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19:02 · 2,821 words of transcript · watch on YouTube
- The revival starts in Detroit with The White Stripes' debut, a two-piece built on Son House country blues and the local garage scene, and the template was in place from the first record even though nobody outside Michigan noticed.
▶ 00:00:40
- The Whites divorced a year after the debut and kept the band going by presenting themselves as siblings.
▶ 00:01:22
- The Strokes' break was logistical. After two years of rehearsing and a weekly 14-song residency at the Mercury Lounge, a recording engineer offered them a discount, they cut The Modern Age in three days for about 600 dollars, and Rough Trade took it from there.
▶ 00:02:09
- Is This It was released in staggered waves, Australia in July, Japan and the UK in August, the US not until October, and it reset the standard for guitar music.
▶ 00:03:11
- Once The Strokes hit, labels went shopping in the underground: Rough Trade took The Libertines, Matador took Interpol, Capitol took The Vines, and V2 re-released White Blood Cells.
▶ 00:03:50
- The White Stripes' own breakthrough was modest at first, number 61 on the Billboard 200, with Fell in Love with a Girl becoming a minor hit largely on the strength of its Lego video.
▶ 00:04:30
- Elephant in April 2003 is the peak, number one in the UK and six in the US, with Grammys for best alternative album and best rock song.
▶ 00:05:35
- Room on Fire began with Nigel Godrich producing and the band scrapped the sessions, finding the results soulless, then went back to their original producer.
▶ 00:07:10
- The Killers scrapped most of their early material after hearing Is This It, and Hot Fuss came out of that reset.
▶ 00:08:28
- The movement ends in one year. Icky Thump won another Grammy but Meg White's anxiety cancelled most of the tour and ended the band, while The Strokes went dark for five years after their longest tour.
▶ 00:16:06