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For me I'm constantly listening to these 6 songs, which make the album for me, and which are as good as anything on 4:
No I In Threesome
Mammoth
Pace Is The Trick
Who Do You Think?
Wrecking Ball
The Lighthouse
If they could have made the rest equally good OLTA would have probably been as great as any of the other albums.
Olta Revisited
MultiQuote
#3
- Evil
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Posted 26 June 2012 - 07:23 PM
Scale
Heinrich
Pace
Fired Up
Chemistry
Wrecking
Who Do You Think
are all mine, maybe Mammoth and Mind Over Time to a lesser extent
I think Threesome is boring, Pioneer is too long and I dont like the keys over the staccato guitar, Lighthouse bores me until the last 30 seconds.
Heinrich
Pace
Fired Up
Chemistry
Wrecking
Who Do You Think
are all mine, maybe Mammoth and Mind Over Time to a lesser extent
I think Threesome is boring, Pioneer is too long and I dont like the keys over the staccato guitar, Lighthouse bores me until the last 30 seconds.
#7
- Slow Hands
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Posted 27 June 2012 - 04:41 AM
I don't see everyone's fixation with Mammoth, it's one of my least favourite Interpol songs.
No I in Threesome
The Scale
The Heinrich Maneuver
Pace Is the Trick
Rest My Chemistry
Wrecking Ball
The Lighthouse
Mind Over Time
OLTA is probably my favourite Interpol album, although even OLTA has it's downsides, I guess.
No I in Threesome
The Scale
The Heinrich Maneuver
Pace Is the Trick
Rest My Chemistry
Wrecking Ball
The Lighthouse
Mind Over Time
OLTA is probably my favourite Interpol album, although even OLTA has it's downsides, I guess.
#8
- Slow Hands
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Posted 27 June 2012 - 06:48 AM
I don't know why OLTA gets such a bad rap - I reckon it's about equal to their other albums.
I really like...
No I In Threesome (one of my favourites of all time)
Heinrich
Wrecking Ball
The Lighthouse
All the other songs are good too, but those are my favourites from the album.
I really like...
No I In Threesome (one of my favourites of all time)
Heinrich
Wrecking Ball
The Lighthouse
All the other songs are good too, but those are my favourites from the album.
#9
- Leif
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Posted 27 June 2012 - 10:50 AM
jOlly, on 27 June 2012 - 11:41 AM, said:
I don't see everyone's fixation with Mammoth, it's one of my least favourite Interpol songs.
No I in Threesome
The Scale
The Heinrich Maneuver
Pace Is the Trick
Rest My Chemistry
Wrecking Ball
The Lighthouse
Mind Over Time
OLTA is probably my favourite Interpol album, although even OLTA has it's downsides, I guess.
No I in Threesome
The Scale
The Heinrich Maneuver
Pace Is the Trick
Rest My Chemistry
Wrecking Ball
The Lighthouse
Mind Over Time
OLTA is probably my favourite Interpol album, although even OLTA has it's downsides, I guess.
Well we seem to disagree on two things :'D
#10
- Slow Hands
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Posted 27 June 2012 - 12:01 PM
I haven't been on the forum in forever... Still dig Interpol a lot, but until the last few weeks haven't been listening too much lately, but this topic always gets me "fired up"... I finally got used to S/T, and and have been listening to it and OLTA a ton.
Basically, I think OLTA is among the most underrated albums ever. The only tracks I don't absolutely love are "Wrecking Ball" and "Lighthouse", and even those are good. Gotta include "Mind over Time" 'cause that one gives me chills (especially in the middle when Sam really opens it up!)
I mean the first two albums are absolutely amazing and I used to defend OLTA by saying I love it only one notch less than the first two... I can honestly say I love it just as much much now. Like the latest S/T release, it just took me forever to really understand, appreciate, and finally fall in love with. I find that the albums that take longer to get accustomed to make a more lasting mark on you than the ones you like right outta the gate.
Anyways, that's my rant... Basically OTLA is simply great - the songwriting, the production, the playing and singing, just everything. It has an incredibly unique vibe (as does all their music I suppose) which just transports me.
Favorite tracks: Pace is the Trick, Rest My Chemistry
Basically, I think OLTA is among the most underrated albums ever. The only tracks I don't absolutely love are "Wrecking Ball" and "Lighthouse", and even those are good. Gotta include "Mind over Time" 'cause that one gives me chills (especially in the middle when Sam really opens it up!)
I mean the first two albums are absolutely amazing and I used to defend OLTA by saying I love it only one notch less than the first two... I can honestly say I love it just as much much now. Like the latest S/T release, it just took me forever to really understand, appreciate, and finally fall in love with. I find that the albums that take longer to get accustomed to make a more lasting mark on you than the ones you like right outta the gate.
Anyways, that's my rant... Basically OTLA is simply great - the songwriting, the production, the playing and singing, just everything. It has an incredibly unique vibe (as does all their music I suppose) which just transports me.
Favorite tracks: Pace is the Trick, Rest My Chemistry
#12
- Narc
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Posted 27 June 2012 - 04:05 PM
jOlly, on 27 June 2012 - 04:41 AM, said:
I don't see everyone's fixation with Mammoth, it's one of my least favourite Interpol songs.
