(no subject)
album # FIVE
interpol - antics (matador)
"red goddess, white goddess, black temptress of the sea you treat me right,
oh my love, we're sailing to norway..."
this second record from interpol was always going to be under close scrutiny. i mean, 'turn on the bright lights' is one of the finest records made this millenium. it's near-perfect. but that record's not in question. people have to move on. 'antics' is the most natural progression of sort, but at the same time not exactly a huge departure from what the makes the band so special and affecting. the main focus here is the songs and to concentrate on the music by using the basic elements of what make interpol, interpol. from paul bank's passionate yet desperate monotonous vocals, to dan kessler's sublime crisp intricate guitar work which almost feels as if he's painting on canvas, to carlos d's almost imperceptibly fluid bass work, rolling along keeping everything in check and sam figerino's precise split-second beat-perfect drum acting the heart-beat. the focus on each band members part to play is amplified by the wonderful crystal clear recording of the album which captures each member's individual contribution to the cause, without really subduing or muffling out one another. the only true post-production that i can make out would be the excerpts of am radio frequency vocals tuning in before cutting out all the way throughout the record...
the record inaugurates with 'next exit' which begins with funeral-esque organs, the first indication of the evolution and the growth the band have undertaken. it sounds lethargic, you can almost picture the group all sitting in a car, driving through the night, with the headlights providing the only illumination. it sound so sparse and bare, before pianos and guitars join the solo organ and minimal tambourine percussion, and paul's vocals really allowed a range of expression previously unexplored, "we aint going to the town, we're going to the city, gonna track this shit around and make this place a heart to be a part of again...", the sombre mood is short lived as bass notes which could've been played by kim deal, creepily open 'evil', it's perhaps one of the most upbeat tracks on the record with it's driving rhythm section and happy-go-lucky guitar strums which seem counterbalance its ambiguously bleak lyrical themes... "leave some shards under the belly, lay some grease inside my hand, it's a sentimental jury, and the makings of a good plan. you've come to love me nightly, yeah you've come to hold me tight, is this motion everlasting or do shutters pass in the night? hey wait, great smile, sensitive to faith not, denial, but hey whose on trial? it took a life spent with no cellmate, find a long way back... saying meanwhile can't we look the other way? yr weightless, you are exotic, you need something for which to care"
a tense heavy guitar riff for 'narc', showing cautious restraint as it's just yearning to burst out with uncontrollable emotion. the vocals soar in the chorus, really showing his melodic range, as he bellows "she found a lonely sound, she keeps on waiting for time out there", it begins to climb the steps of a cresendo which seems to build up with the lines "he slips into the bedroom, and you know he misses alright, old names, we'll make sweet, will sustain us through the night, inside my bedroom baby, touch me, oh tonight.. promises, we'll make some. will reveal our sense of right" before reaching a conclusion of "you should be in my space! you should be in my life!!" without really acheiving it's promise of breaking from it's shackles. it stays locked inside. another weight to add to the heart strings.
'take you on the cruise' the records highlight in my personal opinion shows the band veer in an exploration in epic construction. narrating into different parts, first opening with an ebowed guitar, before an inventive drum line kicks in, along with liquid basslines, before transporting into a stella driven swoon with the lines, "along the way tears drown in the wake of delight, there's nothing like this built today, you'll never see a finer ship in your life. we sail today, tears drown in the wake of delight. there's nothing like this built today, you'll never see a finer ship or recieve a better tip in your life", before finally tearing into a break out of "i am a scavanger between the sheets of union, lately I can't tell for sure whether machines turn anyone! the anatomy of kisses and the future of lies..".. the tracks seems to ache with a longing all the way through, even though the different segments of the track all sound so unique, with chord shifts and tempo changes, after repeated listens and familiarising yrself with them, they seem to tesalate together with great ease and relative obviousness, as well as some subtle geniusness i must add. (definitely up there with 'leif erikson' as one of the greatest moments they've commited to tape..)... 'not even jail' continues this display of epic theatrical exploration, lead by carlos' militant bass and drums, the dark undertones and tense atmosphere is quite something. again it's similar to 'narc' where it has this weight around it's neck, restraining the song which it wants to break lose from, loudly pronouncing "i'm sort've like a lion's cage, sucha cautious display!", and this continues with 'public pervert', which seems to tie-toe and skip around carefully before crashing down with the pressure begging to be set free. this record gives off a preceding aura of heaviness..
