# Hard to Explain guitar solo > Nick Valensi's guitar solo on Hard to Explain by The Strokes (2001) starts at about 1:29. From the album Is This It. A indie classic from the 2000s. Canonical URL: The Strokes, 2001, from *Is This It*. Solo by *Nick Valensi*. A wiry, rhythmic lead weaves around the interlocking guitars in a burst of nervous energy. Classic early Strokes interplay. Hard to Explain by The Strokes is #4 in our ranking of the best The Strokes guitar solos. The solo is played by Nick Valensi and the song was released in 2001. ## In our lists - [The Best The Strokes Guitar Solos](https://greatestsolos.com/list/the-strokes-guitar-solos/) — #4 ## Sources ### Who played the guitar solo on Hard to Explain? Nick Valensi played the solo on The Strokes's Hard to Explain (2001). ### What guitar was used on the Hard to Explain solo? An epiphone riviera through a Fender Hot Rod DeVille amp, according to widely reported accounts. --- GreatestSolos ranks the greatest guitar solos by consensus across published lists. Agent guide: [llms.txt](https://greatestsolos.com/llms.txt) · [Sitemap](https://greatestsolos.com/sitemap.xml) · [Dataset (CSV)](https://greatestsolos.com/data/greatest-guitar-solos.csv) · [How we rank](https://greatestsolos.com/method/)