Not often enough these days is music appreciated as a means to tell a story. In fact, all too often, its value as such a tool is carelessly ignored, which is why artists end up relying on an additional medium to better convey the message behind a song, most commonly with a music video. Yet, even then, the true meaning still tends to get lost in the shuffle.
For example, one of the biggest hits from American rock band Interpol, “Evil,” is accompanied by a short film that, despite earning a cult following over the years, could not prevent a bizarre, unsettling, and vastly incorrect interpretation of the track’s lyrics from making waves among fans for years. More than two decades later, the group has put those rumored theories to bed once and for all by reviving the story as a comic book.
NEW
Higher or Lower
Can You Price Real Comic Pulls?
4 graded comics, 6 seconds each. Faster answers score more.
Play
Play
Play
Play
Comic 1/4
Total: pts
Rick and Morty #1
Oni Press · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$290
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$604
Time’s upMiss
Comic 2/4
Total: pts
Amazing Spider-Man #129
Marvel · CGC 8.5
Worth more or less than
$6,500
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$2,998
Time’s upMiss
Comic 3/4
Total: pts
Star Wars #58
Marvel, 1977 series · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$60
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$116
Time’s upMiss
Comic 4/4
Total: pts
Spawn #174
Image · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$1,900
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$852
Time’s upMiss
Comic 1/4
Total: pts
Incredible Hulk #340
Marvel · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$3,900
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$1,760
Time’s upMiss
Comic 2/4
Total: pts
Star Wars: The Force Awakens #1
Marvel · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$45
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$100
Time’s upMiss
Comic 3/4
Total: pts
Punisher #1
Marvel, 1986 series · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$350
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$715
Time’s upMiss
Comic 4/4
Total: pts
Wolverine #8
Marvel, 1988 series · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$850
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$368
Time’s upMiss
Comic 1/4
Total: pts
Spawn #174
Image · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$410
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$852
Time’s upMiss
Comic 2/4
Total: pts
Detective Comics #378
DC · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$2,750
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$1,204
Time’s upMiss
Comic 3/4
Total: pts
Rick and Morty #1
Oni Press · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$1,350
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$604
Time’s upMiss
Comic 4/4
Total: pts
Star Wars #58
Marvel, 1977 series · CGC 9.8
Worth more or less than
$50
▲ Higher
▼ Lower
Real value
$116
Time’s upMiss
Card SharkSharp EyeNot BadRookie Collector
pts
of 4 right. Now rip a real pack.
Must be 18+/19+ to participate depending on jurisdiction.
Interpol: Antics Expands on The Band’s Acclaimed Album
Norman from Interpol’s “Evil” music videoImage via Matador Records
Music and comic books are connected in various ways, with some musicians moonlighting as writers and artists, many musicians appearing in comics as fictional versions of themselves, or some expanding on the lore of one of their most notable efforts with a contribution to the medium. Interpol has become one of the newest examples of that last scenario.
Interpol: Antics is inspired by the indie rock band’s 2004 sophomore album, more specifically focusing on its biggest hit, “Evil,” and its famous music video. The short, directed by Charlie White, involves an animatronic puppet, who has come to be known among fans as “Norman,” singing along to the lyrics from the site of a devastating car accident before being wheeled to an emergency room where he performs an unusual post-examination dance.
The graphic novel, now available from Sumerian Comics, offers a look at Norman’s life after the incident and the resulting grief he begins to experience. In an intriguing and surreal twist to the story, in the comic, the character’s appearance as an uncanny puppet is merely a product of his guilt-stricken imagination that stares back at him whenever he looks in the mirror.
Instead of the band making the transition from musical artists to comic book creators and handling the adaptation of their album themselves, Interpol: Antics is written by Nathan Yocum. The co-founder of Sumerian Comics is a specialist in graphic reinterpretations of music from popular rock bands, with the 2025 sci-fi comic Anberlin: Godspeed being a notable example. Argentine artist Santi Guillen, who is also known from Punch Publishing’s Pop Scars, serves as the illustrator.
In addition to its many collaborations with musicians, Sumerian is also known for releases such as its continuation of Basic Instinct, the 1992 erotic thriller starring Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone. The publisher also put out a graphic novel that serves as a sequel to John Carpenter’s 1980 horror favorite, The Fog.
Interpol Fan Theory Suggests “Evil” Has True Crime Inspirations
Norman in a hosptial bed in Interpol’s “Evil” Music Video
Image via Matador Records
In a 2024 interview with The Guardian, Paul Blanks, the lead vocalist and guitarist for Interpol, reflected on some of the theories fans have come up with to explain the meaning behind their lyrics. Most famously, many believe that “Evil” is about “serial killers.”
More specifically, the theory, which is explored almost line-for-line on Genius, posits that the song was inspired by the crimes of Fred and Rosemary West, who were convicted of committing several brutal murders together in the U.K. throughout the 1970s and 1980s. This belief is mostly rooted in the name “Rosemary” being sung twice in the song.
In another interview with the band on BBC Radio 6, Banks explained that the title was inspired by a book of poems by Charles Baudelaire called Les Fleurs du mal, translated to The Flowers of Evil. This gave him the idea to name the song “Le Beurre du mal,” translated to “The Butter of Evil,” because it rhymes, before it was decided to shorten it.
As for where the use of “Rosemary” comes from, Banks said that he merely found the name “angelic,” and in no way was intending to write the song from the perspective of Fred West. Hopefully, Interpol: Antics has helped steer fans in the right direction to better understand one of the group’s best-known tracks.
Interpol: Antics is now available to purchase from Sumerian Comics.