The Strokes and Nancy Pelosi walk into the same hotel. It sounds like it could be a setup for a joke, but it was the situation the New York rockers found themselves in “Last Nite” as singer Julian Casablancas explained to the crowd Wednesday night at United Center. It was likely just one of the many random crossed paths in Chicago this week as celebrities and dignitaries converge for the opening of the Obama Presidential Center and others go about regular business.
For The Strokes, it was bringing the “Reality Awaits” Tour to town, celebrating the quintet’s first new album in six years, out July 24, but also unofficially celebrating 25 years since the 2001 debut “Is This It” that crowned them demigods of the indie rock scene. They didn’t show their age Wednesday night as they tore deep into their catalog — choosing 19 excellent cuts across 100 minutes — with the bottled-up vigor of the teens and young adults who formed the group nearly three decades ago.
The Strokes are fresh off an appearance at Bonnaroo and just kicked off the stadium tour Monday in Michigan so the band’s tank is still full, coming in with a full throttle spirit and peak sound that was a step up from previous performances. The last time they were in Chicago was in 2024 for a benefit supporting 7th Congressional District candidate Kina Collins.
On Wednesday, flanked by neon stage lights, laser show special effects and lightning bolt-shaped props, Casablancas, guitarists Albert Hammond Jr. and Steve Schiltz (filling in for Nick Valensi), bassist Nikolai Fraiture and drummer Fabrizio Moretti were in their elemental prime on uber hits “Hard to Explain” and “The Adults are Talking” as well as more demure numbers like “Ode to the Mets” and “Meet Me in the Bathroom,” the latter the shared name of the 2017 book and 2022 documentary exploring the early 2000s musical zeitgeist in New York. It was a time when bands like The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Interpol assembled post-9/11 and redefined rock music; even today, bands like Geese and Chicago’s own Brigitte Calls Me Baby are examples of the reverent descendants.
The Strokes, in particular, were heavy sonic architects of the time, finding the confluence of garage rock, synth pop and post-punk. Watching them eviscerate United Center with their proprietary blend felt akin to unearthing a well-preserved fossil from the era. The heavy guitar tones and breakneck speed on “Take It Or Leave It” were matched in fury by the opening riffs of “What Ever Happened?” while on “Juicebox,” Casablancas howled and barked like a wild banshee.
It was one of the few moments when he broke from his typical aloof character, often dragging it out in his oddball stage banter. One minute he was waxing on about the Ozempic commercial jingle, another he was wondering about the choking hazards of guitar picks. In his deadpan humor, he told the crowd he’d see them in hell. “I don’t know how to say common human greetings,” he said, hiding behind his trademark shades.
There were a couple other faux pas moments, notably the introduction of new songs “Going Shopping” and “Falling Out of Love” that have been criticized for the band’s use of Auto-Tune. Performed live, the songs sounded a bit less robotic than the recorded versions but still the creative choice is a head-scratcher and an unnecessary accessory that hollows out Casablancas’ voice. With his crooner capability, the use of Auto-Tune feels like a crutch for something that was never broken in the first place. Maybe there’s still time to produce alt versions of the tracks — they’ve announced “Reality Awaits” has been pushed back a month from its original target date of June 26 without much explanation.
It was a minor blip in an overall fertile night that came alive through reverent crowd interaction. Whether it was the en masse Charlie Brown dancing to “Someday” or the group activity singalong of “Last Nite,” the packed house at the UC added depth to the show. By the end of the night, it resulted in one of the loudest bids for an encore in recent memory. It was deserved, and the band obliged with a final triplet of “Bad Decisions,” “12:51” and “The Modern Age,” the inaugural song that started The Strokes’ journey. And it isn’t over yet.
“We look forward to seeing more of you in … I don’t know,” said Casablancas, leaving an open invitation for the future. “We’ll try to keep playing music.”
The Strokes set list for June 17, 2026 show at United Center
Killing Lies
Hard to Explain
Going Shopping
Juicebox
Someday
Ode to the Mets
Ize of the World
Take It or Leave It
Life Is Simple in the Moonlight
What Ever Happened?
One Way Trigger
Falling Out of Love
The Adults Are Talking
Last Nite
Meet Me in the Bathroom
Reptilia
Encore:
Bad Decisions
12:51
The Modern Age