Eigen RadarArts
Archive
Analysis

The Strokes return to Saturday Night Live with two Reality Awaits songs

New York band The Strokes returned to Saturday Night Live for their fifth appearance, performing Lonely in the Future and Going Shopping from Reality Awaits. Actor Walton Goggins joined the second song on bongos. The set, hosted by Druski, came six years after the group’s previous visit and followed its North American and European tour legs.

Arts··Night
A band plays on a distant lit stage during a live late-night television show, seen from behind the studio audience.

The band plays two songs on its fifth visit

The Strokes, the New York rock band, returned as musical guests on the American television programme Saturday Night Live. Druski hosted the episode. The group’s appearance was its fifth on the show, with its previous visit taking place six years earlier, during the release of The New Abnormal in 2020.[1], [2]

For the new set, The Strokes chose Lonely in the Future and Going Shopping from their latest album, Reality Awaits. Both performances were made available to watch after the broadcast.[1]

Walton Goggins joins Going Shopping on bongos

Actor Walton Goggins joined the musicians on bongos for Going Shopping, the second song in the set. Goggins had also starred in that song’s music video. The band performed without its longtime guitarist Nick Valensi, who did not take part in this television appearance.[1]

The appearance follows two tour legs

The television set followed the North American and European legs of the Reality Awaits tour. The band’s further tour destinations include Mexico, South America and Australia. Opening artists on the tour have included Thundercat, Hamilton Leithauser of The Walkmen, and Cage the Elephant.[1]

For more information on this topic, you can read the related columns.

References

  1. News sourcePitchforkThe Strokes plays two Reality Awaits songs on SNL↩1↩2↩3↩4
  2. News sourceThe Boston GlobeThe Strokes perform on Saturday Night Live↩

More analysis from this desk

View all Brief analyses from the Arts desk →