The Strokes Debut New Track Live at Hollywood's Hard Rock Live
The Strokes performed "Tyrants Of The Yellow Moon" live for the first time on Sunday, September 13, at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood. The track comes from the band's seventh album, Reality Awaits, released in June, and the show was part of the North American leg of the album's world tour. According to NME, the song landed sixth in a 22-song setlist.
What happened on stage
The band opened with "Lonely In The Future," followed by "Hard to Explain," "Going Shopping," "Juicebox" and "Someday" before moving into the live debut. Julian Casablancas told the crowd beforehand that they'd try a song "never played before." The lighting shifted to deep blue tones as the opening notes set a somber mood.
The first six songs of the night, in order:
- Lonely In The Future
- Hard to Explain
- Going Shopping
- Juicebox
- Someday
- Tyrants Of The Yellow Moon
More new songs unlocked on this tour
This wasn't the tour's first live premiere. "Lonely In The Future" made its live debut at Summer Sonic in Tokyo, while "Going To Babble On" was first played at the Just Like Heaven festival.
Where the tour goes next
The Reality Awaits world tour continues through North American dates this month, then moves to the UK and Ireland in October, including two nights at The O2 in London, plus stops in Newcastle, Manchester and Dublin.
- Live debut date: September 13 (Sunday)
- Venue: Hard Rock Live, Hollywood
- Setlist position of new song: 6th of 22
- Upcoming dates: North America (September), UK/Ireland (October) — including London's The O2 (two nights), Newcastle, Manchester, Dublin
How the album is landing
NME gave Reality Awaits four stars, saying the band sounds more energized and focused than in recent years a quarter-century into their career, crediting the decision to push the band in unexpected directions. The same review noted the opening two tracks, "Psycho Shit" and "Dine N'Dash," felt somewhat loose by comparison.