• Record Label: Matador
  • Release Date: Sep 7, 2010
Metascore
66

Generally favorable reviews - based on 33 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 33
  2. Negative: 0 out of 33
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  1. The riffs here are grander, the rhythms more limber, and the melodies more memorably moody than they've been in years.
  2. 80
    Banks leads his dark orchestra with aplomb on Interpol's most cohesive effort since Turn On The Bright Lights.
  3. I guess I'm the contrarian here, but I think Interpol deserve a significant amount of respect for taking the risk and mustering the sheer talent to create something so deeply submerged in melancholia you can't even see light.
  4. On Interpol, he and his bandmates manage the seemingly unmanageable task of finding new wrinkles in a tightly defined sound, one that's been theirs for nearly a decade.
  5. Uncut
    80
    It is still familiar as an Interpol album, but it's certainly their most refined, elegant and frightening release. [Oct 2010, p.97]
  6. Q Magazine
    80
    Ominous fourth album from the masters of emotional turbulence. [Oct. 2010, p. 118]
  7. Though the record meanders into aimless moping in its final third, most of the 10 tracks are bold, heavy and among Interpol's best.
  8. 72
    True, a few of these compositions will probably end up soundtracking your next funeral party; but there are hints of a band yearning to crawl out from under the weight of its own history.
  9. While the band's celebrity rose in the wake of national tragedy, Interpol will remind you that it's time to be worried again.
  10. There's still the chance that this album will finally push them into the stratosphere – you wish Interpol were globally huge, you really do – although it's likely that their future won't be written until after Dengler's tour-replacements have helped broaden the band's palette more.
  11. Ultimately, Interpol isn't a statement of purpose as much as it is the end of an era for the band: With Dengler gone and back on their original label, they have the ability, and perhaps necessity, to go in any direction they choose.
  12. The size has always worked off the razor-sharp edges of the music, with Daniel Kessler's guitar leading the way. Interpol restores some of the shine, but the music still feels softer somehow, the cuts not as precise.
  13. They revive their pretensions for Interpol, a surprisingly solid comeback.
  14. Interpol is quite possibly the record that the more rabid end of the band's fanbase would have wanted Antics to be; a consistently flowing album, the whole of which is exceedingly better than the sum of its parts.
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 118 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 90 out of 118
  2. Negative: 9 out of 118
  1. Sep 8, 2010
    10
    There are a lot of people who are wrong about "Interpol". These people go into every Interpol album wondering if this will be another "Turn onThere are a lot of people who are wrong about "Interpol". These people go into every Interpol album wondering if this will be another "Turn on The Bright Lights", it isn't. But that's alright, because it isn't trying to be. The songs are darker, more atmospheric, with ethereal soundscapes and a greater focus on Paul's vocals for a lot of the songs. The songs, possibly less immediate, but still great. "Try It On" "Memory Serves" and "Summer Well" rank up with the best stuff the band has done. Full Review »
  2. Sep 9, 2010
    10
    Another classic album from an already timeless band. Interpol continues to impress even years after the stellar Turn On The Bright Lights.Another classic album from an already timeless band. Interpol continues to impress even years after the stellar Turn On The Bright Lights. Favorite tracks include Success, Summer Well, Barricade and The Undoing. Full Review »
  3. Sep 7, 2010
    5
    It is going to be extremely difficult for Interpol to escape the long shadow cast by their stunningly awesome debut album. Antics was a fineIt is going to be extremely difficult for Interpol to escape the long shadow cast by their stunningly awesome debut album. Antics was a fine second album, but it was not nearly in a class with Turn On the Bright Lights. A completely forgettable third album sees the downward trend continue with this maddeningly inconsistent fourth and self-titled album. After a promising start with "Success," the record has a strong first half with two good tunes in "Lights" and "Barricade," but loses momentum quickly on the second half with pointless, boring songs. There are four really poor songs on this record that drag down the overall quality. There is a special place in the pantheon of great music for Interpol's debut, and I suspect the band will never come close to replicating its magic again. This record is merely the proof. Full Review »