Pitchfork

[Posted Friday, September 26th, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Remember all of 15 days ago, when we last reported on The Strokes? Sure ya do. Remember how we said, "You can rest assured that our covert Pitchfork operatives won't let you miss a moment of your favorite band's daily life"? Well, we weren't just whistlin' dixie, son! Turns out the Strokes' sophomore album, Chinese Dem-- I'm sorry, that's Room On Fire-- has been pushed back to October 28th. According to the Strokes' official website, the project has encountered some "unforeseen packaging problems" that have contributed to the delay. Maybe the CD booklet is too thick... with pretentious lyrics, ho yeah!!

The problematic cover art has been revealed online-- nothing as racy as the Suicide Girls-ish UK sleeve for Is This It, but more in line with the colorful geometric dabblings of the last few singles. There are subtle references to gambling 'n' guns (the four suits in a deck of cards, revolvers held aloft by both black and white hands, and an abstraction of a roulette wheel). There's no peelable fruit on the cover, if that's what you were asking.

As previously reported, the "12:51" single is set to drop on October 6th in the UK, with a domestic version due October 28th (same as the album now). The single is posted on the Strokes' official website in MP3, QuickTime, and Windows Media so you can jam to it right now on pretty much anything (unless you're that one dude in Belarus that reads the site on a hot-rodded Commodore 64).

We here at Pitchfork just wouldn't be able to let it sit on our consciences if we failed to report on anything Strokes-related, even if it's less newsworthy than, say, Julian Casablancas changing his hairstyle. Or growing a goatee. Anyway, the Strokes have posted the details for their upcoming European tour in December; please whisper into the ear of the person on your right and pass it on:

12-01 Glasgow, Scotland - Braehead Arena
12-03 Cardiff, Wales - International Arena
12-05 London, England - Alexandra Palace
12-06 London, England - Alexandra Palace
12-08 Barcelona, Spain - Pavello De La Vall D'Hebron
12-10 Paris, France - Zenith
12-12 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Heineken Music Hall
12-14 Berlin, Germany - Arena
12-16 Copenhagen, Denmark - KB Hallen
12-18 Rome, Italy - Palacisalfa

And lastly, we would be criminally remiss if we didn't inform you that the Strokes have Is This It-logo panties in their official webstore for the bargain-basement sum of four bucks. They're available in both medium and large, because the big girls likes 'em some Strokes too. We thought only porn stars sold their panties online; I guess opportunism is a universally lucrative racket.