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Interpol Information
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'Interpol' is a New York City indie rock/new wave band formed in 1998. Their debut album Turn on the Bright Lights was critically acclaimed, while the follow-up, Antics, has also been a commercial and critical success. The members of the band are Paul Banks on vocals and guitar, Carlos Dengler on bass and keyboards, Sam Fogarino on drums, and Daniel Kessler on guitar and background vocals.
The band's sound is a dark mix of bass throb and choppy, sparse guitar. Interpol has been somewhat likened to Joy Division and The Chameleons, whose stark, sombre music and sometimes perplexing lyrics it is thought to echo. Where Turn on the Bright Lights had been spare and tentative, Antics used a fuller, more confident sound. Both Antics and Turn on the Bright Lights were recorded at Tarquin Studios in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
The band formed when Daniel Kessler met drummer Greg Drudy, now a member of screamo band Hot Cross, on the New York University campus. Kessler later added Carlos D., an ex-guitar player, on the bass, after meeting him in a history class. The line-up was complete after Kessler remembered an old friend he met while in Paris. Banks and Kessler ran into each other on the street, after losing touch since Paris, and Banks became lead singer. In 2000, Greg left the band, and Daniel recruited Sam, whom the band knew through his job at a local record store.
The band will take time off after their Antics tour for an unknown amount of time. A new song by the band, 'Direction' was released on the soundtrack to the television programme 'Six Feet Under' on 28th June 2005.
Discography
Albums
*Turn on the Bright Lights (August 20, 2002) #158 US, #101 UK
*Antics (September 29, 2004) #15 US, #21 UK
EPs
*Demo Tape
*Fukd I.D. #3 (December 11, 2000)
*Precipitate EP (January 01, 2001)
*Interpol EP (June 04, 2002)
*The Black EP (August 26, 2003)
Singles
from Turn on the Bright Lights
* 2002 "The Interpol EP: PDA / NYC / Specialist" #170 UK
* 2002 "Obstacle 1" #72 UK
* 2003 "Say Hello To The Angels / NYC" #65 UK
* 2003 "Obstacle 1 (remix)" #41 UK
from Antics
* 2004 "Slow Hands" #15 US Modern Rock #36 UK
* 2005 "Evil" #24 US Modern Rock, #18 UK
* 2005 "C'mere" #19 UK
* 2005 "Slow Hands" (re-issue) #44 UK
Trivia
* Daniel Kessler has stated in an interview that the band "...had played shows with no name and then I got to the point where I was like, 'Guys, we're getting decent crowds, but like...we don't have a name so no one knows who to go see again.'" Other names the band considered were 'Las Armas' (The Weapons) and 'The French Letters'. They also performed a secret show at Luna Lounge in New York under the pseudonym 'Cuddleworthy'.
* The name 'Interpol' supposedly comes from Paul Banks' name. While he was in Spain, friends would call him "Pol, Pol, Interpol." Another suggestion as to the reason the band is so called is because the word Interpol suggests order and efficiency, similar to the style in which the band plays.
* Rumor has it that an Interpol agent attended a concert in Europe and actually approached the band afterwards. On the other hand, the band does receive a lot of mail from people who think that info@interpolny.com is the email address for the international police.
* Bassist and keyboard player Carlos is also a DJ. He often spins at parties while the band is on tour and has hosted several ongoing parties in NYC.
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