For the first time in more than seven years, The Strokes reappeared to the music world back in April with their fifth album, The New Abnormal. The project was the group’s long-awaited follow up to 2013’s Comedown Machine. Continuing to promote the new release, The Strokes returned to a platform they are very much familiar with, that being Saturday Night Live.
Bringing their talents to the late-night show for Halloween, the band’s appearance marks the fourth time they performed on the SNL stage. In their return, they performed “The Adults Are Talking” and “Bad Decisions,” both off The New Abnormal album.
Shortly after the release of The New Abnormal, Julian Casablancas revealed that the project was not his favorite release in The Strokes’ discography. “It’s my fourth favorite record I’ve ever been a part of,” he said in an interview with Los Angeles Times. When pushed for a more detailed answer, he said the band’s 2001 album, Is This It, and 2003 album, Room On Fire, were projects he felt were better than The New Abnormal.
John Mulaney also hosted the SNL episode for the second time this year and the fourth time overall in his career. After the October 31 episode, the show revealed that Dave Chapelle would host the show on November 7, but a musical guest for the episode was not revealed at the time of the announcement.