Interpol is, without a doubt, one of the coolest bands that indie-rock has ever produced, and it’s also one of the few early 2000s outfits to actually survive (remember The Strokes and Yeah Yeah Yeahs?).
The band’s 2002 breakout LP, Turn on the Bright Lights, emerged from the confusion of 9/11 and guided a generation of Gen Xers through their 20s. The album — along with 2004’s Antics and 2007’s Our Love to Admire — invited millenials to grow up listening to a group of dapper gentlemen who were happy to channel the moodiness of Joy Division and The Smiths into something more apropos for a world occupied by people more hypnotized by the glow of their cell phones than any other art form that pined for attention.
RELATED: Photos of Interpol and Speedy Ortiz at Mahaffey Theater St. Petersburg — 05.08.19
That demographic filed into St. Petersburg’s Mahaffey Theater on Wednesday night where the New York band, all business in black suits, delivered a 20-song set that leaned hard on that trio of albums from Interpol’s early aughts while mostly neglecting anything from the band’s latest outing, Marauder (just three songs from the 2018 effort made the setlist).
In typical fashion, everything Interpol played looked as good as it sounded. Whether it was the disco ball sparkle on set opener “Pioneer to the Falls” or bathed-in-blue-light, bassy run though “Public Pervert,” frontman Paul Banks never looked close to sweating as he swerved around waves of synth (“Not Even Jail”) and the palpitating kick and floor tom combo delivered unflinchingly by drummer Sam Fogarino. Banks and guitarist Dan Kessler faithfully executed the siren guitar into and upstroked riff from “Take You On A Cruise,” and Kessler even worked relatively seamlessly through the odd lick on “The Rover.” Time signature shifts on the title track of Interpol’s brand new Fine Mess EP, and the discordant bridge of “Complications,” also exited the PA system in pristine form. Extra props to St. Petersburg's own Brad Truax, who played in hero Bay area indie outfit Home before eventually joining the Interpol lineup ahead of a tour supporting the band's 2014 album El Pintor (Banks shouted the bassist out before a resplendent run through "NYC").
The crowd — dressed more casually than Banks & Co. — was happy to bop along and even delivered a big sing along on “Evil.” The set as a whole, however, almost suffered from Interpol’s ability to lock into a groove or mood and stay there. An encore-closing performance of Bright Lights highlight “Roland” and a mid-set run-through Our Love To Admire’s “Rest My Chemistry” should’ve come with a burst of energy from onstage or in the crowd, but the pulse of the show just kind of hovered at an acceptable pace — kind of like when you’re having a good afternoon jog but remain completely uninterested in pushing it any harder.
But Interpol shouldn’t have to test the limits of its live show each and every night. The band is one of the hardest-working in all of rock, and its staying power is a testament to the way fans have responded to the outfit’s durability and dependability. Interpol may not blow you out of the water each and every night, but you can bet that it’ll be on the road and putting out records for years to come — and that’s perfectly cool with us.
Listen to songs from the setlist on Spotify.
Setlist
Pioneer to the Falls
C'mere
If You Really Love Nothing
Public Pervert
Not Even Jail
Complications
Say Hello To Angels
NYC
Take You On A Cruise
The Rover
Rest My Chemistry
Evil
Fine Mess
Leif Erikson
All the Rage Back Home
The New
Slow Hands
—
Untitled
The Heinrich Maneuver
Roland
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This article appears in May 9-16, 2019.