For other uses of this term, see Stroke (disambiguation).
The Strokes are an American rock band that rose to fame in the early 2000s.
The Strokes formed at a young age, with most of the members connected in some way with lead singer/songwriter Julian Casablancas. Bassist Nikolai Fraiture and Casablancas have been friends since childhood. Guitarist Nick Valensi and drummer Fabrizio Moretti started playing together while attending Manhattan's Dwight School. Later on, Casablancas was sent to Le Rosey, a boarding school in Switzerland. He was sent in order to straighten up his behavior, as it was said that he developed drinking problems at a young age. At Le Rosey, Casablancas became acquainted with Albert Hammond, Jr., since they were both Americans, although they were not particularly friends. It was years later, when Casablancas bumped into Hammond, Jr. on the street in New York. Incidentally, the two lived in apartments across the street from each other, as Hammond came to New York to attend New York University's (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. Albert and Julian began sharing an apartment together, and, in 1999, they became an official band. Their popularity increased quickly, especially on the Lower East Side of New York. They began to perform at Manhattan's ultra-hip Mercury Lounge, where Ryan Gentles was in charge of booking. Gentles was so impressed by the band that he quit his job in order to become their manager.
The Strokes begun rehearsing strongly for days, keeping their day jobs (Casablancas is said to be a former bartender, while Hammond worked at Kim's Video) and forming a 10 to 12 song set list which listed songs such as "Last Nite", "Modern Age", "This Life" (currently named "Trying Your Luck"), "New York City Cops", "Soma" and "Someday" among others. Most of these songs now feature different lyrics. During this time they had also discontinued several songs from their setlist, which includes "Sagganuts," "In Her Prime," "Rhythm Song", "A Minor 4-4", and three songs with unknown titles.
