scz:
Possibilities for what’s meant by the lyric “I know you’ve supported me for a long time / somehow, I’m not impressed,” from Interpol’s “NYC”:
- The most direct interpretation: the fault lies with the supporter; the support is false or otherwise insufficient. This is an accusation.
- The fault lies with the speaker: he should be impressed by the long-term support, but isn’t. This is a confession.
- It seems unlikely, since the song is from the first of their five albums, but it could be meant for the audience: your support of our band is empty, or, at least, irrelevant to us as artists. This is a declaration of independence, or aloofness.
While watching them, I wondered, “what does this band mean? what does their music mean?” I don’t think I know the answer.
I miss their old bass player, I do. He had such style, which is an important part of this band. The bass lines are also critical to their sound, and I’m not convinced the new guy was pulling them off.
Their lead singer, Paul Banks, had an oddly… showman-like? demeanor between songs, while introducing the band and thanking the audience (he actually said, Elvis-y, “thankyouverymuch”). And during the encore, the projection behind the band showed surf footage, which seemed a mismatch. But other than those minor miscues, the band swept songs from all five albums into a single, connected whole. Interpol knows what they’re good at, and don’t deviate from it much. There are quiet moments on the albums that I like, and that didn’t turn up in the live show, but it’s hard to pull those off in a big room, anyway.
They remind me of an Anne Sexton quote used on a 7” sleeve by another favorite style-heavy band, Cold Cave: “Content dominates, but style is the master.”
