machinations-ii

[machinations-ii]

COVID-19, A journey through the unknown

The latest threat to global health is the ongoing outbreak of the respiratory disease that was recently given the name Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19). Covid-19 was recognized in December 2019. It was rapidly shown to be caused by a novel coronavirus that is structurally related to the virus that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). As in two preceding instances of emergence of coronavirus disease in the past 18 years— SARS (2002 and 2003) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) (2012 to the present) — the Covid-19 outbreak has posed critical challenges for the public health, research, and medical communities.

In their Journal article, Li and colleagues, provide a detailed clinical and epidemiologic description of the first 425 cases reported in the epicenter of the outbreak: the city of Wuhan in Hubei province, China. Although this information is critical in informing the appropriate response to this outbreak, as the authors point out, the study faces the limitation associated with reporting in real time the evolution of an emerging pathogen in its earliest stages. Nonetheless, a degree of clarity is emerging from this report. The median age of the patients was 59 years, with higher morbidity and mortality among the elderly and among those with coexisting conditions (similar to the situation with influenza); 56% of the patients were male. Of note, there were no cases in children younger than 15 years of age. Either children are less likely to become infected, which would have important epidemiologic implications, or their symptoms were so mild that their infection escaped detection, which has implications for the size of the denominator of total community infections.

On the basis of a case definition requiring a diagnosis of pneumonia, the currently reported case fatality rate is approximately 2%. In another article in the Journal, Guan et al. report mortality of 1.4% among 1099 patients with laboratory-confirmed Covid-19; these patients had a wide spectrum of disease severity. If one assumes that the number of asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic cases is several times as high as the number of reported cases, the case fatality rate may be considerably less than 1%. This suggests that the overall clinical consequences of Covid-19 may ultimately be more akin to those of a severe seasonal influenza (which has a case fatality rate of approximately 0.1%) or a pandemic influenza (similar to those in 1957 and 1968) rather than a disease similar to SARS or MERS, which have had case fatality rates of 9 to 10% and 36%, respectively.

The efficiency of transmission for any respiratory virus has important implications for containment and mitigation strategies. The current study indicates an estimated basic reproduction number (R0) of 2.2, which means that, on average, each infected person spreads the infection to an additional two persons. As the authors note, until this number falls below 1.0, it is likely that the outbreak will continue to spread. Recent reports of high titers of virus in the oropharynx early in the course of disease arouse concern about increased infectivity during the period of minimal symptoms.

China, the United States, The Philippines, and among several other countries have instituted temporary restrictions on travel with an eye toward slowing the spread of this new disease within China and throughout the rest of the world. The Philippines has seen a dramatic reduction in the number of travelers from China. (Normal) Life as we once knew is a mere memory of the past as The Philippines is still struggling to cope and provide solutions to this rising challenge. Incompetent government officials are "Doing their Best" to face the obstacle that is COVID-19.

Clownery is the name of the game for the citizens of The Philippines.

[machinations-ii]

Relationships are doomed to fail

A film that helped me through the time of a heartbreak

500 Days of Summer

Relationships are doomed to fail

What do you picture when you hear it the words "Romance Movie" ? Some people's minds tend to go to rom-coms or "chick flicks", old black and white classics or people with English accents, stuff like that and a formula. A movie where two people meet, well it could be anywhere, the setting doesn't matter nor does the time period, this could be in space as well as underwater, hell they don't even need to be human. Anyway, they have a meet cute, and It's instant chemistry. They face obstacles. Many obstacles. Bad things happen. Their love is tested. They fail a few times and are maybe pulled apart. Maybe they even decide no to never see each other, At least for a while. But ultimately, they overcome all odds and adversity. And as a grand prize for their tenacity they finally get to be with each other, lips lock and happily ever after until the credits roll. Sounds familiar? A lot of romance movies are designed this way and examples can be found in all other types of media proving the formula is pretty damn well effective. In a romance movie the ultimate goal is for two characters (usually the main characters) to end up together. So what's the point of the story when we know that both characters will never be with each other? Is it just an examination of a failed relationship? Is it just to have an unresolved ending paralleling reality just to feel bad and think that romance just isn't for everyone, sorry go home and feel bad about it? You'll be alone forever since all romance ends in tragedy anyways. Well not quite. While most romance movies (or even non romance) tend to show two characters ending up together as the main cathartic moment to look forward to before the movie ends. The doomed relationship, on the other hand, represents a different type of goal that the characters are trying to attain. A goal they didn't even know they were headed for. Perhaps not the goal they would have wanted but the one they needed. A lesson in which the trials of romance provide the necessary conflict for an important internal discovery; their own personal growth. Now when we're talking about a doomed romance were making a distinction between tragic romance, where two people love each other but don't end up together because of external forces. Examples are: a la Romeo & Juliet (family strife) or The Titanic (an iceberg). Instead these are internal decisions by the characters that ultimately doom their relationships. The kind of relationships we can find in the following movie.

