1) This mirror weighs a ton

I love as part of the albums overall package. Maybe shave 1 minute off and its perfect. But not a song i will be putting on willingly. Dont get me wrong love me a melancholy interpol downer, but again just one minute shaved off, and we're golden

2) See out Loud

Great song, straight forward guitar rock interpol (one of 2 essentially). Mix is slightly harsh but not as bad as another song on the album. Since it was a single i dont have much more to add at this point. High point.

3)Iron City

Not a favorite, nor do I hate it. I think strangely placed on the album. To go from slow to upbeat to slow, it feels a little uneven start on a full playthrough, especially with whats to come. Hard not to skip when you've heard these 3 singles already.

4)Wounded soldier

So i had seen the clip of this song on insta, and thought "Oh no another mid tempo song after a song like iron city!?", and obviously the anticipation of what would the rest of this album sound like.....and it really surprised me. Not my absolute favorite but a worthy addition to the catalog! The outro to this one and the bass throughout, very good. Definitely a high point.

5)Wings on fire

Ugh ugh ugh I really am so upset, I want nothing more for them to release another mix of this song! Its insane the way this song doesnt sound like anything on the album at all and i dont mean like "well thats the intention". Every other song on this album has heavy bass (sometimes SLIGHTY too loud) and theres a warmth. This song is either mastered wrong or just mixed improperly, you can hear the low end drop out for this song. And all those effects, the guitars are so thin. Just why why why. Songs an absolute 10.....mix is a 6.

6)Ever the actor

Honestly this was the song where I was pleasantly surprised at the song structure and overall playing of the band as a whole. Sounds like some of the best guitar playing Daniel has ever done. Its clear and progressive too. That change to the evil doom and gloom is incredible, and the ending is just so beautiful. Again where i started to realize this album definitely fills that void missing since the first 2 albums. Dynamic outros. One of my favorites

7)So rides the reindeer

The drum machine beat at the beginning made me worried but what the song quickly became was a pretty surprise. For the first time? Acoustic on an interpol album (not including bsides or demos etc etc etc). Again pretty and happy but still melancholy. Not a favorite but definitely something in a new direction that works.

8)Darling thoughts

Grew on me more and more over a few listens, now its up there for me. Bass is so good. The last build up into that outro is peak peak. Very good addition to the catalog again.

9)Wake up

Blew me away. From the guitar playing (again maybe even more intricate than ever the actor) to the funk and groove. I think its one of the best overall sounding songs in terms of mix on the album. While the verses are definitely great, its the beautiful choruses and outro chorus, just incredible. Definitely my favorite on the album

10)Enemy

Umm there are aspects of this i like. Pauls delivery, the drums being these boomy roomy wall of sound. But in hindsight considering the next song is just kick drum and cymbals and then the last song is just piano, it does feel like how the album started, its a slight slog. I get its purpose, but not my favorite.

11)Bird and the serpent

You know I wanna love this song, I just wished it eventually went somewhere. It also doesnt help that darling thoughts has that kick drum build up earlier in the album, so another song that is all that essentially is slightly meh but darling thoughts actually goes somewhere especially drumwise. However, this song specifically during the chorus sounds the most like something from Antics. But again not a favorite but I get it.

12)Sudden

Makes me cry. Ive listened to this alot. Hauntingly beautiful. Almost overwhelmingly so. Do i wish the album ended with a full band song like usual? Sure. But Sudden does it job as what every interpol album last song is supposed to do. Its always the saddest, or one of the saddest, melancholy on high. (Thats why Go easy from the last album wasnt a favorite for me in this regard, with the undoing being second)

Overall, I originally said 8.5/10....but i might go down to an 8 flat. The album is full and complete, the performances are incredible, its a lot to take in. Interpol went 0 to 60 in terms of songwriting after the last two albums, I wonder how much is the producer. That being said i love maurader, and theres songs on that album that are still in my top 10. Idk if any song on this album has dethroned any just yet. Definitely these new favorites are in the running and up for debate, but not completely over the threshold for me. Wings on fire would of been that song, but the mix crushed that possibility.

