Well, The Strokes are attempting a sophomore album. Long in the works, it appears that 'Room On Fire' is finally set for release on October 21. As was reported ages ago, the band did start working with producer Nigel Godrich (Radiohead) but didn't finish any material with him. Instead, they went back to work with Gordon Raphael who produced their first album. Raphael told Undercover Australia, "There was no pressure at all from outside forces, and all the hard work and crazy long nights we spent working on this thing came only from the bands desire to make sure that every hi hat, Kick drum and note sounded and felt as perfect as possible to fit the message and tone of the song." Hmm... that's strangely the EXACT opposite impression Julian Casablanacas gave a reporter for VH1/MTV News, "Pressure on the band is heavy to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump. The bandmembers are wrangling with their label and with each other over singles, mixes and artwork, because this time expectations are even higher."

Well, whatever... let's just see what the album holds. I'd expect US tour dates to be announced soon as a followup to the forthcoming single "12:51". The band is currently working with Roman Coppola on a video that should be airing on MTV soon.

Tracklisting:
1. What Ever Happened?
2. Reptilia
3. Automatic Stop
4. 12:51
5. You Talk Way Too Much
6. Between Love and 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