We love Bloc Party. Like properly love them. Every year there's some indie bands that make it and some that don't. 2005 was the year of Kaiser chiefs, Bloc Party and Maximo Park while 2006 has been The Automatic, The Fratellis and Boy Kill Boy.
When they first arrived on the scene, they were lauded by all and sundry including the BBC who declared them second in the sound of 2005 poll (behind The Bravery (snork!)). And while Silent Alarm might not have sounded as amazing as it was made out to be upon first listen, singles such as Banquet and Helicopter still totally hold their own today, and don't give you that 'oh god not this again' feeling (can DJs please STOP playing Mr Brightside) when shaking your ass down the indie disco. Plus from a DJs point of view Banquet has a amazing ending which makes someone sound like they can mix when they have absolutely no idea how.
In the middle of a US tour at the moment, today the band have announced their second album and UK tour plans. With a planned release date of February 5th, Weekend In The City is inspired by lead singer Kele Okereke’s interest in what he calls “the living noise of a metropolis.”
"On Weekend, the band captures every detail from ebullient to the mundane –of daily life in a modern city, and the quiet desolation that suffuses everything from commuting to casual sex, from going out on a Friday night to the long ride home in the early hours of the morning. These are songs desperate to understand the meaning that pulses under the moments of our everyday: there are bursting with tension, paranoia, sadness, love and an intense need for reason as to how city life has become so displacing."
The album will be proceeded by new single The Prayer on January 29th - the same week the band play in London. Tickets go on sale via their online fanclub Thursday at 9am and to the rest of us at 9am Friday for three consecutive shows at the Astoria starting on the 31st Jan priced £16.50.
Photo by Alex Christie