500 days of Summer EXT. PARK - DAY For a few seconds we watch A MAN and a WOMAN in a park bench. Their names are TOM and SUMMER. Neither one says a word. CLOSE ON her HAND, covering his. Notice the wedding ring. No words are spoken. A DISTINGUISHED VOICE begins to speak to us. NARRATOR: This is a story of boy meets girl. It's hard to see from the first scene but "500 days of summer" is an examination of a failed romance. We start at the end following a non linear narrative periodically showing different parts of Tom and Summer's relationship, moving back and forth through time contrasting the good moments with the bad ones inserting montages and interviews where the characters talk directly to the camera breaking the fourth wall. Even the opening scene prepares us for the tone of the movie. The movie makes sure to tell us upfront "This is not a love story". So what's the story about? We follow Tom a young twenty something living in L.A. working at a greeting card company, he's bored out of his mind at an office meeting until he sees his boss's new assistant Summer. And he falls in love. He loves everything about her and discovers she even likes the same bands he does. He takes this shared interest as one of the many "strong" signs of her being perhaps/definitely THE ONE. The main character has a core belief that the narrator frames right from the start: -He used to believe he would never truly be happy until he had met the one. He actively pursues her and finally gets the chance to talk to her outside of an office setting.

In this scene we get to see (to Tom's dismay) what Summer's view of "Love" is. Tom: - Wait, wait, wait...what happens if you fall in love (she laughs) .... Summer: What? - You don't believe that do you? Tom: - It's love not Santa Claus. Here we have Tom and Summer presenting their mismatched points of view. Tom is a romantic he believes in love, he believes in fate destiny and the notion of the one. Summer on the other hand is the embodied rebuttal to his rosy take on love, she even starts challenging his ideals. Summer: - Well what does that word even mean? I've been in relationships and I don't think I've ever seen it - Well maybe-- - And most marriages end in divorce these days like my parents. Tom: - Okay mine too but--. For Summer, relationships all share the same fleeting qualities. None of them ever last, feelings change emotions get hurt and things get messy. For her, relationships have up until now mainly been flings (as her name denotes). So why go through all of that trouble or heartache when you can enjoy being single and work on yourself as an individual. Summer: - There's no such thing as love its fantasy -. Tom: - Well I think you're wrong -. Summer: - Okay well...what is it that I'm missing then?. Tom: - I think you know when you feel it... -. Clearly Tom and Summer are two very distinct people. They view the world differently and consequently feel differently about it. But even after challenging one of his core beliefs they start a casual relationship together. In doing so she starts testing the other aspects of his life like his taste in music or his offhanded judgmental observations all the while letting her general outgoing disposition naturally push his boundaries and ultimately challenging the way he views himself. Friend: - So, Tom what is that you do? Tom: - I uhm write greeting cards-- - Summer: - But Tom could be a really great architect if he wanted to be. Friend: - That's unusual I mean - What made you go from one to the other? Tom: - I guess I just figured why make something disposable like a building when you can make something that lasts forever like a greeting card (laughs at himself). (mixed laughter) Not much is known about what happened to dampen Tom's dream of becoming an architect, apart from the first conversation he had with Summer. We learn that he studied architecture but couldn't get a job, so he's been working at the card company for about three to four years. He much rather be doing something else but he stayed because it paid the bills. The only reason we get to learn this is because of the exterior forces around Tom that question his actions. Summer: - You always wanted to write greeting cards? - No, I don't even want to do it now. - Well you should do something else then? - Yeah... I studied to be an architect actually - You did? That's cool. What happened there? - Didn't work out... This seems like an unresolved issue that Tom is reluctant to address. He much rather find some level of escapism in his relationship with Summer than to deal with it head on. Although Summer doesn't really let him of the hook and pushes him to learn more. He never really says it, but he does miss architecture and he's obviously not ready to let go of it. He still keeps one of his drawings framed at his desk; Like an encased dream; On hold and only to be looked from time to time as a nostalgic picture. As Summer and Tom start dating, he shows her all different designs he loves around the city and is eager to share it with her even his favorite spot in the city. Summer notices he becomes a different person when he speaks of the buildings unlike the man she sees at work, bored at his desk and unfulfilled. This inner spark intrigues her, but she knows he struggles to show it or might be embarrassed to say it out loud. She invites him to verbalize and exteriorize what he would do to change things as an architect. Tom: - There's a lot of beautiful stuff here too though. If were me... - If it were you what? - I don't know I...I would make them notice - How would you make them notice? - I don't

