Wichita- 27th October (Physical release)

It’s easy to just see Bloc Party as another band in another scene.  Their music is horribly fashionable and a very close approximation of what one would call the Sound Of Now; as I listen to the wonderful ‘Talons’ this very second, its all too easy to see a lounge room full of checked shirts in Hackney; all bobbing heads, pointing fingers and dusty noses. And they are achingly fashionable, you can’t deny it.  Indie-electro-ish floods the airwaves at the moment, the much appreciated evolution of Nu-Rave.      

But, and here’s the beauty part, it doesn’t matter with Kele and his boys.  Not one little bit, and all because they are just a great fucking band.  Remove Radiohead from the equation; which English band of the last 4 years have made such emotive, catchy tunes, on such a consistent basis ? If you say Snow Patrol, you should turn that computer off now...

Since the release of the stunning Silent Alarm in 2005, they have furrowed a path between pop, punk, rock and dance with a confidence that belies their relative youth.   Yes they do have a tendency towards poncy song names  and are liable to dabble occasionally in deathly important sixth form poetry, especially on second album ‘A Weekend In The City’, with its mournful look at the ‘horrors’ of being famous, over-sexed and off your head. But, well, we forgave/forgive them because it still had tunes; bangin’, fuckin’, rootin’ tootin’ toons. ‘The Prayer’, ‘Hunting For Witches’,’ Song For Clay (Disappear Here)’,  ‘Uniform’ to name a few.  And it’s quieter moments- ‘Waiting For The 7:18’ and ‘SRXT’- still hit the spot, largely because Kele has an enviable talent of making you really believe that he believes what he’s singing about.  Belief in his belief! Or something.

But where do Bloc Party sit now, post ‘A Weekend...’ and standalone single ‘Flux’? Well, they’ve taken that sound and ran with it. Ran with it big time, bruv.  The jagged uncompromising guitar of love-it-or-hate-it lead single ‘Mercury’ is a good touchstone for the album as a whole, but it reflects the harsher end of the scale.  There are plenty of sensitive moments across the record, with special mention going to ‘Biko’ and ‘Zephyrus’ with it’s rather lovely  refrain of and all you said in your quietest voice/Was I needed you as much as they do. None of them quite rival ‘So Here We Are’, but then that is a mighty big ask.  

The majority of songs, though, are pushed by those familiar crashing guitars, quick beats and Kele’s voice, which is an instrument more than ever, his yelps and woahs (especially on opening track (‘Ares’ ) giving the songs an extra dimension that other bands cannot match.

Giving ‘Mercury’ a run for its money in uncompromising stakes is ‘Trojan Horse’ which sounds, oddly enough, a bit like a ‘Trojan Horse’ with its punishing guitar and pounding drums.  It’s excellent.  It strikes me as an evolution of songs like ‘Helicopter’ from Silent Alarm-it still has melody, its just that melody is surrounded by beats as well as guitars, and the combinations fits seamlessly.


And then we come to ‘Talons’ , a late shout for single of the year and a reflection of all that is good about music today. Starting with what sounds like helicopter blades, it morphs from being a dancefloor stomper to a full-on, balls-to-the-wall rock out, with its unforgettable chorus of and when it comes/ it will feel like a kiss.  This is Kele on prime form, and showcases the epic range of his voice.  It suffers from some over elaborate lyrics - Fate came a knocking when I was looking the other way/ A new disease came in the post for me today- but I don’t give a shit. It’s an awesome track.


So all round, Bloc Party have come up with another winner.  Hopefully they will continue in the vein they are, as they inhabit a hallowed place within the British musical lexicon at the moment, and we should treasure them.  For a band that aren’t afraid to evolve and change their sound, we can only assume the new album will be different but, for now, just enjoy this one.

Posted In Album Reviews, Nov 02 2008. Words - David