Bloc Party's Not Done Yet
by Nick Williams
Bloc Party
Four
(Frenchkiss)
It took indie-alt quartet Bloc Party four years to produce the aptly titled Four, the long-awaited follow-up to 2008’s Intimacy, and what may or may not be their final album ever. And still, four albums deep into their career, they’ll only able to muster the creativity to cop an album title from Beyoncé…
Regardless, divo frontman Kele Okereke has thankfully tucked his tail between his legs following comments on his blog that, “There was a big question mark over whether Bloc Party were ever going to make another record again.” The result mimics the heyday of their success—band mates Gordon Moakes, Matt Tong and Russell Lissack sound absolutely giddy on their respective instruments in shredding out rock-centric openers “So He Begins to Lie” and “3 x 3” in the vein of 2005’s breakthrough album Silent Alarm. On standout track “Real Talk,” Kele’s signature vocal swims amid the meditative guitar riff, much more a part of the arrangement than anything you’d hear on Intimacy, when it kind of became “Kele & the Bloc Party.”
You know when one of your old friends becomes kind of a pretentious asshole and they start not having time for you? Kele is that obnoxious friend, and Bloc Party has kindly taken him back for one last hurrah. Four is the band’s drunken college reunion weekend, their honest rehashing, a return to their roots. Who knows where Bloc Party will go from here, but at least they got one more shot at lasting resonance.
Comments (1)
Showing 1-1 of 1
