Interpol wasn’t just a band that was trendy

In September 2004 the Interpol they publish “Antics”their second album after the incensed debut with “Turn on the brightlights”. So does the guitarist Daniel Kessler he presented it to the press by answering the question, ‘What has changed since “Turn on the bright lights”?’: “I don’t know.

It’s not up to me to establish the difference between the first and second albums. In both cases we followed instinct and immediacy, without wondering too much about what we wanted to do. We just did it. We’re not the kind of band that sits around a table saying ‘it would be nice to explore this genre of music’ or ‘let’s make a song like…’. This is certainly not the way we compose. The only thing that perhaps we ‘forced’ in writing the songs is that we wanted more concise and shorter songs compared to the first album.” This is our review of the second album by .Interpol.

We must be wary of “fashionable” bands. Well, almost always. Interpol, for example. They are openly New Yorkers, they are “stylish” with that minimal image built on white, red and black (like the White Stripes?) that dominates their covers. They are pumped up by the English and American press, which often associates them with the rock revival (that of Strokes, Jet, Hives & co). They, however, are of a different kind. Because it’s true that they are a terribly “trendy” group, both in terms of how they present themselves and how they are presented by the media. And it’s true that they are rock and retro. But theirs are solid records, which leave their mark.

“Antics” is their second effort. It arrives two years after “Turn on the bright lights”, and only confirms how much good had been discovered at the time. Indeed, if possible, it improves it. Interpol’s songs are dry, sharp and irregular. Their roots are planted elsewhere, compared to their rocker colleagues. They are rooted in English new wave (the voice is very similar to that of Ian Curtis of Joy Division) and in American post-punk, above all (and inevitably) in the New York scene, that of CBGB’s, Television and so on.

In short, like many other young groups, Interpol are derivative. But then they surprise you with unexpected solutions: with guitar riffs that go on like electric mantras (like that of “Not even jail” or that of “NARC”), with slowdowns and restarts (like in “Evil” and “Take you on a cruise”) or sudden tempo changes. In short, they make music that is paradoxically already heard and unpredictable. “Antics” is a hypnotic but also fun record, the kind that doesn’t bore you. Listening to Interpol’s songs you don’t have the unpleasant sensation (often experienced with Strokes & co) of being faced with pleasant exercises in style, carbon copies of models you’ve already heard. Well, Interpol are young, derivative as you want, but they have personality. And sorry if it’s not much…