Customer Reviews
The saviour of guitar music - By: M. Elmes, 17 Jul 2007 
Backin 2001, guitar based bands were struggling to be recognised admistin the charts dominated by R'n'B, dance & rap. Boy & girl bands ruled the airwaves, & bands were nowhere to be seen. The Strokes came along with Is This It? at the right time, they brought bands back into the limelight, made it cool to play a guitar again. I remember being at Reading Festival the week before the album was released, there was a buzz, everyone wanted to see the band billed to be rocks saviour,in the end they switched The Strokes to the main stage.
The album is sheer brilliance from start to finish, & six years on, you can still hear the influencein many of the bands emerging now, much of what the British indie has to offer now is heavily influenced by the Strokes. Infact, many bands - Kaiser Chiefs, Killers, Libertines - have the Strokes to thank for making record companies remember that there were alternatives to finding the next Eminem or Usher.
One of the best albums of the 21st century.
An All-Time Classic - By: J. Roberts, 04 Jul 2007 Personally, this album came along at a pointin my life where it couldn't have been more relevant. I was 17, I was bored, & I was becomming more & more immersedin music with each day that passed. And this album renewed my interestin music 100%, giving the music business of that time a much-needed kick up the backside & spawning a whole slew of Strokes imitations who failed to capture the vital urgency of this album.
The fact is, The Strokes came along at precisely the right time, whenin the post-britpop era, Indie music wasin one of the most dull slumps since it's inception. This short & sweet collection of dangerously adept & fresh Indie classics was captivating from start to finish, sailing gloriously from the low-fi, underproduced sound of 'Is This It', to the musically airtight 'Soma', set alight by the 'uber-cool' 'don't give a damn' drawl of lead singer Julian Casablancas. The likes of 'Barely Legal' are impossible-to-dislike slabs of New York Cool, whilst the likes of 'Last Nite' are enduring Indie Disco dancefloor classics, which stand the test of time & still sound self-assured & iconic today.
The riff on 'Hard To Explain' is as effortlessly timeless, yet laid-back as I've heard on any debut album, from any band, whilst the upbeat, punk ruckus of 'New York City Cops' is yet another dancefloor-friendly classic, sounding like Lou Reed fronting the Stooges. Album closer 'Take It Or Leave It',in my opinion, is one of the high points of the album, & indeed, the Strokes entire career, with simple, semi-repetitive lyrics & sinfully addictive music.
This album will doubtless be getting played thirty years from now, & we hopefully still be getting music-loving young people onto dancefloors for a long time to come. This IS it.
One of the greatest debut albums ever - By: M. Hiles, 02 Apr 2007 This album, is Superb.
The whole album, has a consistency of brilliance to it. There is only one stand out track 'Last Nite'. But all the other songs, go together well. Its original (was), refreshing & timeless. If your an Indie/Alt. Rock fan. This is a must own. Top stuff!
Great - By: L. Wright, 24 Feb 2007 Truly, a fantastic album. Although I personally hate the title & first track, after that every track is filled with great, catchy music & original, powerful vocals from Casablancas. It is simple & pure & that is what makes it great.
Amazing - Not a dull track - By: Joe Hill, 07 Mar 2006 Is This It was the saviour of music. It is a fantastic album from an amazing band. There isn't a bad track.
Track Listing
Is This It - Although one of the weaker songs on the album, the first impressions of the album from this song are hopeful. 4/5
The Modern Age - A wonderful song. The guitar skills are great, especially the solo, great lyrics & generally, a great song. 4.5/5
Soma - Personally one of my favourite songs by The Strokes. Relaxedin some areas & livelyin others. 5/5
Barely Legal - Great lyrics & tune, with Julian saying 'Why won't you wear your new trenchcoat' alot. 4.5/5
Someday - The first single introduced on this album. A very very very good song. The general mood is cheery & laid back. Amazing song. 5/5
Alone, Together - Great tune & excellent vocalsin this song. Julian can sing & shout well. 5/5
Last Nite - If you haven't heard this then I am surprised & also offended. A classic. One of The Strokes best songs of all time & probably the most well known single. 5/5
Hard to Explain - Another single on the album. Simple song but the delivery is excellent. 5/5
New York City Cops - Excellent, lively & accelerating. A superb song. 5/5
Trying You Luck - Not special compared to the rest of the album but what is still considered an absolutley amazing song. 4/5
Take It Or Leave It - Excellent. 5/5
Overall Album rating 5/5 10/10 100/100 9999.9/1000