know... there's a lot of different stuff they could do... - Show me. This is a realization he would not have had without Summers quirky intrusive help. Even once they broke up, she was still interested in knowing if he managed to leave his job and follow his calling. Summer: - How are you? - Good. - Good, I wrote to you I never heard back. - Yeah, yeah sorry about that I just you know got kind of crazy-Holidays came up so work was-- - You're still working for Vance? - Yep... She helped Tom rediscover himself. This was a needed change for what was to come later. He was left broken after Summer's indirect rejection at the dinner party. His world collapsed on itself and he was left alone standing in the wreckage. As everything was stripped away, he focused on the thing that remained a constant in his life, his passion. Little by little he managed to rebuild himself and move forward while focusing on the pursuit of his once sidetracked career, his true love. This rebuilding helps him acquire a new perspective, a different outlook on life. Tom: - It's these cards, the movies, the pop songs there to blame for the lies and the heartache...everything...and were responsible-I'm responsible… People should be able to say how they feel. How they really feel not-you know... some words that some strangers put in their mouths-words like love... that don't mean anything. [...] I quit.... there's enough bull shit in the world think without my help -. The lasting aftertaste of heartbreak has left a new-found sense of clarity inside of Tom (with a hint of cynicism): He's been doing things the wrong way. He realizes that he hasn't had the best perception of love or relationships. He would often times misinterpret the smallest things to the point of absurdity. If he could misinterpret the small things going wrong, then he could equally misinterpret things going his way. The characters around him also offered a sobering view of his relationship with Summer. Sister: - Just cuz some cute girl likes the bizarro crap you do-that doesn't make her your soulmate Tom. - What do you mean? What really struck a chord with him is his sister asking him to look back at his relationship under a different lens. Sister: - Look, Their relationship is like their trips to Ikea. They walk around the kitchens the bedrooms, the camera framing them like a couple sharing an intimate moment, but the kitchen is not kitchen the bedroom is not a bedroom it's all an aesthetically pleasing mock-up of an ideal, an ideal he wants, a relationship, but that at its core doesn't work. I know you think that she was the one...but I don't...no, I think your just remembering the good stuff...next time you look back I uhm...really think you should look again. As the montage strays from the happy vignettes in the relationship he starts focusing on the warning signs the red flags the things he didn't catch at first glance or didn't want to, The things that show that it was never really perfect. He only chose to see it that way. The real moment of clarity that shatters his core belief happens once he's invited to Summer's dinner party. The scene is a simple yet effective juxtaposition of Tom's expectation vs his reality. On Expectations, the rekindling of a relationship Love triumphing over all. Tom's ideal validated, and on Reality, a friend invited to a dinner party, not unlike anyone else there, leaving without being followed. The encapsulation of how sometimes we can create a beautiful false expectation that reality fails to live up to. The peculiar thing about this movie is that it offers closure that we might not be so lucky to get in real life.

The final talk. The place where we can ask why? The place where we can question the person, we felt emotionally wronged us. The movie offers an important piece of growth in this last part. Tom is now a different man, he has a been tested, he has rebuilt himself and has a new point of view on things but now he meets with Summer for the last time as a final test of growth (like an awkward but amical boss battle) before moving on to the next phase of his life. This time its on his terms. But growth in this case is a two-way street. We end where we began. This was the girl he felt he was in love with and now he looks for answers. Tom: - You never wanted to be anyone's girlfriend and now you're somebody's wife. Summer: - It surprised me too. Tom: - I don't think I will EVER understand that. I mean it doesn't make sense. Summer: - It just happened. Tom: - Right, but that's what I don't understand what just happened? Summer: - I just...I just woke up one day and I knew. Tom: - Knew what? Summer: - What I was never sure of with you. This story isn't about the one, but the one you learn from. The one that teaches you something, something important about yourself whether you like it or not. What things you need to leave behind or improve on and what things are actually important to you to keep moving forward. What to look for, for the next time because there will be a next time. The one that offers growth from a painful learning experience in the process of adulthood. Tom: - You know what sucks...realizing that everything you believe in is complete and utter bullshit...Sucks. Summer: - What do you mean? Tom: - Ah you know destiny and soulmates...true love and all that childhood fairytale...nonsense...You were right...I should have listened to you. Yeah what are you smiling at? Summer: - Tom... Tom: - What? What are you looking at me like that for?. Summer: - It was...It was meant to be, and I just kept thinking Tom was right. Tom: - (laughs) No. Summer: - Yeah, I did (laughs) I did...It just wasn't me that you were right about...