'c'mere' follows the trend of 'evil', up there as one of the more upbeat tracks on the record with it's driving rhythm section and happy-go-lucky guitar strums but almost contradicted by its ambiguously dark lyrical themes... you can almost picture a 1950's rock' n' roll band fronted by. er. ian curtis, singing about lost love and missed chances. "it's way too late to be this locked inside ourselves. the trouble is that you're in love with someone else. it should be me. oh, it should be me. set the day, you know exactly how i feel. i had my doubts little girl, i'm in love with something real, it could be me, that's changing!", something i'm sure we all have known and experienced in all our lives. and the record ends with the syncopated funk bassline and disco-pop rhythm of 'length of love' which initially seems to be at odds with the song's lush orchestration, but these counter-intuitive touches add a dynamic element to the limited confines of the song's composition. even making an unlikely anthem to the chorus of "complex salacious removal", and then is closed with the unsettling 'a time to be small', a tired slowburner with some heart-rending guitar work, bringing back memories of 'leif', even including an intense outro lead by the lines "when the cadaverous mobs in the doors to the tent, man, meanwhile you cannot leave", making you want to curl up in the ball, safe from the rest of the world...
i think this was the perfect record to release especially to cast off the pressure of advance hype, anticipation, and unreasonable expectations. interpol seem to have made a solid collection of songs, concentrating on what makes them sound so good, which flows from start to end smoothly but still with enough lyrical and musical diversity to keep you occupied and intrigued. also i think they're a wonderful live band too. caught them on three seperate occasions in the year of 2004...two of which were on consecutive nights in two of the most intimate venues i think they'll ever likely to play again, in london at least...
photographs @ scala
photographs @ ica
tracklisting:
next exit
evil mp3
narc mp3
take you on a cruise mp3
slow hands mp3
not even jail
public pervert mp3
c'mere
length of love
a time to be so small
stand out track(s): ---
interpol - antics (matador)
"red goddess, white goddess, black temptress of the sea you treat me right,
oh my love, we're sailing to norway..."
this second record from interpol was always going to be under close scrutiny. i mean, 'turn on the bright lights' is one of the finest records made this millenium. it's near-perfect. but that record's not in question. people have to move on. 'antics' is the most natural progression of sort, but at the same time not exactly a huge departure from what the makes the band so special and affecting. the main focus here is the songs and to concentrate on the music by using the basic elements of what make interpol, interpol. from paul bank's passionate yet desperate monotonous vocals, to dan kessler's sublime crisp intricate guitar work which almost feels as if he's painting on canvas, to carlos d's almost imperceptibly fluid bass work, rolling along keeping everything in check and sam figerino's precise split-second beat-perfect drum acting the heart-beat. the focus on each band members part to play is amplified by the wonderful crystal clear recording of the album which captures each member's individual contribution to the cause, without really subduing or muffling out one another. the only true post-production that i can make out would be the excerpts of am radio frequency vocals tuning in before cutting out all the way throughout the record...
the record inaugurates with 'next exit' which begins with funeral-esque organs, the first indication of the evolution and the growth the band have undertaken. it sounds lethargic, you can almost picture the group all sitting in a car, driving through the night, with the headlights providing the only illumination. it sound so sparse and bare, before pianos and guitars join the solo organ and minimal tambourine percussion, and paul's vocals really allowed a range of expression previously unexplored, "we aint going to the town, we're going to the city, gonna track this shit around and make this place a heart to be a part of again...", the sombre mood is short lived as bass notes which could've been played by kim deal, creepily open 'evil', it's perhaps one of the most upbeat tracks on the record with it's driving rhythm section and happy-go-lucky guitar strums which seem counterbalance its ambiguously bleak lyrical themes... "leave some shards under the belly, lay some grease inside my hand, it's a sentimental jury, and the makings of a good plan. you've come to love me nightly, yeah you've come to hold me tight, is this motion everlasting or do shutters pass in the night? hey wait, great smile, sensitive to faith not, denial, but hey whose on trial? it took a life spent with no cellmate, find a long way back... saying meanwhile can't we look the other way? yr weightless, you are exotic, you need something for which to care"
a tense heavy guitar riff for 'narc', showing cautious restraint as it's just yearning to burst out with uncontrollable emotion. the vocals soar in the chorus, really showing his melodic range, as he bellows "she found a lonely sound, she keeps on waiting for time out there", it begins to climb the steps of a cresendo which seems to build up with the lines "he slips into the bedroom, and you know he misses alright, old names, we'll make sweet, will sustain us through the night, inside my bedroom baby, touch me, oh tonight.. promises, we'll make some. will reveal our sense of right" before reaching a conclusion of "you should be in my space! you should be in my life!!" without really acheiving it's promise of breaking from it's shackles. it stays locked inside. another weight to add to the heart strings.
