Interpol return to the indie-rock scene with “Marauder”

Evan Balikos/Contributing Writer

Marauder is a perfect name for Interpol’s latest project, where themes of travelling and searching are at play. But the name is even more appropriate when you compare it to past albums.

Just as marauders roam in search of things to take, Interpol has made decisions on what to keep, what to leave behind and what to improve from previous musical outings. The result of this experiment is a varied, hook-heavy album that doesn’t surrender to banality.

“The Rover,” my favorite track and the first single prior to the album’s release, is one of their best songs ever made. Its main guitar riff is isolated at the start, then matched with a cymbal crash as Paul Banks delivers a steadfast verse. The chorus doesn’t abstain from this, with hi-hats simmering before the high-octane energy returns and Banks sings in his low, serious register.

This energy is laid out all over the album, both in song and musical structure. “Stay In Touch” is “The Rover”’s evil twin, contorting the bright nature of that song’s main riff into a darker tone. The chorus opens and shuts quickly like trap, which seems appropriate for a song that has the narrator meditating on love and adultery.

Risks and surprises sell this album’s grandiose sound. “Complications” dives into a garage rock-flavored arrangement, featuring a slow-moving melody with deep-toned chords. Yet, the song picks up gloriously after the bridge, with Banks’ vocals colliding into each other over piles of percussion.

“If You Really Love Nothing,” the album’s opening track, has a hook so perfectly strung together that it rings through your head long after the track has ended. Even more addicting is the gradual layering of distorted vocals and reverberating guitar sections on the chorus. The song grows deeper and deeper, towering over you as the drums gallop along. And then it’s all over after the last vibrating note.   

This magic sound quality is generated by producer Dave Fridmann, who has worked with everyone from The Flaming Lips to Spoon to MGMT to Tame Impala. He knows a thing about creating brilliantly layered music, and Interpol was right to work with him on the album. A track that is indebted to him is the disco-like “Surveillance,” which rides nicely before getting lost in a mysterious, glitchy space.

The album’s closing track, “It Probably Matters,” contains themes of isolation and detachment in a character who lives his life hazardously. But by the end of “Marauder,” he has learned to understand that his choices have consequences, and that he can’t keep minimizing his pain. He ruminates on how much time he’s spent ignoring his mind and dreams of finding eventual peace.

“I need answers/ I need answers/ I need answers/ (in the end we’ll meet again),” Banks sings over layers of vocals; a tidal wave of clanging percussion, smooth guitar chords and fuzzy production envelops him in a beautiful abyss.

Everything on “Marauder” echoes hints of Interpol’s past, but the band has taken their classic sound and formed new concoctions. Elements like Banks’ emotional vocal delivery and Daniel Kessler’s climbing guitars are retained, but the band combines those key elements with the current sound and dynamic of indie rock. They improve on the experimentation and warm production of “El Pintor,” overlook the soft sounds of their 2010 self-titled album, and solidify the expansive sound from their debut, “Turn Off The Bright Lights.” “Marauder,” ironically, doesn’t wander too far from Interpol’s sweet spot. It stays right in the center of familiarity and unmarked territory.

Photo retrieved from Flickr. 

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