The Dreamer Evasive

by Stewart MasonIf Interpol was (somewhat unfairly) pegged as a slavish imitation of Joy Division, it's perhaps inevitable and only slightly less unfair to mark new Brit indie rockers Apartment as a slavish imitation of Interpol. There are some absolutely undeniable points of comparison: the way that Interpol purified the post-punk throb of the Factory Records sound into a cleaner, more propulsive melding of urgent drumming and prominent basslines is all over The Dreamer Evasive. David Caggiari's got a similarly son of Ian Curtis vocal style as Interpol's Paul Banks, as well, and while David De Santis' guitar is more in the post-the Edge school of plane-crash drone (listen to his epic, unfurling buzz on the utterly glorious "10,000 Times," the album's clear high point), that familiar early-'80s sound keeps Apartment's obvious influences in the same approximate vintage. The main difference between Apartment and Interpol is that despite Caggiari's stentorian tones, he has little apparent interest in the sort of po-faced early-twenties angst that the other group tends to traffic in: the singles "My Brother Chris" and "Everyone Says I'm Paranoid" toss a little sly humor into the mix. Along with the rhythm section's tendency to keep things moving a little quicker and looser than most similar bands -- "Tokyo for Miko" is downright brisk -- these elements give Apartment just enough of a sense of self to keep from being lost in the flood of neo-post-punk acts.