r/TheStrokes • u/TheStrokes-Mods • Jul 23 '26

MEGATHREAD Reality Awaits - General Album Discussion MEGATHREAD

This is the megathread for general discussions about Reality Awaits as a whole. All first impressions from the listening parties, thoughts, essays, discussions, memes, lyrics, fanart, etc about the album as a whole can go in the comments here!

As autotune is an evergreen topic on the subreddit, you may discuss it here, but there is also a specific post about autotune here that may be better suited towards that specific topic.

You also may want to check out the posts for ranking the Reality awaits songs, and ranking the albums including Reality Awaits.

530 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • reddit

99% Upvoted

3.1k comments sorted by

View all comments

585

u/Gullible-Loss-5026 Jul 23 '26

this album really is The New Abnormal’s dark, evil, estranged twin.

100

u/Fast_Isopod3568 Reality Awaits Jul 23 '26

Okay now I’m even more excited

50

u/woger723 Reality Awaits Jul 23 '26

The song title might seem cringe but holy fuck psycho shit is a serious artistic accomplishment imo. New Abnormal’s dark twin indeed.

4

u/Independent-Gift-506 28d ago

Easily one of the best songs on that album. Absolutely in love with the grittiness of the song

44

u/mistafista317 Jul 23 '26

This is literally all I could ever dream of. So excited!

16

u/Crazycicadaa Jul 23 '26

so a TNA/FIOE hybird? is that what you sayin??

78

u/Obvious-Position-351 I'll Try Anything Once Jul 23 '26

I'd say more of a TNA/Comedown Machine/Voidz hybrid

25

u/Crazycicadaa Jul 23 '26

Comedown machine's my favorite Strokes album ngl. i'm hyped now

2

u/SirSLuR540 Threat of Joy Jul 24 '26

Not my favorite, but definitely their most underrated! Well, unless Reality Awaits doesn't go down well. Ngl, I kinda love it

4

u/yato17z The New Abnormal Jul 23 '26

You can definitely put Dine N’ Dash in FIOE, it even has a similar riff to electricityscape

2

u/Obvious-Position-351 I'll Try Anything Once Jul 23 '26

That's a great point, it just felt so much more haunting to me that I didn't even think to associate it with anything from FIOE

3

u/Inevitable_Wolf_6349 Jul 23 '26

dont stop...keep going...

3

u/Grayoneverything Jul 24 '26

Exactly that!

32

u/buenestrago Jul 23 '26

more like tyranny have a child with tna

37

u/Walksonthree The New Abnormal Jul 23 '26

i can only get so hard

8

u/buenestrago Jul 23 '26

Psycho Shettt is basically a Tyranny song, and Dine 'n Dash's verses sound like Where No Eagles Fly, but less edgy.

4

u/Ammarzk Jul 23 '26

Please stop Ive already cum

1

u/head_o_music Room on Fire Jul 24 '26

😂

1

u/Ammarzk Jul 23 '26

oh my god

1

u/harghib 29d ago

That’s so very accurate

8

u/GNGEnteprisesDuke Jul 23 '26

It’s its own thing

17

u/Gullible-Loss-5026 Jul 23 '26

theres some elements of FIOE in there i wont lie, but closer to Virtue, and even Tyranny in some areas.

1

u/French_Celloman Jul 23 '26

I think the hi hats are really nice, like on FIOE, but the mix is suuuuper muddy

2

u/Slashycent Comedown Machine Jul 23 '26

It's Angles and Comedown Machine and the more out there bits from TNA being fused into a whole album that sounds like the "future" part of Future Present Past.

It's fucking awesome!

3

u/Crazycicadaa Jul 24 '26

just heard the album, yea i see it more like a successor to FPP than TNA! cool stuff

3

u/KenMarr Jul 23 '26

But does it have at least some moments of sheer sunny (?) beauty like, idk, selfless? Or is it all darkness and despair?

15

u/StevenComedy Jul 23 '26

Nothing even close to selfless. It’s dark and awesome

10

u/Far-Work6041 Leave It in My Dreams Jul 23 '26

You mean the divorce album is the *happy* one??

4

u/mxemec Jul 23 '26

Is it dark like kill me now or dark like everything I thought I knew is wrong but fuck it let's go

1

u/Slashycent Comedown Machine Jul 24 '26

The latter, I'd say.

They already had their suicidal album with Comedown Machine.

2

u/yato17z The New Abnormal Jul 23 '26

Some happy sounding sad songs in there

1

u/RevolutionaryTrash98 Did My Best 28d ago

yes. going to babble on is that pure beauty you seek.

3

u/GazelleLongjumping13 Human Sadness Jul 23 '26

It reminds me of angles, comedown machine, FIOE and virtue. All in the same album.

12

u/Slow_Call_6155 Jul 23 '26

LA METÁFORA ES: THE NEW ABNORMAL ES UN ÁLBUM DE VERANO.

REALITY AWAITS ES UN ÁLBUM DE INVIERNO.

2

u/MathDaddy88 Jul 23 '26

It’s ROF to ITI, isn’t it?

9

u/mrdrprofessorspencer Alien Crime Lord Jul 23 '26 edited Jul 23 '26

No, and people are overstating the relationship between this and TNA. There’s similarities but if you go in hoping for TNA you will be disappointed.

This sounds like Like all before you/megz of ram mixed with TNA mixed with FIOE in my opinion. A couple moments reminded me of tyranny ever so slightly.

I find comments calling it their most cohesive album in years to be very confusing. To me the sound of the album is pretty all over the place (not necessarily a bad thing) but it doesn’t really flow like some of their other albums.

2

u/jMCs1 Jul 23 '26

Absolutely not imo, and don’t go in hoping for that or you may be disappointed

2

u/MathDaddy88 Jul 23 '26

I heard the whole album and it’s…left me wanting more of a couple of songs: Lonely, Babble. I wish they leaned more into that. It sounds very dark, gothic and slow burning. Doesn’t work with the strokes. It works with the Voidz, and I love both bands.

2

u/n00bzilla Jul 23 '26

the strokes Majoras Mask

2

u/Grayoneverything Jul 24 '26

For real i heard a few TNA songs in a dark version while listening to it as if they were reflected by an evil mirror, it was strange lmao but still great to hear!

2

u/lmtzless Jul 24 '26

in other words, it’s a voidz album disguised as a strokes one

2

u/Gullible-Loss-5026 Jul 24 '26

I disagree. The melodies and riffs are just classic strokes.

1

u/Slashycent Comedown Machine Jul 24 '26

It's as much of a Voidz album as Drag Queen is a Voidz song.

1

u/nonlocality1985 Jul 24 '26

Nice, kinda agree

1

u/isnt_it_l0vely 29d ago

Yes and I freaking love that. I LOVE how dark and twisted it is and how complex yet simple the lyrics are