Marauder (Interpol album)


Marauder is the sixth studio album by American rock band Interpol. It was released on August 24, 2018, by Matador Records. The album was produced by Dave Fridmann and recorded at his studio, Tarbox Road, in Cassadaga, New York from December 6, 2017 through April 18, 2018.
Three singles were released from the album: "The Rover" on June 7, "Number 10" on July 30, and "If You Really Love Nothing" on August 23.

Background

Interpol singer and guitarist Paul Banks revealed in a September 2016 Beats 1 interview that the band would resume writing music in the fall of 2016. They later began holding rehearsal sessions in October. In January 2017, they officially announced that their sixth studio album would be released in 2018 on Matador Records. They took a break from recording the album later in the year so they could commence the anniversary tour for their 2002 debut album, Turn on the Bright Lights. The tour lasted from August to October 2017. They resumed work on the album afterward. In May 2018, it was revealed by the band that the album was in its mastering stage.
A preview article in Q said that the album was "a continuation of the trio's ever-so-subtle shape-shifting, each new LP adding a fresh dynamic coat to their atmospheric indie-rock".

Cover art

The album's cover art features a photo of the former U.S. attorney general Elliot Richardson taken by photographer Garry Winogrand. Banks explained the choice of image in an interview, referring to Richardson as a heroic figure, with the photo reflecting both the strength and isolation of the protagonist.

Promotion

During the anniversary tour for Turn on the Bright Lights in late 2017, the band included a song titled "Real Life", in the encore part of their setlist. Although it was the first song written for the album, the song wasn't included in the final cut. On May 24, 2018, the name of the album was leaked by Pitchfork when it was accidentally included in their list "The Pitchfork Guide to New Albums: Summer 2018". The album's listing was subsequently removed. In June, the band began posting a set of cryptic images on social media. One of the images featured a mural with coordinates printed on it, with the image being captioned "maybe it's time"; these coordinates would lead to Mexico City. They also posted a link to an RSVP page for an event in Mexico City taking place on June 7 at 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. CDT.

Critical reception

Marauder received positive reviews from critics. On review aggregator site Metacritic, the album holds an average critic score of 73 out of 100, based on 25 reviews.

Track listing

Personnel

Personnel adapted from album credits.
Interpol
Additional musicians
Technical personnel
Other personnel

Release history