Track Listing

1. What Ever Happened?
2. Reptilia
3. Automatic Stop
4. 12:51
5. You Talk Way Too Much
6. Between Love & Hate
7. Meet Me in the Bathroom
8. Under Control
9. The End Has No End
10. The Way it is
11. I Can't Win

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2058 in Music
• Released on: 2003-10-20
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
Rarely has the burden of expectation weighed so heavily as it does on the Strokes' second album. Room on Fire is an overwhelmingly anxious record, where the band's dilemmas are there for everyone to hear: should they make another record as concise as Is This It? Will they be able to capitalise on their wiry winning formula but avoid exhausting it? And can Julian Casablancas be convincingly offhand when we now know how much effort he makes to sound so disinterested? As a result, Room on Fire isn't an entirely successful album, but it's certainly a compelling one--the testament of five handsomely talented men struggling to work out what should happen next. At worst, songs like "You Talk Way Too Much" are paranoid retreads where the Strokes, having minted such a precise and appealing sound, seem doomed to repeat it in progressively more joyless ways.

But there are moments when Casablancas nudges his band into new, promising directions. "12:51" seems malnourished on first listen, but its sulky, understated twists soon turn out to be memorable. "Reptilia", meanwhile, showcases the fabulous--and teasingly underexploited--guitar playing of Albert Hammond and Nick Valensi, being a collection of chiming riffs and tumbling solos that suggest the Strokes should allow themselves the freedom to rock more often. Oh, and "Under Control" is a dream--specifically, one where the Smiths are playing "Tracks of My Tears". Best think of Room on Fire, then, as an album where the Strokes plot their escape from the predictable, but are a little too cautious to make a proper getaway. Courage, gentlemen. --John Mulvey

CD Description
After the huge success of their debut 'Is This It' The Strokes return with their second album 'Room On Fire'. Reunitingwith producer Gordon Raphael the band stick with the New York new wave punk sound that dominated their debut but add a slight eighties feel to their sound. The single '12.51' is also included.

Customer Reviews

grandkids, they will understand
A lot of people have said that this album is too similar to the first. To repeat the standard of the debut would be one hell of an achievement. But there are significant changes to their sound on the new album anyway. Valensi's guitaring has reached new heights of excellence. Some riffs (tracks 3 or 10 say) achieve a sort of'fairground', 'circus' sound (also reminiscent of 1980s computer game music)- which gives the music a new, weird edge. And once more the riffs never work against the vocals. Like all great albums, it is lean, no musical fat. You couldn't take one bar off without a detrimental effect. Something else I notice: if you listen to the lyrics, most of them seem to be about shaking off groupies. Is this Casablancas' pillow talk? ("I never needed anybody,it won't change", "you talk way too much", "meet me in the bathroom", "You are young darling but not for long".)Golden rule: write about what you know.

brilliant album
I discovered The Strokes a bit later than most people but I am now a huge fan. I loved 10 out of 11 tracks on the first album (how often does that happen?) and I think 'Room on Fire' is as good. To me it would be worth buying for either 'Reptilia' or 'Under Control' alone. I think most of their tracks sound deceptively simple at first but get better and better the more you listen to them. '12.51' initially seemed a bit dull but now I completely love it. I have been around long enough to have been into loads of different rock bands, but have found few in recent years that put across the same compelling combination of youthful energy and brilliance - the sort of feeling created by Free or The Who in the 70s - but The Strokes have more great songs. I think anyone who like the first album and slates this just hasn't listened to it enough.

If you like the first album so much, go and buy it again
You move to New York, grow your hair and make an amazing debut, create more hype than a lunar landing...

Its inevitable that Room On Fire has been so built up, but the hype is destructive. ROF stands alone as a very good rock record, excellent riffs, songwriting and musicianship mean that it lives up to its predecessor. But it's not enough, apparently.

The second album is a difficult one to judge as it is always in the shadow of its debut and doesn't really give enough evidence of any kind of change in style. Its only after album 3 that you can really start examining a band closely and fairly. But lets talk about the album...

The Strokes have not merely recorded an Is This It 2. This album is very accomplished-it moves away from the first, yet not so far as to alienate its fanbase. Whatever Happened is a great opener which is like the album summed up in 3 minutes. Reptilia is another great track which wouldn't sound out of place on the first album. The best track is The End has No End, with its neo-prog rock imitations, echoes of King Crimson 'Red' were pleasantly suprising. Their distinctive and original sound is still here, but the electro-rock addition gives it an edge. ROF successfully consolidates their position as the innovators of cool, but its album 3 which is make or break.