Interpol shines through the darkness at Palace Theatre

The stage was heavily backlit in dark blue when Interpol took the stage and rocked out “Untitled” from their debut 2002 masterpiece Turn On the Bright Lights. Wading in the shadows, the band pounded through the song with no emotion minus guitarist Daniel Kessler pointing to the crowd during one moment. The third song “Fables” had the stage lit in deep red, but finally from overhead white spotlights shined down like slowly swaying batons. For the rest of the night, darkness embodied the stage with strobes of white sparking through at times creating a theme of opposing emotions.

With their seventh album The Other Side of Make-Believe due out July 15, 2022, Interpol weaved in some of these new songs including the head-bopping “Toni” and sullen and beautiful “Something Changed“. The New York City-based band with the most New York City sound had the crowd rocking while playing older hits like “NYC” from Turn On the Bright Lights, “The Rover” from their 2017 album Marauder, and “C’mere” from their great 2004 album Antics. But in between there were moments where the darkness weighed heavy.

The band returned from a quick encore break to play the dynamic building “Lights” from their 2010 self-titled release. It was a highlight of the show. Interpol’s Antics hit “Slow Hands” ended the night. While the song is upbeat, the energy to back it wasn’t there and it felt underwhelming. Interpol’s previous show at the Palace Theatre was more energetic, but it is always a treat to see them and their unique light show.

DJ / Producer Matthew Dear opened the night with a very good short set before Tycho took the stage and put on the best performance of the night. Tycho’s smooth flowing sounds and atmospheric backdrop was a great setup for Interpol’s brooding emotive performance. This was an exceptional lineup for a show.

Tycho

Matthew Dear