Mammoth is in my all time top five. I love the hard driving drums, the angry bassline, Paul's seethingly sexual vocals, Daniel's slashing guitar and that final line is just amazing (even if I don't know what it means)
I think OLTA gets bad rap because it's not an easy listen or emotionally simplistic. There's a lot going on.
#13
- Evil
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Posted 27 June 2012 - 04:27 PM
Yeah, Mammoth kind of follows something like Not Even Jail or Length of Love in terms of style. It's something Interpol visits a bit.
Scale rules at the end, especially live but they fuck it up a lot and all the video recordings don't catch how cool the effect was on that end solo.
Scale rules at the end, especially live but they fuck it up a lot and all the video recordings don't catch how cool the effect was on that end solo.
#14
- Next Exit
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Posted 28 June 2012 - 03:23 AM
OLTA is a frustratingly inconsistent record. There's a few songs that I love. There's a few songs that I loathe. The problem is that nobody ever agrees on these tracks. It seems like one person's favorite on the album is always another person's least favorite.
This is why I don't think my issue with the record lies in its aesthetic or its general "sound". Most of the people on this board have learned to absolutely adore at least a few tracks on OLTA, despite all the tracks lacking bombastic basslines and many of them lacking Sam's usually prominent drumming. It's more an issue of songwriting. Compared to yes, TOTBL and Antics, the songwriting is just not there all the time. Where are the triumphant peaks and crescendos of Interpol's earlier work? Where are this album's universally loved moments? There's no PDA outro or de-tuning of Dan's guitar on The New on this record. It's just a normal indie rock record. Interpol lost their flair for the meandering song structures that so many of their fans held dearly to their hearts. This was the beginning of a new, less consistent and less Interpol-esqe Interpol. (wow, that last sentence was clunky)
My breakdown of each song (just to show how a die-hard Interpol fan can have a completely different opinion from another die-hard Interpol fan about each song on this record):
Pioneer to the Falls: Absolutely stunning track. Enough said.
No I In Threesome: At first I viewed this track as a normal pop song, and I still view it that way. It's just so boring, so safe. Interpol has a tendency to place some of the poppier songs on their records in the second track slot, so naturally I end up comparing to this track to Obstacle 1 or Evil, and then it becomes so painfully obvious that this track is neither technical, complicated, or even catchy. It's just a normal, boring pop song that any band could have wrote. The only bit of spontaneity within this track is in the song title itself. Surely they can do better.
The Scale: This is one of my favorite songs on the record. It took me years to digest the sorta harsh main guitar riff, but now I love it. It almost makes me want to break into a slow, zombie-like dance. I also love how the ominous keyboards echo in the back of the mix and form the song's foundation. Couple these aspects with Paul's lovely declaration of "LET THE DAYS COLLIDE!!!!" and the song's dark and brutal ending, and this track is a winner.
Heinrich Maneuver: This is a frustrating track. It could have been remarkably good, but it seems like they ran out of ideas after Paul came up with the song's lovely and edgy hook. Seriously, there's nothing to this track after the hook except for repetitive chanting of "my heart swings" and a half-hearted attempt to bring the song together at the end.
Mammoth: I'll never understand why many Interpol fans seem to love this track. It's just so forced. I can picture the guys all in a room discussing ideas for OLTA and one of them saying "hey, let's just write a raw, pissed-off rock song". And while experimenting and stepping out of their comfort zone is of course a good thing (I love when bands try new things), there's something about this song that's just so insincere. I don't feel like Interpol are actually pissed-off when listening to Mammoth. I hear a bored band going threw the motions and throwing the word "fucking" in the chorus in a desperate attempt to show the listener that they were intending for this song to sound dangerous and angry, when in reality, it only sounds like another safe and sonically-bland song that any indie rock band could write.
Pace is the Trick: An all-around gorgeous ballad. The guitar riff at 2:00 and Sam's aggressive drumming towards the end are probably my favorite parts. I simply love how it slowly unravels, revealing each layer with a level of finesse that I find rare with later Interpol. I also love this track because it stands as a shining testament to Interpol's new songwriting style. It's the one track that I love on the album that doesn't rely on seismic shifts within the song. To echo what I wrote earlier in the thread, there's no PDA-style outro or Leif Erikson-esque sudden collage of guitars at any point in the song. Instead, it's consistent all the way through and it gradually builds. Pace gives me hope that Interpol can stick to this newer, more conventional song structure and still produce deeply-effecting and exciting music.
All Fired Up: From the horrific synthesized bass to its cringeworthy lyrics, All Fired Up is the worst song Interpol have ever recorded. Like Mammoth but to an even greater extent, this song just screams of a band running out of ideas and deciding to write a song in which they sound pissed-off, only to end up sounding like a band that doesn't even resemble our beloved Interpol and has simply lost its touch.
Rest My Chemistry: I want to like this track, but all I can think of while listening to it is the Pixies' song, "Where Is My Mind?". Now allow me to explain. I'm not one of the people who claims that Interpol intentionally stole the riff from Television's Marquee Moon, mostly because it seems like Carlos was the only person in the band who extensively listened to post-punk. But Pixies are another story. I'm confident that everyone within Interpol has listened to Pixies' absolute most famous song! Everyone who is a fan of indie rock knows "Where Is My Mind?". And because of that, I can't excuse Interpol's blatant plagiarism. Even if it was unintentional, I think a band artistically strong as Interpol should have scrapped the song or at least modified it so it wasn't such a similar riff.
