[2] He is the son of British-Gibraltarian singer-songwriter Albert Hammond, a prolific songwriter best known for his 1972 hit single "It Never Rains in Southern California", and Argentine Claudia Fernández, a former model and beauty pageant winner.

[4] A first generation American, Hammond is of mixed Gibraltarian, Argentine, Austrian, and Peruvian descent;[5][6][7][8] his first language was Spanish.

[17][4] After moving to New York City in September 1998, Hammond reconnected with his former school friend Casablancas, who later invited him to join the Strokes.

[16][18] Made up of Casablancas' other schoolmates Nikolai Fraiture, Nick Valensi, and Fabrizio Moretti, Hammond was the last person to join the band in 1999.

[19] In the following two years, the band practiced and performed tirelessly, all while Hammond was also attending NYU and working at Kim's Video.

[20] The Strokes released their first demo in January 2001, beginning a record label bidding war and years of critical acclaim.

Hammond is usually seen playing a 1985 '70s reissue Olympic White Fender Stratocaster[21] or Gibson Les Paul Jr. that is sometimes used by bandmate Nick Valensi.

He has been credited with writing three mostly instrumental songs ("Swiss Beats", "Holland", and "By the Way") for the band's 2001 tour video titled In Transit.

[citation needed] In October 2005, Hammond and Ben Kweller released a version of "Wait" on This Bird Has Flown – A 40th Anniversary Tribute to the Beatles' Rubber Soul.

Produced by Thin Lizard Dawn vocalist Lattimer and recorded at the Electric Lady Studios in New York City, the album features several musical guests, such as Sean Lennon, Ben Kweller, The Strokes' manager Ryan Gentles, Jody Porter of Fountains of Wayne, Chris Feinstein, Mikki James, Sammy James Jr. (The Mooney Suzuki) and the Strokes' lead singer, Casablancas.

Bassist Josh Lattanzi and drummer Matt Romano serve as the backing band, with Hammond on guitar and vocals.

[24] Early support from his bandmates in the Strokes was only evident after Casablancas' role playing bass and back-up vocals on the track "Scared", though all of the members (with the exclusion of Nick Valensi, who was busy taking care of his newborn children) attended his shows in and around New York.

He supported Bloc Party on their world tour before making stops at Montreal's Metropolis and Toronto's Kool Haus.

[26] On August 29, 2007, Hammond announced on MySpace that he was going back into the studio to record his second album in October 2007 for five weeks.

On March 20, 2008, Hammond posted a blog entry on MySpace in which he revealed the title of his second album: ¿Cómo Te Llama?

He celebrated the release of his album with a July 8 small show at the Virgin Megastore, Union Square, in New York City.

"[29] On June 22, 2014, a photo was posted to Hammond's official Facebook page of himself in a room with other musicians and the caption "the start of something new; LP 3," suggesting that he is working on a third full-length album.

Hammond covered "The Little Boy That Santa Claus Forgot" by Vera Lynn mixed with the chorus from George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" as part of Amazon's annual music series titled Indie for the Holidays.

[37][38] Guided by Voices, The Beach Boys, Buddy Holly, Frank Black, John Lennon, Matthew Sweet and The Velvet Underground are cited as Hammond's musical influences.

He owns three white Stratocasters, a Gibson Les Paul special single cutaway, a Rickenbacker 325, and a Gretsch hollowbody.

His pedal board is made up of an old version of the MXR Micro Amp, a V1 Jekyll and Hyde Ultimate Overdrive and Distortion, and a BOSS TU-2 tuner.

[citation needed] Hammond's sartorial trademark is wearing formal three-piece suits, and has been said by bandmate Julian Casablancas to be the most influential on the band's style.

While Hammond has been best known for his formal wear, he launched his own range of Francis Trouble t-shirts and sports incorporated classic vintage tees.