IN REVIEW: Interpol - "El Pintor"

The word "comeback" tends to get thrown around willy nilly amongst music critics; it seems all it takes is for one small pocket of society to forget about an artist for five minutes to qualify them for comeback status. And yet, it really does seem to fit Interpol as they release El Pintor, their fifth album and first in four years. In addition to being their first without original bassist Carlos D, it's also following a couple of overall disappointments, 2010's self titled album and 2007's Our Love To Admire; those weren't terrible albums by any stretch, but they were far less engaging than their indomitable first two records, 2002's Turn On The Bright Lights and 2004's Antics.

All of this means it's pretty much been a decade since the masses were really excited about an Interpol album, and El Pintor's lead single gave plenty of reason for excitement. All The Rage Back Home, a slow starter that turns into a relentless, nimble rocker, immediately sets the bar high for the album; to no one's surprise, it turns out to be El Pintor's undisputed highlight. Throughout, there are a few that come close; Anywhere packs an exorbitant amount of groove and melody into its three minutes and change, and sticks in the brain long after its conclusion. Meanwhile, Ancient Ways reminds me just how much Wintersleep learned from listening to Turn On The Bright Lights.

In fact, listening to El Pintor in its entirety, there aren't any disappointing tracks; the problem is, there aren't all that many thrilling tracks either. Interpol have always run the risk of redundancy, and a handful of El Pintor's tracks just sort of blur together. As a result, the album suffers slightly because the sum appears to be less remarkable than its parts.

Still, if nothing else, Interpol puts in the work here; the production was handled in house, and band leader Paul Banks in particular does a lot of heavy lifting, handling vocal, guitar and bass duties. You can tell they wanted this album to excel, and it honestly does most of the time. It also sounds great, surely in no small part due to the mixing of veteran Alan Moulder.

All told, El Pintor isn't a stunning return to form, nor is it an exercise in diminishing returns; it's simply the best Interpol record in a decade, and how great a compliment that is wholly depends on how much you enjoyed the last two records.

September 9, 2014 • Matador

Highlights All the Rage Back Home • Anywhere • Ancient Ways