Who Do You Think?: Aesthetically, this is probably the weakest track on the album. Interpol should never attempt to ape mainstream pop-rock as I honestly believe they are doing here. Fortunately the end result was actually a catchy song, but I still can't help but feel that this song never should never seen the light of day. A guilty pleasure, at best.
Wrecking Ball: Not the best track on the album, but certainly not the worst. There's a lot of interesting ideas running throughout this track and frankly, none of them particularly strike me as brilliant. There's certainly no moments of sonic bliss within Wrecking Ball, yet there is nothing too off-putting either. It's just a solid and mildly entertaining track.
The Lighthouse: I'm just going to say it. This song bores me up until the absolutely stunning final minute.
Mind Over Time: This track renders me speechless every time I listen to it. It's incredible. It might just be Interpol's greatest B-side. I find that it harkens back to early Interpol, back to those huge shifts that existed within nearly every song. Those cathartic, uplifting, and thrilling shifts are the reason I love Interpol. The tracks that contain those shifts, such as Mind Over Time, are the reason that Interpol will always be my favorite band of all-time.
So after many years of listening, OLTA is nothing more than a 7.5 out of 10 for me. It has some truly awful tracks, and most of its wonderful tracks use the classic Interpol, meandering song structure- namely Pioneer to the Falls, The Scale, and Mind Over Time. It also has a wonderful track that hints towards a bright future with Interpol's newer, more conventional song structures- Pace is the Trick. But as I've asserted all throughout this post, it's just far too inconsistent for me to think anything more of it. Put quite simply, OLTA will never be an equal for the dizzying heights of TOTBL or Antics.
This is why I don't think my issue with the record lies in its aesthetic or its general "sound". Most of the people on this board have learned to absolutely adore at least a few tracks on OLTA, despite all the tracks lacking bombastic basslines and many of them lacking Sam's usually prominent drumming. It's more an issue of songwriting. Compared to yes, TOTBL and Antics, the songwriting is just not there all the time. Where are the triumphant peaks and crescendos of Interpol's earlier work? Where are this album's universally loved moments? There's no PDA outro or de-tuning of Dan's guitar on The New on this record. It's just a normal indie rock record. Interpol lost their flair for the meandering song structures that so many of their fans held dearly to their hearts. This was the beginning of a new, less consistent and less Interpol-esqe Interpol. (wow, that last sentence was clunky)
My breakdown of each song (just to show how a die-hard Interpol fan can have a completely different opinion from another die-hard Interpol fan about each song on this record):
Pioneer to the Falls: Absolutely stunning track. Enough said.
No I In Threesome: At first I viewed this track as a normal pop song, and I still view it that way. It's just so boring, so safe. Interpol has a tendency to place some of the poppier songs on their records in the second track slot, so naturally I end up comparing to this track to Obstacle 1 or Evil, and then it becomes so painfully obvious that this track is neither technical, complicated, or even catchy. It's just a normal, boring pop song that any band could have wrote. The only bit of spontaneity within this track is in the song title itself. Surely they can do better.
The Scale: This is one of my favorite songs on the record. It took me years to digest the sorta harsh main guitar riff, but now I love it. It almost makes me want to break into a slow, zombie-like dance. I also love how the ominous keyboards echo in the back of the mix and form the song's foundation. Couple these aspects with Paul's lovely declaration of "LET THE DAYS COLLIDE!!!!" and the song's dark and brutal ending, and this track is a winner.
Heinrich Maneuver: This is a frustrating track. It could have been remarkably good, but it seems like they ran out of ideas after Paul came up with the song's lovely and edgy hook. Seriously, there's nothing to this track after the hook except for repetitive chanting of "my heart swings" and a half-hearted attempt to bring the song together at the end.
Mammoth: I'll never understand why many Interpol fans seem to love this track. It's just so forced. I can picture the guys all in a room discussing ideas for OLTA and one of them saying "hey, let's just write a raw, pissed-off rock song". And while experimenting and stepping out of their comfort zone is of course a good thing (I love when bands try new things), there's something about this song that's just so insincere. I don't feel like Interpol are actually pissed-off when listening to Mammoth. I hear a bored band going threw the motions and throwing the word "fucking" in the chorus in a desperate attempt to show the listener that they were intending for this song to sound dangerous and angry, when in reality, it only sounds like another safe and sonically-bland song that any indie rock band could write.
Pace is the Trick: An all-around gorgeous ballad. The guitar riff at 2:00 and Sam's aggressive drumming towards the end are probably my favorite parts. I simply love how it slowly unravels, revealing each layer with a level of finesse that I find rare with later Interpol. I also love this track because it stands as a shining testament to Interpol's new songwriting style. It's the one track that I love on the album that doesn't rely on seismic shifts within the song. To echo what I wrote earlier in the thread, there's no PDA-style outro or Leif Erikson-esque sudden collage of guitars at any point in the song. Instead, it's consistent all the way through and it gradually builds. Pace gives me hope that Interpol can stick to this newer, more conventional song structure and still produce deeply-effecting and exciting music.
