CONCERT REVIEW
The Strokes deliver fine set

By Chad Pata
Advertiser Staff Writer

The apathy of today's youth has finally hit the big time. Witness frontman Julian Casablancas of The Strokes, who rocked a near capacity crowd at the World Café Thursday night.

Casablancas took to the stage like a teenager taking out the garbage: feet dragging, head down and a look of wanting to be anywhere but there. But the music told a different tale from a different age.

Framing him on stage was a twentysomething John Paul Jones body double in the form of bassist Nikolai Fraiture, who spun out bass lines that Sonic Youth made famous in the underground in the '80s. Rhythm partner Fab Moretti pounded the skins like no one since Animal from "The Muppet Show."

This formula, mixed with guitar riffs straight from The Pixies and The Velvet Underground, made for a concoction that, with less talented musicians, would have sounded cheap, but with The Strokes sounded surprisingly fresh in the post-grunge boy-band world.

The title track from their first album, "Is This It," got the mosh pit swimming, but I couldn't help but look for Black Francis (The Pixies' frontman) in the background orchestrating guitar chords.

Some songs, such as "Someday" and "Trying My Luck," came off a little forced and were not helped by Casablancas slinking off into the corner to smoke and wait for his next part.

Beyond that, it was a 45-minute set to remember. In the ballad "Alone, Together" the tapestry of music amazed the masses. Rapid-fire yet individual chords from guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond Jr. were held together by Fraiture's elegant bass work.

Comparisons between legendary rocker Lou Reed and Casablancas have abounded and are not totally unwarranted. In "The Modern Age," you would swear it was Reed, except for the banality of the lyrics. While Casablancas most certainly will grow in his craft, calling him the next Lou Reed is a bit premature.

The Strokes finished the set the same way they did their album — with their most powerful piece, "Take It or Leave It." It even had the bartenders, unfazed until then, bopping their heads. The number left fans panting for more.

Opening act The Sticklers received a great response from an impatient crowd and actually pulled off a set without any of the major technical meltdowns that have become their trademark. Their sound is reminiscent of the Dead Kennedys and if they continue in the direction they're heading, we can look for good things from this local act in the future.

As for The Strokes, they have a sound that, while it's not their invention, they have made their own. For a night, O'ahu was glad they did.