He was looking for the one but instead he found the one he will learn from.

[machinations-ii]

A Quote to Live by

"Every path is the right path, everything could have been anything else, and it would have just as much meaning"

Mr. Nobody (2009)

One of a lot of movies that scarred me for life. Nemo Nobody (Jared Leto) is 118 years old and reminiscing—on the time he had spent on this planet. His parents separated when he was 9-years-old and he went to live with his mother and her boyfriend, or did he? He might have stayed with his father and fallen in love with Elise. Although he remember falling madly in love with Anna (Diane Kruger), his step-sister and making love to her. His marriage with Elise was a nightmare with Elise suffering from clinical depression and Nemo might have died multiple times. Foreseeing this (Elise’s mental illness) Nemo might have settled with Joan, a girl he met at a party, and had two kids, whose names he can’t remember.

Perplexed, right? So is Nemo because he can’t decide upon the life he has led.

Oh and did I tell you that Nemo can see the future. Or can he?

You were unable to take a decision because you didn’t knew what would happen and now when you know what will happen you still unable to make a decision.

The problem with reviewing this epic fantasia by the Belgian director Jaco Van Dormael, is that you know you’ll fall short of words and ideas to write your understanding of the film, knowing still well that your understanding is probably a meager fraction of what the film is about. I’ve seen no other film, that drags for roughly 3 hours, challenges your mind thoroughly, makes you ponder about things you would've never thought of otherwise—and all these, throughout it’s playtime. Mr. Nobody is an ensemble of numerous mosaics from all the possible lives Nemo might have led, interwoven with just enough precision to not let you go: “Fuck this shit, I’m hitting the bed.” Not a single frame is a filler.

It is but the first of many decisions said above that cause Nemo’s history to fracture and diverge into multiple timelines; he gives a love letter, he doesn’t give a love letter, he becomes a photographer, and a TV personality, he marries Elise, Jean and Anne, he drowns in his car, is killed by a meteorite, and executed by mobsters. The result is a rather confusing collection of alternative realities that are even further complicated by being framed through the complex physics of time and space.

And yet, I believe that, at the center of it all, all this complexity serves one single purpose, one fundamental question; how do we make meaningful choices? To answer this question, we first have to answer several others.

We can immediately see how this one-directional movement places a burden on our decision-making; We cannot go back, that’s why it’s hard to choose. But what is the right choice? What makes one choice more meaningful over another? This question can only really be answered if there is such a thing as meaning, something to serve as an anchor against which to weigh our options and base our decisions. However, looking to the universe for such a guiding light is likely to leave you disappointed. Have you ever heard of the butterfly effect? The butterfly effect is a part of chaos theory, suggesting that a small change in one state can result in larger differences in a later state. And as we see in many of Nemo’s timelines, this causal reaction often undermines our own agency, although of course, we generally experience this phenomenon as random chance, bringing us either good fortune, or bad luck.

In the opening scene, we are also presented with an experiment in which a pigeon is given a treat every 20 seconds. The researchers discovered that if the pigeon happened to be flapping its wings when given the treat, it would continue to do so, convinced its actions are what caused it. This phenomenon, which is referred to as pigeon superstition, further emphasizes the dissonance between

how we perceive causality, and how the universe actually works. In other words, we may believe our choices and actions affect the world in a certain way, but in reality we know very little about what forces move our lives into certain directions. It is why, whenever something unexpected happens, be it good or bad, we are left wondering; what did I do to deserve this? Well, it's important for you to understand that in life, things don’t always turn out as we plan them. Life isn’t always what we think it will be.

So what does all this imply for our ability to make meaningful choices? How can we make informed decisions if we cannot even oversee all the variables? It is perhaps why we long for immortality,

for infinite time to figure out the right path and infinite chances to correct ourselves if we take a wrong turn. But I think this is where we have to consider Nemo gift, for Nemo is not like everyone else.

