Saturday 13th September 2014 by Andrew Trendell

Interpol - El Pintor (Matador)

'One man down but ten times stronger - highly evolved and radioactive'

Photo:

"It's just a different chemistry," said Interpol frontman Paul Banks in an interview with Gigwise, reflecting on the very different make-up of Interpol in 2014. "There was always a very powerful creative force between the four of us. To use a chemistry analogy, there might be four atoms in a molecule and it has a certain bond. There's three atoms in a different molecule and maybe that has an even stronger bond - a more excitable, radioactive state."

For Interpol to become 'radioactive', it had to lose one of its elements. Carlos D, the menacing and vampyric bassist who stalked stage left, parted ways with the band after they recorded their self-titled fourth record in 2010. Since then, they toured without him, bonded as a unit and returned with not only one of the finest records of the year, but of their career.

"This guy's gunna break," croons Banks on third track 'Anywhere', "and some of us die heroes - at least they'll never suffer." The vulnerability of his words utterly at odds with the assured conviction that runs throughout all of El Pintor - the sound of a band utterly unbreakable. Whether it's the sharp anxiety of their immaculate debut Turn On The Bright Lights, the glossy and widescreen charm of Antics, the swooning romance of Our Love To Admire or the introverted idiosyncrasies of their self-titled LP, the evolution of Interpol has been a joy to behold.

On El Pintor, they've found that common thread that runs through everything, distilled it to make it 100% pure Interpol, and fired it racing into the future with a newfound drive and compulsion. It is that very essence that has struck a chord with fans. The second that the brilliant opening track and lead single 'All The Rage Back Home' hit the radio, the resounding response around the world was one of the band returning to form - and wasting no time in doing so.

Punchy and direct it may be, but don't be misled into thinking that El Pintor is a collection of ten singles. It's still as far from a bunch of formulaic verse-chorus-verse tracks stapled together as you can get. Interpol are an albums band, and El Pintor is an extraordinary trip.

'All The Rage Back Home', 'My Desire' and 'Anywhere' are a genius masterstroke of an opening trio, rushing straight into the essence of album's no-nonsense spirit before the gentle swagger of 'Same Town, New Story', the lip-furled bravado of teen dream come true 'My Blue Supreme' and the minimal majesty of 'Breaker 1' give the album the consistency and depth of character that made you fall in love with them in the first place. Cap it off with the pounding 'Tidal Wave' and 'Twice As Hard' (a near cousin to 'Untitled' and 'The Lighthouse') and you've got a complete A-Z of everything you could possibly want from an Interpol record.

El Pintor is certainly the band's most direct body of work since 2004's Antics. Upfront, and with the perfect balance between pop, post-punk, poetry and cinematic experimentation, it's the sum of all that's great about the New York band. But, in losing a member and shedding a layer, we're now closer to 'the heart' of Interpol.

Not only one of the albums of the year, but one of the best of their career. They went through the grind and came back one man down but ten times stronger: direct, highly evolved and radioactive.

- El Pintor is out now. To celebrate, we asked Interpol to take over Gigwise

See our Interpol take-over below:
EXCLUSIVE: Go behind the scenes with Interpol on the making of the band's 'new chapter' in this in-depth video EPK