2007’s Biggest Disappointment: Bloc Party
Not that Bloc Party’s 2005 debut Silent Alarm was anything to top end-of-year lists, but its quick-paced rhythms fronted by singer/guitarist Kele Okereke’s thick Brit-lad accent was somewhat refreshing when set against the perpetual rounds of U2 followers.
But after muddling through this year’s follow-up A Weekend In The City – despite a number of applauding reviews from respectable names – its formulaic chord progressions and misplaced energy simply prove that their sound simply could not survive another go-around. Having straddled the line rather successfully between the U.S. indie and MTV crowds, accompanied by an exhaustive international tour to milk every bit of their fame, Bloc Party seems to have now laundered their music with cliche cynicism and force-fed drum loops that masquerade as avant-garde.
Juvenile lyrics about being bitten by vampires while droning Gregorian chants fill the background set to dry melodies beefed up by artificial Pro Tools tweaks, these U.K. darlings have backslid into the company of the likes of Franz Ferdinand or The Noisettes.
Okereke bemoans mid-album that “no one can be trusted over the age of 14″ on “Uniform” – well, I guess the pre-adolescents were their target audience anyway.
Reference: AllMusic album overview
Reference: Pitchfork album review