Four

Ever since the release of their critically acclaimed debut Silent Alarm, Bloc Party had, at least in my humble opinion, reached a low plateau, creatively.

Weekend in the City and the atrocity that was Intimacy had brought the band into question as the electronics and repetitive guitars wondered off into a dark pit; it got everyone asking if they had lost the spark that Silent Alarm set off.

This, their fourth album, fittingly named Four, is a return to an older form. The album holds the sense of urgency found on their debut. The jangled guitar riffs, which hold a Smiths-esqe tone, and driving drumming give the album great energy. Lead singer Kele Okereke holds that same ethereal wail which translates through dredging lyrics.

From song to song their creativity shines through. From the opener “So He Begins to Lie” which pummels through with heavy staccato riffs to “Octopus”, which travels on a pouncing wave of eccentricity. The highlights are definitely the hard epic “Kettling” and slow echoing “Day Four”. Four is an album of great diversity that the band has been missing. They have hung up the need for intricacy and replaced it with the urge for sincere songs. (AVW)