All Fired Up: From the horrific synthesized bass to its cringeworthy lyrics, All Fired Up is the worst song Interpol have ever recorded. Like Mammoth but to an even greater extent, this song just screams of a band running out of ideas and deciding to write a song in which they sound pissed-off, only to end up sounding like a band that doesn't even resemble our beloved Interpol and has simply lost its touch.
Rest My Chemistry: I want to like this track, but all I can think of while listening to it is the Pixies' song, "Where Is My Mind?". Now allow me to explain. I'm not one of the people who claims that Interpol intentionally stole the riff from Television's Marquee Moon, mostly because it seems like Carlos was the only person in the band who extensively listened to post-punk. But Pixies are another story. I'm confident that everyone within Interpol has listened to Pixies' absolute most famous song! Everyone who is a fan of indie rock knows "Where Is My Mind?". And because of that, I can't excuse Interpol's blatant plagiarism. Even if it was unintentional, I think a band artistically strong as Interpol should have scrapped the song or at least modified it so it wasn't such a similar riff.
Who Do You Think?: Aesthetically, this is probably the weakest track on the album. Interpol should never attempt to ape mainstream pop-rock as I honestly believe they are doing here. Fortunately the end result was actually a catchy song, but I still can't help but feel that this song never should never seen the light of day. A guilty pleasure, at best.
Wrecking Ball: Not the best track on the album, but certainly not the worst. There's a lot of interesting ideas running throughout this track and frankly, none of them particularly strike me as brilliant. There's certainly no moments of sonic bliss within Wrecking Ball, yet there is nothing too off-putting either. It's just a solid and mildly entertaining track.
The Lighthouse: I'm just going to say it. This song bores me up until the absolutely stunning final minute.
Mind Over Time: This track renders me speechless every time I listen to it. It's incredible. It might just be Interpol's greatest B-side. I find that it harkens back to early Interpol, back to those huge shifts that existed within nearly every song. Those cathartic, uplifting, and thrilling shifts are the reason I love Interpol. The tracks that contain those shifts, such as Mind Over Time, are the reason that Interpol will always be my favorite band of all-time.
So after many years of listening, OLTA is nothing more than a 7.5 out of 10 for me. It has some truly awful tracks, and most of its wonderful tracks use the classic Interpol, meandering song structure- namely Pioneer to the Falls, The Scale, and Mind Over Time. It also has a wonderful track that hints towards a bright future with Interpol's newer, more conventional song structures- Pace is the Trick. But as I've asserted all throughout this post, it's just far too inconsistent for me to think anything more of it. Put quite simply, OLTA will never be an equal for the dizzying heights of TOTBL or Antics.
#16
- Leif
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Posted 28 June 2012 - 09:46 AM
obstaclespecialist, on 27 June 2012 - 11:05 PM, said:
Mammoth is in my all time top five. I love the hard driving drums, the angry bassline, Paul's seethingly sexual vocals, Daniel's slashing guitar and that final line is just amazing (even if I don't know what it means)
I think OLTA gets bad rap because it's not an easy listen or emotionally simplistic. There's a lot going on.
I think OLTA gets bad rap because it's not an easy listen or emotionally simplistic. There's a lot going on.
I actually think it's not loved because it was too emotionally simplistic.
I hate it when people act like the first two albums we're much alike, because they are not. Interpol showed as a band that they we're incredible. The reason why I don't like OLTA as much as the others is because of the whole "orchestral" thing. Interpol showed with their first two albums that they could set a mood without using all too much brass any orchestral-feature. Take a song like Hands Away for example.
The reason why alot of fans didn't like it at the time?
I think there were alot of changes made with OLTA;
- The artwork. No more black/white/red.
- Carlos. Gone awesome basslines, enter composer Carlos including moustache
- Way more orchestral sounds + simple rock songs like Heinrich
Interpol used to have "simple rock sounds" (take Evil, C'Mere) but they pulled it off so well. The lyrics we're clever and the band just felt as a "whole" if that makes sense. I feel people perhaps felt so connected to a band that underwent so many changes. As a fan I definitely saw some chemistry on stage disappear.
I'm not saying this changes the album, or the music. But as a fan it was the first time hearing something completely different.
It's hard for alot of people to just "adjust" to this new sound, instead keep screaming "please sound more like TOTBL" while not realizing such things will never happen.
As far as people liking OLTA (or the s/t for that matter) its mostly because they are "new" and picked up these "new" sounds as part of the whole Interpol-experience.
#17
- Next Exit
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Posted 28 June 2012 - 03:30 PM
I still don't get the whole orchestral thing. OLTA is not any more so than TOTBL if you listen carefully. People here dislike Wrecking Ball because it's 'orchestral'. That's just head-scratching.
On another note, while I really love the 4th album I have to say that OLTA is better produced. 4 is a bit too one-dimensional and claustrophobic. They perhaps need a bit more flair there as self-producers. But the quality of the songs overcomes any shortcomings there.
