Daniel Kessler (guitarist)
Daniel Alexander Kessler (born 25 September 1974) is the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for the New York City-based band Interpol.
Daniel Kessler | |
|---|---|
 Kessler performing with Interpol in 2015 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Daniel Alexander Kessler |
| Born | 25 September 1974 London, England |
| Genres | |
| Instrument(s) | |
| Years active | 1997–present |
| Labels | |
Biography
Interpol
Kessler was born in London, England. It was his desire to play in a band which made him approach Carlos Dengler, with whom he attended a history class in New York University. Kessler knew lead singer Paul Banks from a summer program in Paris, France, and asked him to join the band when he ran into him in New York. Kessler's dormmate Greg Drudy was Interpol's first drummer. When Drudy left the band, Kessler asked his friend Sam Fogarino to replace him.[1]
Kessler had prior experience in the music industry while working for Domino Recording Company, and his knowledge of the business was very helpful to the band in their early years. He brought all the members together, and has said that he was looking mostly for specific personal qualities each member could bring to the group rather than just musical talent. He is a graduate of New York University's (NYU) Gallatin School of Individualized Study in French, film and literature.
Kessler has been known as the member of the band who has been the most active in the New York underground rock scene, which included his jobs at multiple record labels, such as Domino Records and trading their early demo tape around to various bands and labels.
Gear
In the band's early days, he was seen playing a red Rickenbacker and a sunburst Telecaster, but has since performed with a sunburst Epiphone Casino and a cherry Gibson ES-330 as his main onstage guitars. The red Rickenbacker apparently belonged to Interpol's first keyboardist. He also owned another Casino in a cherry red, that was stolen from their green room alongside one of Banks' guitars by a drug addict in Vancouver while the band was touring in support of Turn on the Bright Lights. Following Interpol's third album, Daniel has also been seen on stage playing a sunburst Gretsch 6117-TH Anniversary on the track 'The Lighthouse' and also on their self-titled album 'Interpol'.
He states in an interview around 2006, following the release of Antics, that he plays through an old Fender Twin amplifier combined with a Fender Pro Reverb.
His pedalboard includes:
- BOSS TU-2 Tuner
- BOSS TR-2 Tremolo
- BOSS DD-5 Delay (Only for Evil)
- MXR Carbon Copy
- Tech 21 Comptortion
- Vox V810
- Z.vex Super Duper 2-in-1
- Keeley Fuzz Head
- Z.vex Super Hard-On
- EHX Holy Grail
Personal life
Since 2006, he resides in a loft in the Lower East Side, and is the only band member who is a pescetarian (formerly having been a vegetarian) and does not smoke. He also is fluent in French, having lived in Europe - growing up in a village outside of Paris - until the age of 11. Kessler is co-owner of the Brooklyn restaurant Bergen Hill, and is an investor in numerous New York City area bars.[4] He is the younger brother of music journalist and former editor of Q magazine Ted Kessler.[5] As of 2022 Kessler was reported to be living mainly in Barcelona, Spain. [6]
References
- Archived 3 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- Gordon, Jeremy (2 October 2014). "Interpol's Daniel Kessler Launches Side Project Big Noble". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
- "First Light - Big Noble". iTunes. 2 February 2015. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
- "Food is the New Rock — Check out Food is the New Rock Episode #105 w/". Foodisthenewrock.com. 6 August 2014. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- Empire, Kitty (10 July 2022). "Paper Cuts by Ted Kessler review – ode to the glory days, and slow demise, of the music press". theguardian.com. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
- "Getting serious with Interpol". The New Yorker. 21 November 2022. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
