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There are two periods in a musician’s career where they can reliably run their mouths without fear.

The first comes early. Upstart musicians have less to lose if their loose talk gets to the wrong ears. In genres like rock, rap and pop, it’s a given that the fresh faces are relatively young, and thereby expected to spout off. Those expectations allowed a young Julian Casablancas to relate that “New York City cops ain’t too smart” in an unbothered rasp. He can’t be blamed for the bad timing of it all.

The tricky bit comes after an act is established. Once a band like The Strokes, Casablancas’ outfit, begins touring Europe consistently, once the magazine covers stack up and labels start counting on sales to finance smaller, riskier propositions, then speaking your mind carries real risk — beyond, that is, possibly getting punched in a dive bar or left off a five-band bill. Crew members, publicists and caterers’ livelihoods are on the line. Courting controversy comes with the specter of layoffs attached.

Nearly 25 years after the release of their debut album, The Strokes are well past that scary interregnum. Firmly established as the type of legacy act that can headline the biggest festivals in the country, and confident that their aging fan base is only getting wealthier, Casablancas and his bandmates are free to shoot from the hip. The band recently performed on the mainstage at Coachella, projecting a montage of allegations about the CIA’s involvement in the overthrow of many democratically elected leaders in Latin America. The segment closed with shots of airstrikes in Israel and Gaza.

Frontman Casablancas doubled down in a recent episode of “Subway Takes.” The video series, in which host Kareem Rahma asks guests to share controversial opinions while riding on New York City transit, tends to center around inconsequential arguments of the “dogs in grocery stores” or “pineapple on pizza” variety. Casablancas joked that it was “nice having a career” before using his appearance to attack Zionists.

“American Zionists get the benefits of white privileged people, but talk like they are Black people during slavery,” he said, to agreement from Rahma.

Casablancas admitted that the attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, were “bad” and that Hamas was not entirely blameless, but said the scale of the retaliation by Israel was entirely out of proportion.

“You know, Native American rebellions didn’t mean it was OK to do what we did. Slave rebellions that were violent didn’t mean that slavery is not bad. You know what I mean?” he said.

This take led to a backlash as immediate as it was ineffectual. Casablancas has kept his (metaphorical) nose relatively clean, leaving the conservative media to push one of the most pathetic smear attempts in recent memory. Outlets like the New York Post rushed to shared a photo from 1991 of a then 13-year-old Casablancas attending an event also attended by Donald Trump. Still a child, and moving in the Manhattan social circles of his father, who then ran a prominent model agency, the teenage Casablancas can be seen scooting past the Trump family with a name badge on his chest.

Jokes about losing his career aside, it’s clear that Casablancas had no fear of the controversy his statements were bound to kick up. He knows audiences will continue to want to hear “Someday” and “You Only Live Once.” The figurehead of a once-vital youth movement has lived long enough to become a legacy act and he’s cashing in that cred. What’s the use of being rich and famous, or of holding a microphone, if you can’t tell people how you feel?

If Casablancas being dragged into the same room as Trump crosses a line for you, here are a few playlist fillers from bands that were clearly Trying to Be The Strokes.

“See Through Head" by The Hives

“O Rock Acabou” by Moptop

“An Honest Mistake” by The Bravery

“Face Paint” by Jaded Juice Riders

“Orgasm of Death” by The Growlers

What do you think? Should more established artists be using their platform to speak out about the wars in Iran and Gaza? Has your opinion of The Strokes changed? Do you have any Strokes soundalikes to recommend? Sound off in the comments or shoot me a line at [email protected].

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