wordplay: Ben Simkins
Interpol has found an extremely comfortable niche for themselves over the years. They first garnered critical acclaim with Turn on the Bright Lights. Commercial fame followed suit with the entrance of their second full-length album, Antics, all this while staying in the relative safe confines of an independent record label, Matador. Hailing from NYC and using the post-punk scene as heavy inspiration for this early 00’s revival, it appears that Interpol embodies the independent spirit. But how will this image fair with the release of their new album Our Love To Admire on their new ‘major’ label (Columbia Records).
The answer seems pretty straightforward for the boys of Interpol. Their answer is embedded in every line delivered by Paul Banks and every beat strung together by guitarist Daniel Kessler, bassist Carlos Dengler, and drummer Sam Fogarino. Interpol has always seemed un-phased by their success. You watch some bands dish out a driven, independent debut, only to find themselves overcompensating with their sophomore effort, partially justified by their new found success. In turn, the third outing tends then to take on an overcompensated, overly thought out mess of ideas. A cry for the independent admiration they once took for granted. Not so with Interpol. Turn on the Bright Lights followed this formula close to dead on as it swept up the band in a swarm of critical adulation. Antics, however, could not have broken from the formula anymore than it did. Yes, it was slightly more commercial sounding and upbeat…well, upbeat for Interpol standards. What it wasn’t was a contrived effort to capitalize on the success they had garnered with Turn on the Bright Lights. What it was was a well thought out effort to build on the sound that was so prevalent and distinct on their first album. As if to amplify this Interpol, recorded Antics at the same studio they had pervaded for ‘Bright Lights. The statement worked, gaining the band further momentum in the same direction while building on their loyal fan base. So why mess with this formula with Our Love To Admire?
Why not, when you can keep the integrity of your music intact? Our Love To Admire sees the boys of Interpol taking the recording process to NYC for the first time, while also releasing it with a major label. Even with the new settings, Interpol seem at home. The new album keeps itself rooted in the band’s previous sound enough to allow us listeners the same sense of familiarity. Songs like “The Heinrich Maneuver” show off this perfectly, with hooks reminiscent of what’s come before. What it does do with almost effortless ease, is facilitate glimpses into the larger thought process Interpol is beginning to enter. You only have to listen to “Wrecking Ball” to get the sense of this shift. It possesses all the criteria necessary for moving a person quite profoundly, the way only music has the ability to do. This is more than just a three-minute window to cram in as many hooks as possible. It’s a space in which to send the listener into a reflective state. Another stand out track in the form of “All Fired Up” works itself into a frenzy of pop-goodness that your iPod will get sick of playing before you do.
All in all, Interpol can sit back, confident that they’ve impacted their genre once again with their new effort. But when it comes to these guys, the effort doesn’t seem hard to come by and the worry…non-existent.
October 14th @ The Fillmore
InterpolNYC.com |