Interchange

"Selling out" isn't what it used to be. Only a few years ago, a beloved indie band would have been chastised for lending a song to a major corporation. These days, a cult favorite like Of Montreal sells a track for an Outback Steakhouse commercial, and the only reactions are raised eyebrows and blog chatter.

No wonder, then, that Interpol guitarist Daniel Kessler is tired of answering questions about his band's move from Matador to Capitol Records late last year.

"Our Love to Admire," the group's third album, marks both a change and a continuation of the band's sound, and reviews have been generally positive. Joy Division and the Chameleons are mentioned often in Interpol's press, and the comparisons remain as accurate as they are plentiful. What sets the band apart from mope-rock soundalikes, however, are the remarkable songs. When its second CD, "Antics," came out in 2004, old and new fans found the catchy rockers "Evil" and "Slow Hands" irresistible. The band soon heard its songs on "The O.C." and "Grey's Anatomy" and it became clear that its next record would be its major-label debut.

Kessler, reached on the phone during a day off between New Orleans and Houston tour dates, spoke candidly about media and fan response to the signing.

"I'm a little bit baffled," he said wearily. "For us, it was a personal decision. It had more to do with supporting what we already had. It was a nonpoint for us." Capitol, he explained, is simply better equipped to promote the band and distribute its record.

"I love Matador," he said. "They did an amazing job with us, and they did a great job of keeping up with what was going on, but we had grown quite a bit." Now, he said, "a global system is in place to support what we have."

He added that the arguments about "indie vs. major" have become something of a cliché.

"It's almost the indie-rock equivalent of gossip. I also think it's not very interesting," he said. "It's more of an '80s or '90s conversation."

If Kessler sounds defensive, it's hard to blame him. All Music Guide's review of "Our Love to Admire," for example, claimed that the previous disc, "Antics," felt "more like their big-time debut than this album does." Some detractors have attributed the new record's weaknesses to the new label or have wondered why a residency at Hollywood and Vine didn't guarantee a masterpiece.

"We wrote the songs before we got the [Capitol] deal," Kessler said, explaining that the key to the band's new direction was the addition of keyboards as a writing tool. While Kessler stressed that the sessions for "Admire" were all about "preserving what we do," the change is pretty dramatic.

There are quiet moments on "Our Love to Admire," but they are no match for restrained stunners such as Interpol's 2002 single "NYC," whose softly strummed chords build to a gorgeously melodic refrain. The song subtly worms its way into your subconscious. By contrast, the most ear-catching tracks on "Admire" -- the piano-driven "No I in Threesome" and the single "Heinrich Maneuver" -- survive on sheer propulsion.

Although the band's sound is different, Kessler said the writing and recording process has remained the same. Kessler starts the songs, bringing ideas to his colleagues -- lead singer/guitarist Paul Banks, bassist Carlos D and drummer Sam Fogarino -- who work together on arrangements.

"We don't enter the studio until those are all in place," said Kessler. "By the end of it, everyone has touched the song one way or another."

The band has played the songs on a tour that has led it across the country and will take it to Europe this fall. The venues have changed as Interpol has grown; clubs have given way to theaters. Kessler downplayed this change, too.

"We didn't have to shift anything. Obviously, having people stand up is preferable," he maintained with a nervous laugh, "but it's something we're kind of used to."

Despite Interpol's dirty New York City rock club upbringing, the new settings make sense: The band has always had a theatrical aesthetic, and there is a grandiosity in the contrast between Banks' deep baritone and Kessler's spare, elegant guitar parts.

Friday's audience at the State Theatre in Minneapolis will see a band trying to pull off the age-old indie balancing act of growing without outgrowing. Although Kessler tires of speculation about Interpol's success, he savors the situation's variables.

"We never really talk about what we're going to do" before working on songs, he said, adding that, despite all his talk about preserving his band's identity, not everything is about keeping things intact.

"I think it's more about the exhilaration of new sounds and new possibilities," he said, as his publicist interjected to let us know we were out of time. Kessler gave a gracious goodbye, likely off to give another interview about what it's like to be on a major label.

Interpol played Houston's Verizon Wireless Theater a night later, and local alt-weekly Houston Press called the show "better than sex." It was a not-so-subtle reminder that all the anxiety and hand-wringing boils down, as always, to rock music. And thank goodness for that.