If there's one thing that this review isn't, it's time effective. Once again, apologies, part 1 - because I didn't even get this album 'til a month or so ago, and part 2 - becuase after I started writing this review, I actually forgot that it was there...
The fourth album by London based quartet, Bloc Party, imaginatively entitled.. erm, Four, dropped in late August (almost 3 months late - sorry!) and in my opinion it is easily one of the best efforts from the band as of yet, and most surprisngly of all...
It's heavy.
Yup, who'd have guessed it?
Four is a tightly wound, if not ragged beast; a scruffy powerhouse collection of songs that you really wouldn't expect from an often soppy and sentimental band such as Bloc Party. That's not to say that they don't do soppy and sentimental well, and sure, they have the some amazing belters under their, er, belts (puns galore!), but for this quantity to be in a Bloc Party opus is unheard of.
The album itself is incredibly consistent in the quality of the songs, but unlike their previous albums, it feels like there is no real stand-out track. Silent Alarm had many - 'Banquet', 'Helicopter', 'So Here We Are', A Weekend In The City - 'The Prayer', Intimacy - 'Mercury', but with Four, a track doesn't leap to mind. At a push, I'd say 'Kettling', and at a further push, perhaps 'Octopus' (with it's Daft Punk guitar), whilst '3x3' surprisingly wouldn't sound out of place with Matt Bellamy on vocals - it really reminds me of something old Muse would have concocted.
Somehow, this review had turned out sounding negative - it's really not! If you've ever had reservations towards Bloc Party, end them by listening to this. They were never run of the mill, and always worth your attention, but with Four they grab you buy the collar and shake you and pull you until your reservations have been blown to smithereens.
Something which I don't think anyone, fans and fence riders alike, was expecting.
http://blocparty.com/
http://www.facebook.com/blocpartyofficial
https://twitter.com/BlocParty/
No comments:
Post a Comment