Watch The Strokes give ‘Fear Of Sleep’ its live debut – 18 years after release
The Strokes played ‘Fear Of Sleep’ live for the first time at a recent show – check out the footage below.
The New York indie band delivered a career-spanning, 17-track set at the Fuji Rock Festival in Niigata Prefecture, Japan last week (July 28).
“Here’s a song that we probably last played in Japan 29 years ago,” joked frontman Julian Casablancas early on in the gig. “Kidding… not that long ago. Sounds right? Let’s see how it goes.”
The group then surprised the crowd with a performance of ‘Fear Of Sleep’, which appears on their third studio album ‘First Impressions Of Earth’ (2005). According to Far Out, the song was the only cut from that record to have not been played live until now.
Watch a fan-shot video of ‘Fear Of Sleep’ live here:
Last night (August 2) saw The Strokes perform the first of two consecutive shows in Singapore. Those dates were announced to cater to Malaysian fans following the cancellation of Good Vibes Festival last week.
Casablancas and co. had been scheduled to appear at the aforementioned event. However, the festival was scrapped after Matty Healy spoke out against the Malaysian government’s stance on LGBTQ matters on stage during The 1975‘s set.
Healy and bassist Ross MacDonald also kissed in front of the audience. As a result, the group’s performance was cut short and they were banned from Malaysia.
Casablancas subsequently shared his thoughts on the controversial stunt, which has led to a class action lawsuit being readied against The 1975.
In one comment, the singer said he thought “defending [Healy] as heroic was a bit white” but acknowledged that he believed The 1975 frontman meant “a positive thing”.
“It def helped the white outsider awareness yes, for sure… I felt the same,” Casablancas wrote. “Had no idea. But when you look into it, it likely will change little to nothing in Malaysia.”
The Strokes, whose latest album ‘The New Abnormal’ came out in 2020, are due to headline All Points East 2023 in London on August 25. You can buy any remaining tickets here.
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Tom Skinner
NME
