in the set cause I couldn't breathe, only to find that my seat downstairs had been nicked by Dougie from Travis. (Also there to see Life Without Buildings. He's so sweet.)

― HRH Queen Kate (kate), Thursday, 11 December 2003 13:17 (twenty-one years ago)

i was pressed against the speakers with a friend from rough trade hugging me all through the show... a special moment...

― stevie (stevie), Thursday, 11 December 2003 13:34 (twenty-one years ago)

when I had the carte orange I used to get pissed off if I never got "inspected" in the month

― s1utsky (slutsky), Thursday, 11 December 2003 16:52 (twenty-one years ago)

can you tell I'm waiting for my coffee to brew?

― s1utsky (slutsky), Thursday, 11 December 2003 16:53 (twenty-one years ago)

no, i have to admit i was totally unaware in that regard

― charltonlido (gareth), Thursday, 11 December 2003 16:57 (twenty-one years ago)

anyway the strokes are better than the new york dolls

please let that be an exhaustion-induced hallucination on my part.

― lauren (laurenp), Thursday, 11 December 2003 17:20 (twenty-one years ago)

but jody agrees with me so it must be true!

― amateur!st (amateurist), Thursday, 11 December 2003 17:25 (twenty-one years ago)

d'oh!

― lauren (laurenp), Thursday, 11 December 2003 17:30 (twenty-one years ago)

I am still waiting for news or photographic evidence on the bad hair front. Because this could entirely change the way that I feel about Julian. Yet again! ;-)

― HRH Queen Kate (kate), Friday, 12 December 2003 09:00 (twenty-one years ago)

Everything is funny today. One of the phone operators was talking to a patient about trying to get in touch with the "Strokes Coordinator".

― HRH Queen Kate (kate), Friday, 12 December 2003 09:48 (twenty-one years ago)

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