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Joy Division and Interpol ("Gasp, not again," you exclaim.)

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Kid Modernist:
I tried a search, but it's convoluted.

Basically:

You hear about Interpol ripping off Joy Division completely, and while I agree that it is definitely an influence (I find it hard to believe that Paul Banks had never heard about Joy Division before he was told about the comparison).

What parts of Interpol are directly ripped off from JD?

I would say they are less minimal and definitely more reliant on guitar riffs.

This is definitely not a shut and close case, and I'm not implying I'm a huge fan of Interpol and am like "THEY ARE ORIGINAL" just asking for clarification and to learn more about how influence translate into how someone would create music.

Johnny C:
Honestly a lot of the JD to Interpol bit comes from two things.

Firstly, Interpol relies heavily on a lot of Joy Division atmospherics and drama on TOTBL for sure and Antics too a bit. Moodiness is pretty big in both bands' style.

Second, Paul Banks' voice.

I don't really care enough about the whole thing to go into it further than that, and I don't think there is really much more to it anyhow. It would be fun to sit around and play "Name That Influence" with bands but it's sloppy reviewing and really not a great way to decide whether or not the music is good, or whether you like it.

jcknbl:
I second the vocal and aesthetic comparisons. Its possible that the "less minimal" descriptor (which I agree with) and the cleaned up, less punk sound, is mostly a result of different production techniques. I've never seen Interpol live but I can definitely imagine them sounding more like Joy Division outside the studio. Can someone confirm?

Also, I hear at least as much Echo and the Bunnymen as I do Joy Division. Especially in the guitar work.

Are people still listening to Interpol? I don't mean that as a "that band is totally last week" posture; I just realized that I never listen to either Interpol record and I'm wondering if they're actually holding up for other people.

pat101:
I RARELY listen to my Interpol records though when I do I usually enjoy it.

Praeserpium Machinarum:
I grew tired of this discussion a while ago. Yes, there are superficial similarities but to my ears Interpol is more melodic, warm and, as said, much less minimal. Also more often than not Banks' lyrics are more lovesick than actually desperate, much less heavy than Curtis' was by any rate.
Anyway Interpol has a certain charm and though I don't listen to Turn on the Bright Lights very often, I still hold it in a high regard.
A shame that Antics was so patchy...

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