Plucked from the recent 'Turn On The Bright Lights' album, Interpol's latest is a remarkably self assured effort. Forget those Joy Division comparisons, though: 'Obstacle 1''s choppy bassline and singer Paul Banks' swooning are most reminiscent of those embarrassing spent forces Suede. It's roughly the same formula: threadbare black charity shop suits denoting faded glamour and art school cred. Cheekbones. Sense that the sum of their influences extends further than that of [a][/a]. Indeed, Interpol are the kind of band you can imagine watching a lot of European cinema. The drawback? For such an avowedly aesthetic bunch of chaps, 'Obstacle 1' is ever-so-slightly lacking in lyrical grace: "Her stories are boring and stuff/she's always calling my bluff" just won't do.
Pat Long
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