Surreal is just one word that can be used to describe The Strokes’ new video for their song “Ode To The Mets.” The video for the song creates a contrasting universe from our own, but yet alluded to inspirations of the world that we live in.

The video starts with an Asteroid Blasters arcade game that is placed in the middle of a desert and the game is slowly starting to lose. As the video progresses, it seems as though, if these weren’t animated images until one picture blended in so well with the next. There are dinosaur bones, a deserted land with deserted tents, a deserted street from an old western that morphs into a busy city street that is empty, that would normally be hectic. There is definitely a message behind these images and the metaphors. The music video ends with the same game from the beginning on the moon, which can be seen as full circle since at the beginning of the game when aliens land on the moon, they turn into a crater.

“Ode To The Mets,” starts off with video game sound effects, and then turns into a guitar and a synth/electric keyboard. The lyrics are sung in a melancholy manner, along with being cryptic in their literature. The lyrics that are the clearest to interpret for oneself could possibly be, “Gone now are the old times Forgotten, time to hold on the railing the Rubix cube isn’t solving for us.” These lyrics could possibly be alluding to good times passing us by.

As many music festivals have had to shut down this year, disappointing annual festival goers, some festivals have begun to announce their lineups for future dates. Outside Lands will be including The Strokes, along with the 1975 and Lizzo to perform. Tickets for Outside Lands 2021 went on sale June 25.

The Strokes’ new album The New Abnormal was released in April earlier this year that was reviewed by one of mxdwn’s own.

Photo Credit: Owen Ela