"Under Cover of Darkness" is a song by the American rock band the Strokes. The single served as the lead single for their fourth studio album, Angles, and was released online on February 9, 2011, as a free download for 48 hours exclusively. It was the first single release from the band in five years, following "You Only Live Once" in 2006. "Under Cover of Darkness" received positive reviews, reaching BBC Radio 1's A Playlist before debuting at number 47 on the respective chart. In October 2011, NME placed it at number 133 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".
The music video for the song was released on March 2, 2011. The video was directed and produced by Warren Fu at Loew's Jersey Theatre in Jersey City, New Jersey, on February 17, 2011. The video begins with a clip of the music video for "You Only Live Once", and contains a reference to the song "Last Nite".
"Under Cover of Darkness" is the third most successful single in the band's discography. It peaked at number 12 on Billboard's Alternative Songs chart and charted a total of 17 weeks.
"Under Cover Of Darkness" was made available for download on July 24, 2012, to play in Rock Band 3 Basic and PRO mode utilizing real guitar / bass guitar, and MIDI compatible electronic drum kits / keyboards. It appears on the setlist for Rocksmith which was released in October, 2011 in North America.
Credits adapted from Angles liner notes, and per Gus Oberg.
The Strokes
Production