Strokes album out in for March, says bassist

06 January 2011

After wrapping up recording in November, New York rockers The Strokes have revealed their long-awaited fourth album will be finally released this March.

Bassist Nikolai Fraiture revealed the news in an interview with BBC Radio 1's Zane Lowe yesterday, confirming the record is now "in the mixing stage".

The still-untitled album marks the band’s first release in five years and will showcase the group’s “classic sound”, says Fraiture.

"Sonically, I feel it's the album which should have been made between Room On Fire and First Impressions of Earth," Fraiture told Lowe.

The half-decade gap between albums came as four of the five members of the band worked on solo albums or side projects."We didn't really break up but we didn't see each other for a long time," explained Fraiture.

The Strokes regrouped early last year to write new material and record with producer Joe Chicarelli (White Stripes, Minus the Bear) in New York and also toured here, playing Splendour in the Grass and side shows where they resisted the urge to showcase new songs.

"We didn't really want to play anything new because in the age of the internet we didn't want the new songs to be heard in a crappy way," admitted Fraiture.

"Those festival shows we wanted to give the fans what they wanted."

While no exact dates and destinations have been confirmed, Fraiture announced that The Strokes will be "touring around the world" in support of the forthcoming album.