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Reptilia (song)

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"Reptilia"
Single by The Strokes
from the album Room on Fire
B-side"Modern Girls & Old Fashion Men"
ReleasedFebruary 9, 2004 (2004-02-09)[1]
Recorded2003
Genre
Length3:39
Label
Songwriter(s)Julian Casablancas
Producer(s)Gordon Raphael
The Strokes singles chronology
"12:51"
(2003) 		"Reptilia"
(2004) 		"The End Has No End"
(2004)
Music video
"Reptilia" on YouTube

"Reptilia" is a song by American rock band the Strokes. It was released as the second single from their second studio album, Room on Fire (2003) on February 9, 2004. The song was written by Julian Casablancas and produced by Gordon Raphael. In the US, it peaked at number 19 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.[5] It fared better in the UK, where it reached number 17 on the UK Singles Chart and was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). The single cover depicts an alien from the video game Centipede.[6]

The single's B-side was "Modern Girls & Old Fashion Men", a duet between the band's lead singer Casablancas and Regina Spektor. The release of the single was delayed slightly after Casablancas objected to the song being credited as "the Strokes and Regina Spektor", claiming that it should read "Regina Spektor and The Strokes".[7]

In October 2011, NME placed "Reptilia" at number 129 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[8] In 2020, The Independent and Paste ranked the song number seven and number six, respectively, on their lists of the 20 greatest Strokes songs.[9][10]

The song has appeared in the video games Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock,[11] Guitar Hero Live,[12] and Rock Band.

Music video

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The music video for the song was their first that was not directed by Roman Coppola. Instead they chose Jake Scott to shoot the video, which features close shots of the band members' faces, hands, and instruments while performing the song.

Track listing

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No.TitleLength
1."Reptilia"3:41
2."Modern Girls & Old Fashion Men" (Regina Spektor and The Strokes)3:40

Charts

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Chart (2004) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[13] 68
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[14] 19
Scotland (OCC)[15] 17
UK Singles (OCC)[16] 17
UK Indie (OCC)[17] 2
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[18] 19

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[19] Gold 35,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[20] Gold 50,000‡
Portugal (AFP)[21] Gold 20,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[22] Gold 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[23] Platinum 600,000‡
United States (RIAA)[24] Platinum 1,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. February 7, 2004. p. 33.
  2. ^ Cardenas, Mari (December 1, 2020). "Staff Pix 11/30". WECB. Emerson College. Retrieved March 15, 2021. This is the ultimate indie-alt classic.
  3. ^ "The Strokes and The Warning!". Harmonix Music. Harmonix. May 15, 2018. Retrieved March 3, 2021. The drums are fast and dense, as you'd expect from the garage punk sound.
  4. ^ "The Strokes: Next Steps". iTunes. Apple. April 26, 2011. Retrieved April 1, 2021. [...]amping up the post-punk influence and baiting the trap with jagged, Wire-like riffs on "Reptilia."
  5. ^ "The Strokes Billboard Chart History: Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
  6. ^ Sellers, John (May 14, 2004). "Arcade game inspires the Strokes". EW.com.
  7. ^ Ross Bonaime (2011). "The 20 Best Songs By The Strokes". Paste Magazine. Retrieved November 30, 2012.
  8. ^ "150 BEST TRACKS OF THE PAST 15 YEARS". NME. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  9. ^ Beaumont, Mark (April 9, 2020). "The Strokes: 20 best songs, ranked". The Independent. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
  10. ^ "The 20 Best Strokes Songs". Paste. April 9, 2020. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
  11. ^ "10 Songs You'll Immediately Recognize From Guitar Hero 3". We Speak Music. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  12. ^ Futter, Mike (November 24, 2015). "Here Are All Of The Currently Available Guitar Hero Live Tracks". Game Informer. Archived from the original on November 21, 2015. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
  13. ^ "Issue 743" ARIA Top 100 Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
  14. ^ "Top 50 Singles". Jam!. Archived from the original on June 3, 2004. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  15. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
  16. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
  17. ^ "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
  18. ^ "The Strokes Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  19. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2020 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  20. ^ "Italian single certifications – The Strokes – Reptilia" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  21. ^ "Portuguese single certifications – The Strokes – Reptilia" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
  22. ^ "Spanish single certifications – The Strokes – Reptilia". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved March 22, 2024.
  23. ^ "British single certifications – Strokes – Reptilia". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  24. ^ "American single certifications – The Strokes – Reptilia". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
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