TURN ON THE BRIGHT LIGHTS -- whatcha reckon?

Ned - can you point me towards this 'Chams list'?
(I'll never be able to actually see it, of course hahaha - SLAP ouch)

Beyond that we can sort of isolate two skills in music-making: there's the skill of advancement and aesthetic creation and such, and there's the thrill of good content, good conception and execution of something that's neither hugely derivative nor pathbreaking. Interpol are really good at the latter, which is why it's sort of a shame to play the spot-the-similarities game with them: everything good about them is wrapped up in the movement of the songs, which are incredibly solidly constructed.

Someone on one of the other threads was talking about the phrasing of a line in "NYC" -- "the city is a porno" -- and noted that little tricks and slips of unexpected delivery are all over this record. That's absolutely true, although I'm not sure how I would tell you about it: you probably just have to hear moments like (a) the bit of "Obstacle 1" where they launch into full-on drama queen rock but the line he's so desperately singing is "her stories are boring and stuff," or (b) later on in the "Stella" song where he mashes up syllables and repeats "Stell-la, Stell-lah-ha."

What they do well is sounding completely exasperated -- not so much mopey-miserablist but pissy and frustrated but not giving a shit either way, perfectly willing to whine and then deflate their own whining as if it didn't matter in the first place. Also, like the Strokes album, it's a part of that re-emerging concept of the rock album as a solid album, something where every song should be as tight as a single, rather than stretching out into all sorts of interludes and experiments. (That's not an inherently better form but it's far better for Interpol.)

You're not alone. It's weird -- I know I can just go to the Matador site and download at least one song or so, but I can't be bothered! I'd rather just get the album straight up. :-)

Ned - can you point me towards this 'Chams list'?
(I'll never be able to actually see it, of course hahaha - SLAP ouch)

You frighten me. Anyway, yes, drop me a line and I'll send ya the info. It's low key but spirited (and there's much talk about the upcoming American tour, yay).

still stands up.

First album, yes. Anything that came afterwards is poop.

I like the other two albums too, but this is their best, no question.

the fukd id ep is their pinnacle

Not so long ago I listened to this album for the first time in, what, three or four years? Shocked at how much is still ***LOVE*** it.

Paul's delivery at :52

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGcm8M4DcQc