Obstacle 1
by Interpol
- 120
- BPM
- F major
- Key
- 7B
- Camelot
- 38
- Danceability
- 1
- Acousticness
Floria Sigismondi directed the video for "Obstacle 1" and also played the woman who dances erratically against a wall in a small room. Interpol perform in an aisle surrounded by electrical wires. A glass of water falls and breaks. The water creeps toward the woman, who falls and is electrocuted.
The song was the second single from the band's debut album, Turn on the Bright Lights, released on November 11, 2002. Producer Arthur Baker remixed it for a reissue on September 15, 2003. It peaked at number 41 on the UK Singles Chart. It appeared on the 2003 EP The Black EP. Pitchfork named it the 64th best song of the 2000s in 2009.
Interpol formed in Manhattan in 1997 and first performed at Luna Lounge alongside peers such as the Strokes. The original lineup was Paul Banks, Daniel Kessler, Carlos Dengler and Greg Drudy, with Sam Fogarino replacing Drudy in 2000. The song became a playable track in Guitar Hero World Tour, and singer Charlotte Martin recorded a version on her album Reproductions. It was also used at the 2003 MTV Movie Awards to introduce Adam Sandler's nomination for Mr. Deeds.
Obstacle 1 runs at 120 BPM, the tempo of house, disco and most club dance music. In classical terms it sits in allegro territory. A bar of 4/4 lasts 2 seconds, and a quarter-note delay is 500 ms. It is in F major, Camelot 7B, which shares its notes with D minor and mixes cleanly with Bb major and C major.
We use multiple sources as part of our online research for the song story including Wikipedia.