Bloc Party & Interpol

Both bands were formed in cosmopolitan cities in the late 1990s: Interpol in 1997 in New York, and Bloc Party in 1998 in London.

Interpol enriched their sound with post-punk and new wave elements and released their first EP in 2000, which brought them recognition—particularly in the UK—through London’s Radio XFM.

With their debut album—voted the best album of the year by Pitchfork—and their hit “Obstacle 1,” the band finally achieved an international breakthrough in 2002.

Their second album, “Antics,” and songs like “Evil,” “C’mere,” and “Slow Hands” established Interpol as one of the world’s leading indie bands in 2004, after which they went on tour with Bloc Party for the first time.

In addition, Interpol frontman Paul Banks established himself as a successful solo artist and, starting in 2011, collaborated with Wu-Tang Clan member RZA on the project Banks & Steelz, which released the album “Anything But Words” in 2016.

The British band Bloc Party, in turn, followed up their successful debut album with “A Weekend in the City” in 2007, which also marked the highest debut in the band’s history, reaching No. 2 on the UK album charts and No. 5 in Germany.

With “Intimacy” (2008), “Four” (2012), “Hymns” (2016), and “Alpha Games” (2022), the band led by frontman Kele Okereke built a similarly extensive body of work and, with their uniquely laid-back indie rock, also established themselves as one of the most successful indie bands of their time.