As many of you may know, I am a big fan of British indie outfit Bloc Party, who are, at the moment, on a hiatus. Both Russell and Kele, guitarist and lead vocalist respectively, are working on their own projects at the time, and while they are both interesting musicians, I am most interested in, what drummer Matt Tong ends up doing, as he is by far the most outstanding instrumentalist of the four.Anyway, I've decided to throw together sort of a beginners guide to Bloc Party. A collection of six tunes that will act as a proper introduction to, or summary of this band.
Start of full throttle on 'Helicopter', which is a perfect example of the frantic, riff-laden style of debut album Silent Alarm. Originally from the Little Thoughts EP, it eventually made it to Silent Alarm as second on the tracklist, and a perfect sequel to anthemic opener 'Like Eating Glass'.
Also from Silent Alarm, I've chosen 'This Modern Love', which is a really pretty little tune, that has really grown on me this past year or so. Revolving very much around its lyrical theme and universe, this song really brings forth Bloc Party's eminence in ballads, even though characterizing this track as a ballad would perhaps be a bit off. There are also some very fine acoustic versions of this one around.
Moving on, second full-lengther A Weekend In The City opens with Bloc Party's hands down strongest track, 'Song For Clay (Disappear Here)'. I've never grown tired of that riff, and the overall drive and vigor of this song really never dies. I think it's probably one of my favourite tunes all in all, although that's always a risky statement.
'Kreuzberg' is in the entirely other end of the spectrum, which serves to illustrate the many facets of A Weekend In The City, that makes it such a magnificent album. It is really a less-is-more kind of song, and its simplicity becomes its strength. I love to listen to this tune at night, when I'm walking somewhere, or on the train or something, or coming back home from a night out.
I was really in doubt about which track to add as the sixth, but I eventually settled on 'Sunday', also from A Weekend In The City, which might be a wee bit corny, but at the same time is just a wonderful piece of music. It carries very distinct traces of producer Jacknife Lee, but I just can't resist the lyrical theme in this one. It is such an honest expression of affection as it is perceived on those all too well known Sunday mornings.
Finally, it would be unfair to not include Bloc Party's third album, Intimacy, which, although to me definitely the weakest album of the three, does include some very good tracks, some of them very zippy. The eventual standout from this album however is epic closer 'Ion Square', which builds in a wonderful way, and expresses a certain longing sadness and feelings of love and ultimately resignation. Some might construe Kele Okereke's lyrics as being somewhat pocket poetic, but I think he really shines through as a lyricist and a vocalist on a song like Ion Square. An extraordinary tune.
