Rock icons THE STROKES are heading back to the studio in January (10) to record their first new album in four years.

The group has been on hiatus since the release of their third album, First Impressions of Earth, in 2006.

Frontman Julian Casablancas expected to reunite with his bandmates early in 2009 to start work on their fourth release, but plans were continuously delayed - the singer instead concentrated his efforts on his debut solo disc Phrazes for the Young, which hit stores in November (09).

Now bassist Nikolai Fraiture has announced the fourth Strokes album has been written and bandmembers are scouting locations to start recording in January 2010.

He writes on his Twitter.com blog, “While the guys are in LA, I went to scout some studios in NYC for what looks like January recording! Mood = f**king excited!”