The point is that when faced with a difficult choice, knowing everything that will happen is just as paralyzing as not knowing what will happen. A philosopher Ruth Chang exposes a fundamental flaw in how we approach decision-making. Basically, she explains that we tend to make choices by weighing alternatives against each other, and judging whether one option is better than, equal to, or worse than another. And while this may be a reasonable approach for easier decisions, when it comes to the hard choices in our lives, where do we live? Who do we marry? what career do we pursue? This approach often falls short.

That's why the choice is hard. What distinguishes these kind of choices is that they do not become easier even if the outcomes are clearer. Nemo’s omniscience showed him every possible path,

but this couldn’t tell him if the love for his mother was more valuable than the love for his father, it couldn’t tell him if the heartbreak from Anna leaving was worse than that of Elise’s depression, in short; it couldn’t tell him which path was the right path, and here lies the crux of the problem; we are searching for meaning outside of ourselves, for external reasons to support these difficult decisions.

“Every path is the right path.

Everything could've been anything else.

And it would have just as much meaning”

And so instead of desperately searching the universe for guidance, for that one sign or reasonable argument telling us what we should do, it is we ourselves who have to make our choices meaningful. So the lesson of hard choices: reflect on what you can put your agency behind, on what you can be for, and through hard choices, become that person. This is no easy task, even if we believe we are on the right path, there will be mistakes, there will be sorrow.

We all experience moments of regret, moments where we feel life has passed us by, where we long for that reset button to give us another chance; another chance to say what we really meant, to show courage when we were afraid, to be the person we really wanted to be. But if we truly act from the heart, if we base our decisions on our innermost voices, we will also experience something else. We will find that if we want to, if we choose to, it is possible to love, to be loved, and to experience moments of genuine happiness, moments in which it becomes absolutely clear that, even if it is for a brief instance in an infinite universe, our lives can be profoundly meaningful. I'm not afraid of dying, I'm just scared that I haven't lived enough.

[machinations-ii]

Debut Album of The Strokes' Is This It and Interpol's Turn on the Bright Lights.

TURN ON THE BRIGHT LIGHTS

New York City was in transition in 2002, the devastation of 9/11 still lingered but a new sense of goodwill and compassion flowed through the city with dozens of bands reanimating a faded glory that had come to define the Giuliani era. Arriving after several well-regarded EPS that honed Interpol's Sonic and sartorial sense, it's possible no album captured this moment as vividly as their debut turn on the bright lights. Interpol took shape at NYU in the late 1990s where the band formed partially as a result of mutual fashion appreciation. Frontman Paul banks had come across bassist Carlos dangler in their dorm wearing skin tight black clothing and a giant crucifix. Meanwhile guitarist daniel kessler had already gotten to know Dengler in a world war 1 class after approaching him with a compliment about his shoes, and the trio eventually found replacement drummer Sam Fogerino while he was working in a used clothing store. Soon after coming together, the group started to jam at Funkadelic studios, PDA was already in embryonic form by then. After hustling in the NYC circuit and recording here and there, a chance meeting with Emma Pollock of the Delgado's led to the release of an Interpol EP in 2000 on the esteemed chemical underground label. On the heels of the EP success and in the midst of the post strokes gold rush in New York City, Interpol scored a deal with Matador Records then home to bands like Belen Sebastian, yo a tango, and pavement. Chris Lombardi of Matador claimed that he was most impressed by the business-like manner with which the band conducted themselves the suits first and foremost. Interpol decided to record turn on the bright lights at producer Peter Quedas's home studio in Bridgeport Connecticut to avoid all of the temptations New York City had to offer a hot young band while Cadis has gone on to produce the national, Frightened Rabbit, and Yan C, his most recent credit prior to turn on the bright lights was engineering the get up kids on a wire. Sessions were contentious Carlos D had wanted more keyboards, more nights on the town, and the title of the record to be celebrated baselines of the future. If banks had his way, PDA wouldn't have even made the record. However Quedas protested and told him that's their hit single, which it was. Quedas was not enthused with the new, until the final mix which had him in tears. But for all the seriousness and grandeur of turn on the bright lights moments of humor abounded. The spoken intro of Stella was a diver and she was always down; was recorded while banks was ad-libbing with ice in his mouth “this one called Stella was a diver she's always down”. Anchored by Carlos D and Fogerino’s hulking rhythm section, Banks created it in New York City recognizable to its citizens but in cryptic indelible lyrics. “The subway was a porno”, “relationships were a bracelet” and “they had 200 couches for you to sleep” when it all felt like too much. Beginning with a crowd stoking instrumental that would foreshadow runs opening for U2 and the Cure, turn on the bright lights resulted in music of unusually sweeping and grandiose gestures that felt foreign to rock music in general at the time but especially to indie rock. It's hard to imagine the transition towards the post-punk bombast of Arcade Fire, The Killers, and the National without Interpol opening the lane first. While local papers would occasionally snark at them as fashion victims and post-punk dilettante, critical acclaim for turn on the bright lights was overwhelmingly positive. The brilliance of turn on the bright lights is all the more apparent 19 years later a beacon that continues to shine radiantly during its city's darkest moments. IS THIS IT

