Unlike their fellow New Yorkers that broke at the start of the last decade, Interpol have run a marathon rather than a sprint.
The Strokes were the band of their generation with the sound of the time, and their subsequent career is often looked, unfairly, through the prism of that brief moment when they were everywhere.
Interpol?s long game seems to be paying off. They are almost at that safe stage where they can maintain indie credibility and healthy sales, at least for an alternative band. All they have to do is keep releasing good quality albums and they?ll become part of the rock furniture. The question is whether that's enough for them.
They?ve recently had to cancel a tour with U2, but even that wouldn't have made a significant difference to their status because until they write the song they're bringing joy to a lucky few. There's absolutely no shame in that, it breeds longevity and a happier life when you have a loyal fanbase, critical respect and less corporate pressure.
Maybe it's for the best anyway since we already have Editors, who are essentially Interpol with a better ear for a catchy chorus, but none of their charisma.
Tonight Interpol have lost little of their charm. They are both portentous and pretentious, although sadly less of the latter now that they've lost bassist Carlos D.
Although their rhythm section is still the driving force, tonight it's Daniel Kessler?s guitar that makes the difference to a set with some glaring omissions. No NYC, Pioneer to the Falls or The Heinrich Maneuver, and we're not yet completely sold on the new material yet although their recent self-titled fourth album does provide the show?s high-point.
Lights builds and builds as Kessler?s lonely guitar line weaves through the crowd. Seeing them live, it is so easy to see them for the paradoxically influential and derivative force that they are, with their Johnny Marr riffs hiding amongst Gothic splendour.
Despite the comparisons to Joy Division that dogged them at the start of their career, they have a theatricality that Curtis et al might have seen as a betrayal. They may not yet have the song, but as long as they have that sound they?ll still be there, finding the common ground between the cool and the cruel, making icy fuck-yous to ex-lovers whilst revealing far more about themselves than they would ever intend to.
We’re happy with this arrangement and hope they are too.
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