'take you on the cruise' the records highlight in my personal opinion shows the band veer in an exploration in epic construction. narrating into different parts, first opening with an ebowed guitar, before an inventive drum line kicks in, along with liquid basslines, before transporting into a stella driven swoon with the lines, "along the way tears drown in the wake of delight, there's nothing like this built today, you'll never see a finer ship in your life. we sail today, tears drown in the wake of delight. there's nothing like this built today, you'll never see a finer ship or recieve a better tip in your life", before finally tearing into a break out of "i am a scavanger between the sheets of union, lately I can't tell for sure whether machines turn anyone! the anatomy of kisses and the future of lies..".. the tracks seems to ache with a longing all the way through, even though the different segments of the track all sound so unique, with chord shifts and tempo changes, after repeated listens and familiarising yrself with them, they seem to tesalate together with great ease and relative obviousness, as well as some subtle geniusness i must add. (definitely up there with 'leif erikson' as one of the greatest moments they've commited to tape..)... 'not even jail' continues this display of epic theatrical exploration, lead by carlos' militant bass and drums, the dark undertones and tense atmosphere is quite something. again it's similar to 'narc' where it has this weight around it's neck, restraining the song which it wants to break lose from, loudly pronouncing "i'm sort've like a lion's cage, sucha cautious display!", and this continues with 'public pervert', which seems to tie-toe and skip around carefully before crashing down with the pressure begging to be set free. this record gives off a preceding aura of heaviness..
'c'mere' follows the trend of 'evil', up there as one of the more upbeat tracks on the record with it's driving rhythm section and happy-go-lucky guitar strums but almost contradicted by its ambiguously dark lyrical themes... you can almost picture a 1950's rock' n' roll band fronted by. er. ian curtis, singing about lost love and missed chances. "it's way too late to be this locked inside ourselves. the trouble is that you're in love with someone else. it should be me. oh, it should be me. set the day, you know exactly how i feel. i had my doubts little girl, i'm in love with something real, it could be me, that's changing!", something i'm sure we all have known and experienced in all our lives. and the record ends with the syncopated funk bassline and disco-pop rhythm of 'length of love' which initially seems to be at odds with the song's lush orchestration, but these counter-intuitive touches add a dynamic element to the limited confines of the song's composition. even making an unlikely anthem to the chorus of "complex salacious removal", and then is closed with the unsettling 'a time to be small', a tired slowburner with some heart-rending guitar work, bringing back memories of 'leif', even including an intense outro lead by the lines "when the cadaverous mobs in the doors to the tent, man, meanwhile you cannot leave", making you want to curl up in the ball, safe from the rest of the world...
i think this was the perfect record to release especially to cast off the pressure of advance hype, anticipation, and unreasonable expectations. interpol seem to have made a solid collection of songs, concentrating on what makes them sound so good, which flows from start to end smoothly but still with enough lyrical and musical diversity to keep you occupied and intrigued. also i think they're a wonderful live band too. caught them on three seperate occasions in the year of 2004...two of which were on consecutive nights in two of the most intimate venues i think they'll ever likely to play again, in london at least...
photographs @ scala
photographs @ ica
tracklisting:
next exit
evil mp3
narc mp3
take you on a cruise mp3
slow hands mp3
not even jail
public pervert mp3
c'mere
length of love
a time to be so small
stand out track(s): ---