Tynan's Anger

SONGS OF THE DECADE #66

[For more info, read the Ground Rules of The Song of The Decade List]

The Strokes - You Only Live Once (2006)


For all the comparisons of the Strokes to the Stooges and Television, all the Strokes debut album really did was bring the problems with 90s indie rock (scenesterism, spot-that-reference games, an undeserved sense of entitlement) into the mainstream. It took two more albums for the Strokes to deliver on their promise, with an awe-inspiring vocal performance by Julian Casablancas, Albert Hammond's finest guitar work, and the peak of the band's songwriting.

Even in a song about haters, "You Only Live Once" was the first time Casablancas sounded truly human, and he had all the emotions we associate with humanity: empathy, passion, spite, and ultimately, hope. There's nothing about this song that's as cool as the Strokes first two albums, and First Impressions of Earth was easily the band's weakest album. But that's scenesterism for you; there may be no track by a major label rock band that sounds so freaking alive.

Labels: 2000s, lists, pop music, songs of the decade, the strokes, you only live once