The 2001 Strokes guitar solo that helped change rock music forever
The article singles out Nick Valensi’s guitar solo in The Strokes’ “The Modern Age” as a defining moment in the band’s early sound. It argues that the solo helped make their stripped-back, wiry approach stand out when guitar music was dominated by nu-metal, rap rock and softer indie acts.
Valensi’s fast alternate picking gives the solo a loose, almost collapsing feel, though the article says it is technically demanding. The passage is made more striking by the tightly interlocking guitars and drummer Fabrizio Moretti dropping the snare beneath it. The Strokes’ 2001 debut album, *Is This It*, helped bring this style of indie rock to prominence and influenced bands including Arctic Monkeys, The Killers and The Libertines.
- “The Modern Age” features Valensi’s standout guitar solo.
- Its wild sound masks demanding alternate picking.
- The Strokes helped shape early-2000s indie rock.
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The Strokes are a New York rock band whose early songs paired two interlocking guitars with a tight rhythm section and concise arrangements. Nick Valensi played lead guitar, while Fabrizio Moretti was the drummer.
Their 2001 debut album, Is This It, arrived when popular guitar music included nu-metal, rap rock and softer indie. Its lean, wiry sound became influential, and later bands such as Arctic Monkeys, The Killers and The Libertines have been linked to its impact.
“The Modern Age” was an early song that showcased the band’s approach. Its guitar solo sounds loose and urgent, but relies on fast, precise picking and close coordination between the players.