Fueled by hype that was extraordinary even by the standards of the British press, The Strokes became instant superstars in the UK long before their fellow Americans heard “is this it” thirty-six stylish lo-Fi down-and-dirty minutes of unwholesome Downton Blues that evoke The Velvet Underground, The Ramones, television, and countless others who will firm New York City as the epicenter of punk rock cool, the strokes debut was already in stores in the UK for months before its eventual American release mere weeks after the September 11th attacks. Is this it subsequently took on an unintended resonance and became a sentimental document of a New York City that would no longer exist after Rudolph Giuliani, gentrification, and the war on terror. The Strokes may not have saved rock and roll themselves but The Libertines, Franz Ferdinand, Interpol, the killers, and the Arctic Monkeys likely wouldn't exist without “is this it”. while several members of The Strokes have been playing together since high school in a project called “just pipe” the band truly took shape after guitarist Albert Hammond jr. joined the group he and singer Julian Casablancas attended the same Swiss boarding school and reconnected after Hammond returned to New York City and serendipitously moved across the street from Elite Model Management which just so happened to be owned by Casablancas’ father. Contrary to the stereotype of The Strokes as a prefab overnight success, the group struggled throughout the late 90s playing to empty rooms before their demo got the attention of Rough Trade ANR man Jeff Travis, nor were they predator naturally cool from the start. before The Strokes first gig Hammond claims the band was so nervous they watched the Eddie Murphy movie Bowfinger to calm themselves. Preliminary sessions for is this it were recorded with Gil Norton best known for his work with the Pixies but also Foo Fighters “ultra slick the color in the shape” for the album itself The Strokes would reunite with Gordon Raphael who previously produced the modern age EP. The unorthodox production of “is this it” was the result of Raphael using a minimal number of microphones and following Casablancas says requests to have it sound like your favorite blue jeans not totally destroyed but worn in comfortable. According to Raphael an A&R guy named Steve obelisk II held is this it most unprofessional sounding music that he has never heard. The strokes declined the invitation from MTV to play alongside the vines in the hives at the 2002 Video Music Awards. The band didn't want to be lumped in to quote the new rock revolution it consisted of mostly bands with the word the and a plural noun in their names. Casablancas told MTV I'm not going to do a band off with them and strokes manager Ryan gentle said “that was pretty much the last time we were played on MTV”. The infamous bare-bottom on the international release of is this it is that of photographer Colin lanes girlfriend, however concerns about whether conservative chain stores like Target and Walmart would carry the record but The Strokes to switch to the American cover shot of a subatomic particle in a bubble chamber Casablancas is rumored to have liked it even more than the original. A more crucial alteration from the international version involves the removal of its own, New York City cops all involved agreed that a chorus of New York City cops they ain't that smart would be considered in poor taste after 9/11 even if the song was written years previous by removing the song from the US release of is this it there's not a single song in a Strokes album that has mentioned New York City by name. Well The Strokes achieved a level of popularity rivaled by few American bands in the 21st century is this it was considered a commercial disappointment in its time it peaked only at number 33 on Billboard while lead single last night topped out at number five of the modern rock chart with some day stalling at Number 17. Long story short, these two albums (and arguably two of the best rock albums of all time) had left a dent in my

life for it defined my teenage years when I had nothing, lost, and frustrated with my life. It reminded me the melancholic time that I had in the past. So I'll leave you guys with a lyrics from each album and try to find the song that corresponds to it :). "I have 7 faces, and I know which one to wear" "Soma is what they would take when hard times opened their eyes and saw pain in a new way"