Interpol
Brixton Academy | 28 March
The nigh on 20-year-old NME Award Tour jaunt has traditionally been curated with a view to slapping the latest, hottest indie kids on the block in the headline slot; some of whom could be fairly labelled as a couple of flashes in a few pans (Casey Chaos’s hardcore jesters Amen supported by JJ72, anyone?), but others who have gone on to grace the publication’s cover for years to come.
So it was something of a surprise to see true indie greatness heading the bill this year: Interpol. From their rise through the New York underground in the early 2000s, though to their third album, 2007’s Our Love to Admire, this is a band whose name has always sparked intrigue. They made sharp, thoughtful, even mournful post-punk that cut through at a time when a whole host of ‘The’ bands were jangling themselves into a cokey frenzy. But about five years ago, Interpol lost bassist and focal-point Carlos Dengler upon completion of their ambivalently received fourth LP, toured with U2 for a bit, and went on a hiatus to explore side projects. The band’s decadently voiced frontman Paul Banks made a solo album, and a hip-hop mixtape called Everybody On My Dick Like They Supposed To Be. No, he did.
So, credit where it’s due to the NME for the change in policy which allows icons of the movement to sit atop a bill of young bands, tonight rolling into Brixton Academy. Whilst the publication seemingly struggles to find a great deal to champion in terms of genuinely exciting new music these days (see the rest of tonight’s line-up: Circa Waves, Royal Blood and surely most insipid of all, Temples), it’s commendable to present a band who have had a potent influence on the NME’s musical worldview, and who are now hoping to retrieve the position of strength they held seven or so years ago.
And tonight, from the moment they take the stage, Interpol carry themselves like a band with a point to prove. As they were pre-hiatus, they are a striking collective on the eye, all dressed in dark suits, emitting a brooding, dramatic aura. And they play with a purposeful slickness too, kicking off with an acute rendition of Say Hello To The Angels before Dengler’s replacement Brad Truax leads with a growling bass line on Evil. The band carve their way through a greatest hits set with a barrage of brilliant, meticulously arranged songs; C’mere, The Heinrich Maneuver, PDA, Slow Hands and Obstacle 1. It’s a masterclass, a mature and measured performance which drives the young crowd into raptures.
New material was certainly scarce, so it’s difficult to say where exactly Interpol go from here. But on tonight’s evidence, they might be the NME‘s best tip in ages.
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Words: Jack Bolter
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