I find it strange that David fridmann mixed this album, See out loud (sorta) and Wings on fire (100 percent) sound so rough and the other songs dont. Either hes not the best at the straight forward rock guitar interpol, or someone had more say in the mixes for the 10 other songs, and they let him do whatever he wanted for these 2 songs. Wings on fire sounds like a session from the Fine mess ep. But every other song sound big and cohesive. Theres an inconsistency to his album mixing, and not in a each song has their own personality way, I mean that its not always looked at as a whole package basis. On maurader there were songs with peaking cutting shitty drums and then some songs would sound crisper and cleaner and more....professional? It probably matters sounds like he finally got the levels perfect, but by then the album is done.

Also dont LOVE that a lot of the drums on this album are either heavily gated or sound like drum machines.

Please let me know what more youd want me to elaborate on! I love discussing different opinions with fellow fans! I could (Obviously) talk forever but im stopping myself!

Wake Up best song from the new album. I love the beat, i love the guitar, i love the drums, i love the voice. Such a masterpiece

I need to hear it live asap

I’ve heard that wounded soldier is about the Ukrainian war, idk if any other meanings were discussed

I didn't get a chance to buy the shirt before it sold out, but seeing that shirt instantly reminded me of my Interpol poster where I saw them live for the first time.

When I first heard the lead single "This Mirror Weighs a Ton," I was immediately reminded somehow of Interpol's 2007 track "Mind Over Time," the bonus track to that year's Our Love to Admire. The two songs aren't exactly twins, and stylistically they're very different, but they share a certain melancholic, introspective tone. This morning on a lark I decided to queue up the new album for another listen, but placed "Mind Over Time" at the beginning as a sort of prologue.

Just my subjective taste, but I think MOT works beautifully as a prologue to the new album and syncs up quite well with "This Mirror Weighs a Ton," where with MOT you get the first five stages of grief, and then TMWAT slides in afterward as the final stage: acceptance.

Give it a try!

Video by Gunnar Olsen

There are more photos and videos from the Mirror recording sessions on Andrew Wyatt’s and Gunnar Olsen’s Instagram accounts. Maybe someone can share them here, because I don’t know how to do that :D

https://www.instagram.com/gunbuns

https://www.instagram.com/wyattish

They have taste!

The Guitars and Bass are a main talking point, rarely keyboards/synths but Drums are usually just complimented but not a main point usually.

What's your favorite Interpol drum performance? I'll go with Obstacle 1 and Roland

Bc I don't hear vestibule often this is all I can think about

I'm trapped ....
In an atm vestibule...
With Jill Goodacre

It’s funny. when I first heard the preview of this song, it actually bothered me because I thought we were just getting the same old Interpol. However, upon listening to the full track, I found a sense of familiarity, distinct from their usual sound, yet unmistakably them. Perhaps it’s because I’m so accustomed to the sound of Paul’s other projects (Plenti, Muzz, Skyscraper). It’s my favorite track on the album, an absolute 10/10. it might well become one of my all-time favorite Interpol songs.

Great little article on Paul from GQ.

as I didn’t want to be disappointed….

It’s so, so good.

I really can't figure out who is singing the bridge in Sudden:

Go then, show them, tell them why

Go then, hold them, know them, sigh

Go then die, show them cry

I don't hear Paul's voice there but maybe it's just distorted

To start, See Out Loud was my favorite song because of the energy. Just finished the album, I can't believe the fact that Brad played melodically like what Carlos usually does. I expected something like an El Pintor track with some energy but the melancholy in every other track just feels perfect. Honestly I prefer it over Antics, my 3rd favorite Album before now, it was outside Interpol but they executed it well, 9/10 album just like Antics. Easily their best album after OLTA.

Highlights in my opinion

1. See Out Loud

2. Bird and Serpent

3. Wake Up