Fingers crossed, but it looks like The Strokes are finally sticking to a release date for their long-awaited fourth studio album. With their record now complete, bassist Nikolai Fraiture confirmed in a new interview with BBC‘s Zane Lowe that a March 2011 release remains the goal. Currently, the untitled effort is being mixed, but Fraiture said it would mark a return to the band’s “classic sound.” “Sonically, I feel it’s the album which should have been made between Room On Fire and First Impressions Of Earth.” As for the best most intriguing tidbit from the interview, it comes in the form of Fraiture’s explanation of why the band didn’t play any new material during their 2010 festival gigs: “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.” Touché.
The Strokes plan to support the album with a world tour. Already, the band is confirmed to play three festivals — Benicà ssim Festival in Spain, Super Bock Super Rock in Portugal, and Summer Sonic Festival in Japan.