On another note, while I really love the 4th album I have to say that OLTA is better produced. 4 is a bit too one-dimensional and claustrophobic. They perhaps need a bit more flair there as self-producers. But the quality of the songs overcomes any shortcomings there.
#18
- Next Exit
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Posted 28 June 2012 - 03:45 PM
TOTBL, on 28 June 2012 - 10:23 AM, said:
Mammoth: I'll never understand why many Interpol fans seem to love this track. It's just so forced. I can picture the guys all in a room discussing ideas for OLTA and one of them saying "hey, let's just write a raw, pissed-off rock song". And while experimenting and stepping out of their comfort zone is of course a good thing (I love when bands try new things), there's something about this song that's just so insincere. I don't feel like Interpol are actually pissed-off when listening to Mammoth. I hear a bored band going threw the motions and throwing the word "fucking" in the chorus in a desperate attempt to show the listener that they were intending for this song to sound dangerous and angry, when in reality, it only sounds like another safe and sonically-bland song that any indie rock band could write.
Oh please, you single out Mammoth as the pissed-off song?? That's just absurd. Have you even heard the lyrics to Pace Is The Trick?? It contains the lines 'You women, you have no self-control', and 'You don't hold a candle' - if I hated the song I'd call it pompous, self-important and stupidly arrogant, which is a lot worse than 'angry'. But then I really love both songs.
Also, your critique of Who Do You Think is ironically guilty of exactly what you accuse the song as being - simplistic. It's beat and arrangement is actually deceptively complex, and their recording sessions bears that out - it was one of the longest to record on the album. Plus I love the background which sounds like a choir as the song progresses. Lovely.
#19
- Next Exit
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Posted 28 June 2012 - 05:14 PM
manicm, on 28 June 2012 - 12:45 PM, said:
Oh please, you single out Mammoth as the pissed-off song?? That's just absurd. Have you even heard the lyrics to Pace Is The Trick?? It contains the lines 'You women, you have no self-control', and 'You don't hold a candle' - if I hated the song I'd call it pompous, self-important and stupidly arrogant, which is a lot worse than 'angry'. But then I really love both songs.
So you would call Pace is the Trick the pissed-off song rather than Mammoth? Because if that's the case, I just don't see it. Pace is the Trick is nowhere near as emotionally-one dimensional as Mammoth. Even by claiming that Paul's lyrics could be viewed as "pompous", "self-important", and "stupidly arrogant", you are showing that there is really much more to the song than simply being "pissed-off". Egotistical lyrics ≠ pissed-off songwriter.
Now to me, Mammoth is an unashamedly aggressive and testy song. Interpol wanted it to sound raw and borderline-hateful and that's a big reason why I don't like it very much. It's very much emotionally insincere and it sounds like they're trying too hard. I don't feel like any of them felt any type of rage or anger when they wrote the song, and as a result, they missed the mark and were forced to use the word "fucking" to get their point across. And yes I know, there are other Interpol songs that use cuss words. But never in a million years would I expect a band as mature and artistically developed as Interpol to use cuss words in the chorus of one their songs as a means of proving that a song is supposed to sound pissed-off. That's something Green Day does, not our beloved Interpol.
And as I alluded to in my other post, I still think Mammoth is one of the most sonically-boring songs on the record. It literally goes nowhere and instead drones aimlessly.
manicm, on 28 June 2012 - 12:45 PM, said:
Also, your critique of Who Do You Think is ironically guilty of exactly what you accuse the song as being - simplistic. It's beat and arrangement is actually deceptively complex, and their recording sessions bears that out - it was one of the longest to record on the album. Plus I love the background which sounds like a choir as the song progresses. Lovely.
Carlos once said in an interview that Who Do You Think was built off of one central guitar riff. Frankly, that sounds kinda simplistic to me when compared to all the complex arrangements and highly-compartmentalized songs that make up TOTBL, Antics, and most of my favorites off of OLTA. In addition, it suffers from the same problem that Mammoth does- nothing ever happens. It's just the same thing over and over again for 3+ minutes. That's why I think of it as a simple pop song that gives off a simple poppy vibe.
#21
- Leif
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Posted 29 June 2012 - 05:39 PM
Allright, another statement about what makes OLTA different from the other 2 albums that came before:
it's the first interpol album on which everyone seems to have his/her own favorites, instead of generally appreciative songs
Seems like everyone is pretty much on par with eachother about the "classics" on TOTBL or Antics (exceptions aside), OLTA always ends up in a debate which songs are good and which are sucky.
it's the first interpol album on which everyone seems to have his/her own favorites, instead of generally appreciative songs
Seems like everyone is pretty much on par with eachother about the "classics" on TOTBL or Antics (exceptions aside), OLTA always ends up in a debate which songs are good and which are sucky.
#22
- Black Orchid
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Posted 04 July 2012 - 10:22 PM
Meh. OLTA is my favorite album. It's what really got me into them and make them not just another band in my music rotation. I'm not a concert chick, I hate crowds and I don't stand in line for anyone. However, I broke all the rules to see them because of OLTA.
