Interpol follows-up 2014's El Pintor with their sixth studio album, Marauder. For the first time since 2007's Our Love to Admire, the band has opened themselves up to the input of a producer. For two-week spells between December of 2017 to April of 2018, they traveled to upstate New York to work with Dave Fridmann – famed for recording with Mercury Rev, Flaming Lips, MGMT, Spoon, Mogwai, and countless more.
In the run up to writing and recording, Sam Fogarino found himself immersed in soul drummers such as Al Jackson Jr (Otis Redding's drummer) and 80's funk producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. "How can I make shit swing?" was the question Sam repeatedly asked himself, and the answer is in the striding gallop of opener "If You Really Love Nothing," the embellished skip ‘n' bounce of "Stay in Touch" and the R&B swagger of closer "It Probably Matters." Interpol have always been world-beaters at creating a feeling, but Marauder is where the feel is just as crucial.
Paul Banks may have stepped out of the shadows as a bassist, but he steps into an even brighter light as a songwriter here. During Interpol's previous albums, the singer largely kept himself out of his own work, preferring to fill his lyrics with detached thoughts, characters, and observations, often phrased in abstract. But more than 20 years on since forming at NYU, the frontman is finally allowing himself to play a role in his own stories.
"Marauder is a facet of myself," he explains. "That's the guy that fucks up friendships and does crazy shit. He taught me a lot, but it's representative of a persona that's best left in song. In a way, this album is like giving him a name and putting him to bed."
- If You Really Love Nothing
- The Rover
- Complications
- Flight of Fancy
- Stay In Touch
- Interlude 1
- Mountain Child
- NYSMAW
- Surveillance
- Number 10
- Party's Over
- Interlude 2
- It Probably Matters
