But it seems it’s human nature to fuck with perfectly good things, and that is why we get double-albums, Jet, and the new Strokes video for ‘The End Has No End’. Though this is an incredibly solid song, I have to say that I was gearing for a vid for either ‘Automatic Stop’ or ‘I Can’t Win’. But let’s pass this by; ‘The End Has No End’ is ripe material for any director, let alone R. Coppola.
I was ready to forgive The Strokes for the laughable, albeit lovely-looking, fiasco that was ‘Reptilia’ (that slow-mo shot of Albert turning as “Now every time/ That I look/At myself” comes on is the equivalent of cold ham served on Passover). I tossed it up to experimental director-shopping, and rested assured that Roman would soon come back and whip up some more juicy goodness like the wonderfully candid “Someday” and that editor-in-mid-orgasm video known as “Hard To Explain”. But alas, once again, The Strokes management chose not only to ditch Coppola a second time and try Sophie Muller, but indeed flaunt their tremendous balls by hopping in as the cameo in the video itself.
Don’t get me wrong here, Muller is a fantastically original director (“Song 2” and “Say It Ain’t So” anyone?), and one whom I respect even more for being a woman who can steer through the rock world with panache. But the video she made for The Strokes is utter shite. The one redeeming quality I can grant it is when she employs her trademark style of making the band look cool while playing. The shots of The Strokes in the mirror-filled room are hot and quite early-90s, and I love the cheeky sing-along notes that frame the widescreen. And for the sake of the female population out there, I will even hasten to add that Ryan Gentles is strikingly charismatic and attractive, so even there, 3 minutes of Gentles might suffice.
But instead, ladies and gentlemen, we have ‘80s prom scenes, not one but TWO cameos by hot A-minus-list chicks, and, the crème-da-la-crème, several “2001: A Space Odyssey”-references which come complete with fucking monoliths. We all knew that Axel was starting to go a bit cock-eyed when Stephanie Seymour started getting as much airtime as Slash in the GNR videos; will we look back and say the same about that Russian girl from “That 70’s Show”?
I’m treating this one harshly, I know. I have a tendency to get carried away, and for someone who’s criticizing extravagantly bad music videos, that’s none too reassuring for my already-minor amount of credibility. But it pains me to see a band of The Strokes’ caliber stamp around on a perfectly good song. “The End Has No End” is a good, solid rock song. We didn’t need this video fellas. It’s just that simple. If you’re going to roll the dice and make a music video, thereby allowing your song to forever be married to images that will be triggered in the minds of many whenever they hear that song, then I don’t think you want to be jerking off when you go about it.
And I’m not ordering perpetual seriousness about the “craft” either, because we all know how shitty that can get (eh Axel?). But what I’m trying to say is that you need to make a choice, and the choice needs to come early. I have read the interviews and applauded the seriousness with which The Strokes treat their profession. And they followed through on the lip service with great live performances, admirable treating of fans, and genuinely well-made videos to accompany their songs. They sustained a pattern and standard of living. So you can’t simply wake up one morning and turn The Strokes into The Darkness. It just doesn’t work that way.
Point blank: The video sucks. Hard. The last one was borderline, which, when you ratio the suckers out, makes for a poor track record. Not poor enough to neutralize the brilliance of the first three or four (we’ll be generous and include Coppola’s “Tron” reference for “12:51” in there for good measure). But it’s just damaging enough that it’s beginning to make me wonder about the new album.
Back to the drawing board, I’m hoping. And in the meantime, we’ll twiddle our thumbs and make do with the millions of other great bands out there. There may only be one Strokes, and we’ll always have “Is This It?” and “Room On Fire” (…though mostly “Is This It?”). But screw with your image enough, and you’re going to end up the Lenny Kravitz of “garage” rock, permed out of your mind and trotting your moves to sell jeans. And that, my friends, is a fate worse than unnecessary double-albums and, dare I say, Jet.
Taken by Colin Lane.
The End Has No End Video, directed by Sophie Muller
You ain’t never had/Nothing I wanted-S.