Although I understand how it's greatly different from the first 2 and can greatly dissapoint those that came in at the very beginning. But this is the band metamorphosing, evolving, growing. They are not the boys they were over 10 years ago. They are men, with the touring, the life that comes with the lime light, the excesses of that lifestyle. I guess I relate to it better as that chapter in their lives coincided with the phase in my life where I left an exciting business because I was done with the partying, the corruption, the antics of it all. (Not the music business - something entertainment related but not in that scope). So the album spoke to me as I was asking myself deep questions, wondering if I was missing the lights and glamour or if I was ready for the deafening silence.
Anyways, going off topic here. I like OLTA. I won't write an essay about it. I understand many are dissapointed but all good things come to an end, whether it's a chapter in life, a song, an album or a creative burst. Childhood ends.
Although I understand how it's greatly different from the first 2 and can greatly dissapoint those that came in at the very beginning. But this is the band metamorphosing, evolving, growing. They are not the boys they were over 10 years ago. They are men, with the touring, the life that comes with the lime light, the excesses of that lifestyle. I guess I relate to it better as that chapter in their lives coincided with the phase in my life where I left an exciting business because I was done with the partying, the corruption, the antics of it all. (Not the music business - something entertainment related but not in that scope). So the album spoke to me as I was asking myself deep questions, wondering if I was missing the lights and glamour or if I was ready for the deafening silence.
Anyways, going off topic here. I like OLTA. I won't write an essay about it. I understand many are dissapointed but all good things come to an end, whether it's a chapter in life, a song, an album or a creative burst. Childhood ends.
#23
- Slow Hands
-
- Group: Members
- Posts: 23
- Joined: 29-January 07
Posted 09 July 2012 - 07:52 AM
TOTBL, on 28 June 2012 - 09:23 AM, said:
OLTA is a frustratingly inconsistent record. There's a few songs that I love. There's a few songs that I loathe. The problem is that nobody ever agrees on these tracks. It seems like one person's favorite on the album is always another person's least favorite.
This is why I don't think my issue with the record lies in its aesthetic or its general "sound". Most of the people on this board have learned to absolutely adore at least a few tracks on OLTA, despite all the tracks lacking bombastic basslines and many of them lacking Sam's usually prominent drumming. It's more an issue of songwriting. Compared to yes, TOTBL and Antics, the songwriting is just not there all the time. Where are the triumphant peaks and crescendos of Interpol's earlier work? Where are this album's universally loved moments? There's no PDA outro or de-tuning of Dan's guitar on The New on this record. It's just a normal indie rock record. Interpol lost their flair for the meandering song structures that so many of their fans held dearly to their hearts. This was the beginning of a new, less consistent and less Interpol-esqe Interpol. (wow, that last sentence was clunky)
My breakdown of each song (just to show how a die-hard Interpol fan can have a completely different opinion from another die-hard Interpol fan about each song on this record):
Pioneer to the Falls: Absolutely stunning track. Enough said.
No I In Threesome: At first I viewed this track as a normal pop song, and I still view it that way. It's just so boring, so safe. Interpol has a tendency to place some of the poppier songs on their records in the second track slot, so naturally I end up comparing to this track to Obstacle 1 or Evil, and then it becomes so painfully obvious that this track is neither technical, complicated, or even catchy. It's just a normal, boring pop song that any band could have wrote. The only bit of spontaneity within this track is in the song title itself. Surely they can do better.
The Scale: This is one of my favorite songs on the record. It took me years to digest the sorta harsh main guitar riff, but now I love it. It almost makes me want to break into a slow, zombie-like dance. I also love how the ominous keyboards echo in the back of the mix and form the song's foundation. Couple these aspects with Paul's lovely declaration of "LET THE DAYS COLLIDE!!!!" and the song's dark and brutal ending, and this track is a winner.
Heinrich Maneuver: This is a frustrating track. It could have been remarkably good, but it seems like they ran out of ideas after Paul came up with the song's lovely and edgy hook. Seriously, there's nothing to this track after the hook except for repetitive chanting of "my heart swings" and a half-hearted attempt to bring the song together at the end.
Mammoth: I'll never understand why many Interpol fans seem to love this track. It's just so forced. I can picture the guys all in a room discussing ideas for OLTA and one of them saying "hey, let's just write a raw, pissed-off rock song". And while experimenting and stepping out of their comfort zone is of course a good thing (I love when bands try new things), there's something about this song that's just so insincere. I don't feel like Interpol are actually pissed-off when listening to Mammoth. I hear a bored band going threw the motions and throwing the word "fucking" in the chorus in a desperate attempt to show the listener that they were intending for this song to sound dangerous and angry, when in reality, it only sounds like another safe and sonically-bland song that any indie rock band could write.
Pace is the Trick: An all-around gorgeous ballad. The guitar riff at 2:00 and Sam's aggressive drumming towards the end are probably my favorite parts. I simply love how it slowly unravels, revealing each layer with a level of finesse that I find rare with later Interpol. I also love this track because it stands as a shining testament to Interpol's new songwriting style. It's the one track that I love on the album that doesn't rely on seismic shifts within the song. To echo what I wrote earlier in the thread, there's no PDA-style outro or Leif Erikson-esque sudden collage of guitars at any point in the song. Instead, it's consistent all the way through and it gradually builds. Pace gives me hope that Interpol can stick to this newer, more conventional song structure and still produce deeply-effecting and exciting music.
