The Strokes at Metro
photo by James Richards IV

The Strokes played an intimate Chicago show benefiting Kina Collins for Congress (pics, setlist)

The Strokes played a very intimate Chicago show at the Metro on Friday (6/17) to show their support for Democratic candidate for Congress in IL-07 Kina Collins, which was rescheduled from May 30 due to a COVID case within the band. It was their first time playing the 1100-cap venue since they supported Is This It there in 2001. Here’s an excerpt of Variety‘s review:

Opening the night, Collins delivered an energizing speech that touched on her core issues. “I’m running for Congress because we need representation that gives a damn about us,” Collins said, eliciting roars from the audience. “The congressman I’m running against has been my congressman since I was five years old.”

Collins said she met Casablancas at a house party in New York, where the two apparently hit it off and Collins convinced the singer to perform a “concert for the hardworking folks across the Midwest who are doing what they need to do to elect progressives.”

[…] When the Strokes finally hit the stage — the band was nearly an hour late, which even prompted boos from the crowd — they opened with “Bad Decisions,” a fan-favorite from 2020’s “The New Abnormal.” The band then tore through live standards like “Juicebox,” “You Only Live Once” and “Someday,” as well as some rarer picks including “Automatic Stop” and “Electricityscape.”

Read more here. More pictures from the show by James Richards IV and the full setlist below…

Setlist (via)
Bad Decisions
Juicebox
Automatic Stop
The Adults Are Talking
Hard to Explain
You Only Live Once
Electricityscape
Someday
The Modern Age
At the Door
Reptilia

Encore:
Eternal Summer
What Ever Happened?
Last Nite