Rock Bloc 

Bloc Party tackle city life on their sophomore release

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September 20, 2007 Music » Features

by Merritt MartinFrom an album whose singles intro’d pretty much every MTV and VH1 show, Bloc Party have officially matured.
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From an album whose singles intro’d pretty much every MTV and VH1 show, Bloc Party have officially matured out of the vague-means-accessible indie-dance-punk of Silent Alarm and into a brilliant discussion of urban-kid confusion on A Weekend in the City. Kele Okereke bravely waves his schoolboy-crush flag in “I Still Remember,” tackles weekend drudgery with “On,” and addresses racially motivated violence in the heartbreaking “Where Is Home?” Dance beats still litter the album, but impassioned and searing rock-oriented guitar lines balance Okereke’s distinctive, plaintive vocals, while backing harmonies and chanting elements play up the occasional religious imagery (“Uniform”).

Weekend’s first single, “The Prayer,” is the most driving song on the album. It and “Song for Clay (Disappear Here)” still hold most of the Britpop pretension that was evident on Silent Alarm, but on the whole, Bloc Party seems to have parlayed some of their attitude into mindfulness, composure, and an album that—despite its seemingly depressive topics—holds within it an inkling of hope...provided listeners pay attention.

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