All Fired Up: From the horrific synthesized bass to its cringeworthy lyrics, All Fired Up is the worst song Interpol have ever recorded. Like Mammoth but to an even greater extent, this song just screams of a band running out of ideas and deciding to write a song in which they sound pissed-off, only to end up sounding like a band that doesn't even resemble our beloved Interpol and has simply lost its touch.
Rest My Chemistry: I want to like this track, but all I can think of while listening to it is the Pixies' song, "Where Is My Mind?". Now allow me to explain. I'm not one of the people who claims that Interpol intentionally stole the riff from Television's Marquee Moon, mostly because it seems like Carlos was the only person in the band who extensively listened to post-punk. But Pixies are another story. I'm confident that everyone within Interpol has listened to Pixies' absolute most famous song! Everyone who is a fan of indie rock knows "Where Is My Mind?". And because of that, I can't excuse Interpol's blatant plagiarism. Even if it was unintentional, I think a band artistically strong as Interpol should have scrapped the song or at least modified it so it wasn't such a similar riff.
Who Do You Think?: Aesthetically, this is probably the weakest track on the album. Interpol should never attempt to ape mainstream pop-rock as I honestly believe they are doing here. Fortunately the end result was actually a catchy song, but I still can't help but feel that this song never should never seen the light of day. A guilty pleasure, at best.
Wrecking Ball: Not the best track on the album, but certainly not the worst. There's a lot of interesting ideas running throughout this track and frankly, none of them particularly strike me as brilliant. There's certainly no moments of sonic bliss within Wrecking Ball, yet there is nothing too off-putting either. It's just a solid and mildly entertaining track.
The Lighthouse: I'm just going to say it. This song bores me up until the absolutely stunning final minute.
Mind Over Time: This track renders me speechless every time I listen to it. It's incredible. It might just be Interpol's greatest B-side. I find that it harkens back to early Interpol, back to those huge shifts that existed within nearly every song. Those cathartic, uplifting, and thrilling shifts are the reason I love Interpol. The tracks that contain those shifts, such as Mind Over Time, are the reason that Interpol will always be my favorite band of all-time.
So after many years of listening, OLTA is nothing more than a 7.5 out of 10 for me. It has some truly awful tracks, and most of its wonderful tracks use the classic Interpol, meandering song structure- namely Pioneer to the Falls, The Scale, and Mind Over Time. It also has a wonderful track that hints towards a bright future with Interpol's newer, more conventional song structures- Pace is the Trick. But as I've asserted all throughout this post, it's just far too inconsistent for me to think anything more of it. Put quite simply, OLTA will never be an equal for the dizzying heights of TOTBL or Antics.
This is why I don't think my issue with the record lies in its aesthetic or its general "sound". Most of the people on this board have learned to absolutely adore at least a few tracks on OLTA, despite all the tracks lacking bombastic basslines and many of them lacking Sam's usually prominent drumming. It's more an issue of songwriting. Compared to yes, TOTBL and Antics, the songwriting is just not there all the time. Where are the triumphant peaks and crescendos of Interpol's earlier work? Where are this album's universally loved moments? There's no PDA outro or de-tuning of Dan's guitar on The New on this record. It's just a normal indie rock record. Interpol lost their flair for the meandering song structures that so many of their fans held dearly to their hearts. This was the beginning of a new, less consistent and less Interpol-esqe Interpol. (wow, that last sentence was clunky)
My breakdown of each song (just to show how a die-hard Interpol fan can have a completely different opinion from another die-hard Interpol fan about each song on this record):
Pioneer to the Falls: Absolutely stunning track. Enough said.
No I In Threesome: At first I viewed this track as a normal pop song, and I still view it that way. It's just so boring, so safe. Interpol has a tendency to place some of the poppier songs on their records in the second track slot, so naturally I end up comparing to this track to Obstacle 1 or Evil, and then it becomes so painfully obvious that this track is neither technical, complicated, or even catchy. It's just a normal, boring pop song that any band could have wrote. The only bit of spontaneity within this track is in the song title itself. Surely they can do better.
The Scale: This is one of my favorite songs on the record. It took me years to digest the sorta harsh main guitar riff, but now I love it. It almost makes me want to break into a slow, zombie-like dance. I also love how the ominous keyboards echo in the back of the mix and form the song's foundation. Couple these aspects with Paul's lovely declaration of "LET THE DAYS COLLIDE!!!!" and the song's dark and brutal ending, and this track is a winner.
Heinrich Maneuver: This is a frustrating track. It could have been remarkably good, but it seems like they ran out of ideas after Paul came up with the song's lovely and edgy hook. Seriously, there's nothing to this track after the hook except for repetitive chanting of "my heart swings" and a half-hearted attempt to bring the song together at the end.
Mammoth: I'll never understand why many Interpol fans seem to love this track. It's just so forced. I can picture the guys all in a room discussing ideas for OLTA and one of them saying "hey, let's just write a raw, pissed-off rock song". And while experimenting and stepping out of their comfort zone is of course a good thing (I love when bands try new things), there's something about this song that's just so insincere. I don't feel like Interpol are actually pissed-off when listening to Mammoth. I hear a bored band going threw the motions and throwing the word "fucking" in the chorus in a desperate attempt to show the listener that they were intending for this song to sound dangerous and angry, when in reality, it only sounds like another safe and sonically-bland song that any indie rock band could write.
