This impressive three-song single is {$Interpol}'s first release for {@Matador}, following a self-released single and another for Scotland's {@Chemikal Underground}. At some point early on, someone decided to start comparing this New York trio to {$Joy Division}, which makes sense given the mannered, precise fashion in which the group builds tension and (sometimes) releases it, and for the fact that the vocals occasionally approach the depths of {$Ian Curtis}' thick baritone. These comparisons began snowballing and eventually turned to accusations of cloning. This is a horribly nearsighted way of viewing the band; a {$Joy Division} comparison is only one of many that can be drawn, and they are all tenuous at best. A couple examples: the tightly wound nervousness of the vocals truthfully has more in common with {$the Violent Femmes}' {$Gordon Gano} without sounding like a bratty, scrawny {$Patti Smith} fan; the solemn {&"NYC"} surprisingly resembles mid-'80s {$U2} to an extent, removing all the pomp and throwing itself into a thicket of reverb anchored by a dubwise bassline. To those looking beneath the surface, {$Interpol} becomes a band of its own. Each of the songs here emit various shades of gray, built on durable arrangements, a veteran band's sense of economy and dynamics, and a streak of gloom that never quite reaches overbearing doom. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide