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Oh dear. What…what happened to Bloc Party?
As if ‘A Weekend In The City’ wasn’t enough of a let down, Bloc Party have now ‘gone beyond’ and lost their guitar-based indie pop sound we all once knew and loved altogether. These are truly unhappy days.
It wouldn’t be so bad if Bloc Party decided to alter their sound and make it at least slightly bearable to human ears. Instead they have unleashed an up-tempo dance track with distinctive Bloc Party vocals called ‘Mercury’ - maybe that’s where it should be sent?
The track itself can only be described as a mediocre attempt at a guitar-free dance track that sounds like lead singer, Kele, stuttering every now and then over a stressed-out Mark Ronson track. The “tune” then evolves to add more bits and bobs of wind instruments that give the track a similar sound to that you might expect from a 10 year old who has just clicked random pre-made samples over his big brother’s grime beats.
Bloc Party may gain some new fans from this single, but will undoubtedly lose many more in the process. I have a lot of respect for bands who develop their sound, even to the point of sounding totally different and experimenting with completely opposite genres from which they are used to. But Bloc Party have crossed a line. I would have nothing but admiration for this experiment if the results had turned out positive, which they quite clearly haven’t.
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Haven’t listened to it, but they’ll never beat Silent Alarm so I may not bother.
I gave this opinion about the track to a friend who strongly disagreed and really liked it. what does everyone else think? here’s a link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UEaDaNMTgI
I couldn’t stand Silent Alarm. I thought it was utterly beige. It had a few moments where it woke me up slightly but for the most part I couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about. A Weekend In The City was an improvement but still a bit dull. Musically this is a big step forward for them as far as I am concerned. Much more going on, much more interesting if a bit irritating in the lyrics department. I liked Flux too so I’m looking forward to hearing what they do with their next album.
When they were simply being an ‘indie-pop’ band they were Very Good Indeed: the likes of Helicopter and Banquet were great.
When
I don’t mean to be rude, but, well, this is bollocks.
They’re doing something different and you’re criticising it? Utter lunacy. Silent Alarm was a great album, but it was very raw. The second one was a bit too polished, but a good follow-up. Flux was half an idea and Mercury is the realisation of it. Bloc Party are one of our brightest, most inventive bands and it’s just stupid slagging them off for trying something new.
And another point, with all the ear-bleeding electro like Crystal Castles around, this is a refreshing input into an already tired genre.
If you want to listen to bands that sound the same every album, I think you need to be shopping for Kooks, Kaisers, Kasabian and Killers records in the K section of HMV’s generic indie shite aisle.
Time out.
I had a listen to it and I think it’s balls as well - the song that is, not the comment.
FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!
lol.
I have nothing against people trying something new- I’m just as much into my electro/electro pop tunes as my indie pop/rock. But simple facts are, this track sounds wak, not cuz I prefer their old stuff, but because of it’s shitty beats, whiney and repititive vocals and general annoyance.
Time in.
I chose to wait for the new Bloc Party album before my mind was fully made up on this song and i’m so glad i did. It’s all about context. Like hearing Ideoteque without the rest of Kid A. i can understand this songs ditractions as a single but place it within Intimacy then it really comes to life as part of a cracking album.
I agree - I’ve grown to love the song now after listening to the album.
It’s a fickle world.
i think the record is good if not fantastic
silent alarm was good indie pop but pretty safe and standard
but of course they have alienated their fan base
which is why so many of you people are giving it bad reviews
guitars are not essential in order to make good music!
(trust me…im a guitarist)
stop ragging it
listen to it…
if you dont like dance music
listen to something more indie pop
dont try and make it something its not
“If you want to listen to bands that sound the same every album, I think you need to be shopping for Kooks, Kaisers, Kasabian and Killers records in the K section of HMV’s generic indie shite aisle.”
Thanks for the tip
Unfortunately there is an unhealthy appetite for more of the same in the music press, Radio and media.
‘Weekend in the City’ was a major move forward musically and technically from their first Album which was a more traditional Indie band sound.
However the Album needs more time to get into; like most good innovative music, some poeple just can’t be bothered listening.
Bloc Party’s latest tracks (including Mercury) are even more daring - I hope they keep this direction up to stop some of us getting completely bored with main-steam ‘PoP-Indie’ music scene.
I never liked Bloc Party - they seemed to me like an average indie guitar band - but they are now making more interesting music. I might check out this new ‘direction’ but I’m still firmly on the fence.
‘Talons’ is pretty good - new single premiered the other night on the radio and it isn’t on the album.
i love bloc party and i must say i loved both silent alarm and a weekend in the city. it’s a bit like looking at the band in different angles. i think they’re showing different aspects of themselves and their sounds. you can’t expect them to keep producing the same sounds, it’d be rather dull. but with that said, i must agree that mercury was wacked. it made me quite weary of intimacy. but i love most of the new album too now. it’s very different to what they’ve produced before, but it’s good in a different way.