The Strokes take over Roger Waters’ baton at Coachella
The Strokes they have no ears to listen to those who argue that music and politics should be two distinct universes. Last night, Saturday 18 April, the band closed their set at Coachella with a visual montage with a strong political content, which openly criticized the CIA and the United States government.
During the performance on the second weekend of the famous festival, the Strokes projected a series of images and messages on the giant screen that they reported the role of American government institutions in various historical and geopolitical events. The montage included references to controversial operations and interventions abroad, suggesting a critical view of US influence in the world.
The political positions of frontman Julian Casablancas are well known: over the years, Casablancas has often criticized the political system and large corporations, both in interviews and in concerts (last week he appeared on stage with a t-shirt that incorporated the Amazon logo, transforming it into the words “Crime”) and, even on this occasion, he maintained a provocative and ironic tone during the concert. The final video reinforced the show’s political message, turning the closing of the set into an explicit statement against institutional power.
The comparison with the live performances of Roger Waters was born spontaneously: the overview of the faces of South American leaders (Torrijos, Árbenz, Roldós Aguilera) “overthrown by the CIA” is a classic Waters touch, who has always used his screens to denounce US imperialism. The written in large letters – like the one on the death of Martin Luther King Jr. (“US Govt found guilty of his murder in civil trial”) – recalls the brutal and unfiltered graphic style that Waters uses to accuse world leaders of war crimes.
Waters is known for not giving discounts on current hot topics, and yesterday the Strokes did the same. The closing of the set with images of the missile attacks on Gazafollowed by a sudden total blackout, traced Waters’ ability to generate an uncomfortable indignation and heavymoreover in a usually festive context like that of the Coachella Festival.
