Lots of news and profiles and interviews for a weekend of #longreads.

Interpol announced that they will be releasing their new album entitled El Pintor this fall, on September 9.  If you’re wondering about the name, yes, it is Spanish (for “the painter”), but if you look closely, you should realize it’s an anagram of the band’s name (the stunning cover art helps a little bit in making the connection).  It appears they haven’t officially replaced departed bassist Carlos D, as Paul Banks assumed bass duties for the album in addition to his vocal and guitar work.

We finally got official word that the new Spoon album will be released on August 5, and it’s to be called They Want My Soul.  We’re still not exactly sure what the “R.I.P. June 10” business is quite yet, but it makes sense considering the album title.  Check out this great interview that the band did with NPR.

If you didn’t get your fill of Soundgarden from our Feats of Strength analysis this week, be sure to check out these interviews with the band.  At Ultimate Guitar the band answered questions from fans covering a lot of the technical details of their playing, and at Consequence of Sound there’s a retrospective about the production of Superunknown that’s fairly illuminating.  And if that’s not enough, SPIN has an extensive oral history that looks at the making of the landmark album.

AV Club takes a look at Travis’s The Man Who for their Permanent Records feature through the lens of their influence on Coldplay, while making a case for the album on its own merits.  I have long been a fan of that album, not just for their adolescence-ready lyrical themes (is there a more universal sentiment than wondering at some point “why does it always rain on me?”), but also for some gorgeous guitar work.  The solo in “As You Are” has to rank among the high points of music in 1999, not necessarily for its technical merits but for its ability to capture the emotional climax of the song.

This week saw some big new album releases for indie rock, and we’ll be working our way through reviews soon, but in the mean time you can look at multiple interviews with Parquet Courts, one with the New York Times and another with Stereogum, and if you’re looking to get into the post-hardcore sound of Fucked Up but are not quite sure you’re ready for it, Stereogum’s top ten should provide a useful guide.

As I’ve said before, 1994 was a huge year in music, so there’s going to be a ton of retrospectives this year.  This week, the eyes of nostalgia turn to Stone Temple Pilots, as Stereogum celebrates the release of Purple, probably their best album (though contrary to their claim, the band never was and never will be better than Pearl Jam; let’s just acknowledge STP was better than their detractors claim and move on).

And finally, since the weather seems to have officially changed into summer, now’s the perfect time to check out this look back at the beginning of Warren G’s career and his influence on the rise of G-Funk, courtesy of Pitchfork.