Pace is the Trick: An all-around gorgeous ballad. The guitar riff at 2:00 and Sam's aggressive drumming towards the end are probably my favorite parts. I simply love how it slowly unravels, revealing each layer with a level of finesse that I find rare with later Interpol. I also love this track because it stands as a shining testament to Interpol's new songwriting style. It's the one track that I love on the album that doesn't rely on seismic shifts within the song. To echo what I wrote earlier in the thread, there's no PDA-style outro or Leif Erikson-esque sudden collage of guitars at any point in the song. Instead, it's consistent all the way through and it gradually builds. Pace gives me hope that Interpol can stick to this newer, more conventional song structure and still produce deeply-effecting and exciting music.
All Fired Up: From the horrific synthesized bass to its cringeworthy lyrics, All Fired Up is the worst song Interpol have ever recorded. Like Mammoth but to an even greater extent, this song just screams of a band running out of ideas and deciding to write a song in which they sound pissed-off, only to end up sounding like a band that doesn't even resemble our beloved Interpol and has simply lost its touch.
Rest My Chemistry: I want to like this track, but all I can think of while listening to it is the Pixies' song, "Where Is My Mind?". Now allow me to explain. I'm not one of the people who claims that Interpol intentionally stole the riff from Television's Marquee Moon, mostly because it seems like Carlos was the only person in the band who extensively listened to post-punk. But Pixies are another story. I'm confident that everyone within Interpol has listened to Pixies' absolute most famous song! Everyone who is a fan of indie rock knows "Where Is My Mind?". And because of that, I can't excuse Interpol's blatant plagiarism. Even if it was unintentional, I think a band artistically strong as Interpol should have scrapped the song or at least modified it so it wasn't such a similar riff.
Who Do You Think?: Aesthetically, this is probably the weakest track on the album. Interpol should never attempt to ape mainstream pop-rock as I honestly believe they are doing here. Fortunately the end result was actually a catchy song, but I still can't help but feel that this song never should never seen the light of day. A guilty pleasure, at best.
Wrecking Ball: Not the best track on the album, but certainly not the worst. There's a lot of interesting ideas running throughout this track and frankly, none of them particularly strike me as brilliant. There's certainly no moments of sonic bliss within Wrecking Ball, yet there is nothing too off-putting either. It's just a solid and mildly entertaining track.
The Lighthouse: I'm just going to say it. This song bores me up until the absolutely stunning final minute.
Mind Over Time: This track renders me speechless every time I listen to it. It's incredible. It might just be Interpol's greatest B-side. I find that it harkens back to early Interpol, back to those huge shifts that existed within nearly every song. Those cathartic, uplifting, and thrilling shifts are the reason I love Interpol. The tracks that contain those shifts, such as Mind Over Time, are the reason that Interpol will always be my favorite band of all-time.
So after many years of listening, OLTA is nothing more than a 7.5 out of 10 for me. It has some truly awful tracks, and most of its wonderful tracks use the classic Interpol, meandering song structure- namely Pioneer to the Falls, The Scale, and Mind Over Time. It also has a wonderful track that hints towards a bright future with Interpol's newer, more conventional song structures- Pace is the Trick. But as I've asserted all throughout this post, it's just far too inconsistent for me to think anything more of it. Put quite simply, OLTA will never be an equal for the dizzying heights of TOTBL or Antics.
Agree with almost all of that, especially Mammoth. One of the DULLEST songs Interpol have ever made. NO dynamics whatsoever.
#24
- Slow Hands
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- Group: Members
- Posts: 2
- Joined: 04-November 12
Posted 04 November 2012 - 11:52 AM
OLTA is actually my favorite Interpol album! I love the "orchestral thing" mentioned in this thread and I completely disagree with those who say this album lacks consistency.
I think all songs have a very recognizable sound specific to this album and the song order really makes sense. By the way, Mind over Time is really a worthy addition to the track list!
I'd like to add that I love all of the studio albums to date. I listen to all of them regularly.
I think all songs have a very recognizable sound specific to this album and the song order really makes sense. By the way, Mind over Time is really a worthy addition to the track list!
I'd like to add that I love all of the studio albums to date. I listen to all of them regularly.
#25
- Slow Hands
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- Group: Members
- Posts: 69
- Joined: 01-October 12
Posted 04 November 2012 - 01:48 PM
I like OLTA quite a bit, actually. To me, it's kind of like the most literary of the interpol albums, in like a Hemingway way. Plus, the art is really striking.
It seems though that the guys were a bit taken aback by the backlash, since tons of music scenesters had been begging for a reason to neg on them since the early days of TOTBL.
I like them more than Radiohead. Radiohead always seemed to be one of those bands that you should like if you were a certain type of person, but that no one really enjoyed.
It seems though that the guys were a bit taken aback by the backlash, since tons of music scenesters had been begging for a reason to neg on them since the early days of TOTBL.
I like them more than Radiohead. Radiohead always seemed to be one of those bands that you should like if you were a certain type of person, but that no one really enjoyed.