Interpol Records in NYC as the City Sings Back
For the band Interpol, some of the best work still happens in the comfort of home. Even as members have scattered across continents, the heart of their creative world remains rooted in New York City.
Guitarist and co-founder Daniel Kessler splits his time between the city and Barcelona, while singer Paul Banks is based in Berlin, though he keeps an apartment in Manhattan. This balance is reflected in their latest offering, This Mirror Weighs a Ton, a consequential return to the nocturnal landscape that first defined them.
The new album’s title song sets a mood built from swirling guitar effects, atmospheric gloom, and a heartbreak beat. Banks’ vocals weave lyrics that balance the hard-edged with the impressionistic, capturing a sense of searching: “I fall in a hole (loser) / Fade in symphonic / Like the phone that’s dialing / Alone again / Unknown again.”
A quarter-century after their debut, Interpol remains energized by their initial burst of creativity. They stand as living artifacts of the early-2000s rock scene that spawned icons like the Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and LCD Soundsystem. Still clad in black and performing under mood lighting, the band continues to explore new sonic territories. Kessler, for instance, introduced acoustic guitar to an Interpol record on “So Rides the Reindeer,” and Banks drew inspiration from the grim drone imagery of the war in Ukraine on “Wounded Soldier.”
The album was produced by their friend Andrew Wyatt, who is known for his work with Charli xcx and Rosalía. The recording sessions themselves took place several stories above the Lower East Side, in a studio with expansive windows overlooking the New York skyline. Kessler recalls the magic of this setting, stating, “It was really amazing to make this record and have these windows that looked out on Gotham.”
The process of creating the record was deeply personal. The songs typically began with Kessler working on a classical guitar at home, often starting with piano motifs. The songs evolved as the band gathered in the room, building out the compositions together. This collaborative approach was further enhanced by working with longtime touring bassist Brad Truax, who contributed to the album for the first time.
Kessler describes his creative ritual as finding inspiration when he is home, starting each day with a movie and coffee. He finds that the distraction of visual stimulation—rather than getting bogged down in technology—allows his ideas to flow. He finds a unique luxury in the slow, warm process of writing, finding a balance between the intense, high-pressure world of music and quiet, reflective solitude.
When crafting the sound for tracks like “Ever the Actor,” the band found a dynamic interplay that was uniquely expressive. The guitar work balanced Americana vibes with dark, ominous choruses delivered by Banks, which were then layered with hip-hop beats and atmospheric orchestrations. This interplay showed how the band’s diverse experiences, including collaborations outside of Interpol, feed back into their sound, keeping the creative energy expansive and satisfying.
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