So Bloc Party have another single then? When I think Bloc Party I immediately remember an acquaintance back in the early 00’s tipping them off as ‘the definite next big thing’, I of course scoffed and turned back to my copy of the Guardian and sipped my filtered coffee.
Now I think innovation, experimental, a varied influence of techno rock that signifies them and their rise out of the student union touring primordial ooze to indie icons. To top that they released a second album that was at least on par with the ground breaking ‘Silent Alarm’.
So what’s the next step? Apparently this new single ‘Flux’ is. A stand-alone that can only be tagged onto previous album ‘A Weekend in the City’ (reeks of ’two more years’ does it not?) that came in at number 8 in the charts.
‘Flux’ is definitely something different.
The effects are there, all the usual Bloc Party digital brandishings and croonings, the aesthetics are nice and it doesn’t challenge you. The track is definitely lyrically lighter, they are probably facing label pressure to appeal to a wider audience. There are New Order overtones here too, which can be appreciated, but the hole thing is slightly too over-produced for my taste.
It has Bloc Party stamped all over it that’s for sure, its fast paced, modern in its production and it’ll have all the skinny-jean wearing kids on the dance floor at the local pop and crisp’s disco, but where is the meaning? The passion behind Kele’s voice is definitely missing, perhaps it longs for lyrics spattered with hidden undertones and reflections. It seems directionless and smacks of desperation, like they hurriedly put together a track to show that they can get in there with an audience that’s more familiar with the Klaxons.
But I miss the political undertones we got from the post-7/7 London bombings ‘A Weekend in the City’. This lighter track lacks the lyrical ‘in your face’ messages and hidden meanings we usually get from Bloc Party. Bloc party aren’t a young persons band, but it seems like at the expense of integrity they have released a ‘diet coke’ of a track, its made by them, its made up by most of the same stuff, but you just cant enjoy it as much as the real thing.
Matt Tong has said their new stuff is going to be a lot less textured than their second album and that their next album is going to be rawer like their earlier stuff, but if this track is anything to go by they are more layered and over produced now than ever.
Bloc Party proved they could provide an album that was a true experience, an album that was nostalgic and beautiful. Perhaps taking their political stance a bit too strongly, but the album still had a few cracking tunes. The exposure of modern music and subsequent label pressure is endangering bands like Bloc Party. To release a track like ‘Flux’ after an album like ’A Weekend in the City’ is saddening, and if this is what we have to look forward to in the future from BP, there’s a definite sense of disappointment.
Now I think innovation, experimental, a varied influence of techno rock that signifies them and their rise out of the student union touring primordial ooze to indie icons. To top that they released a second album that was at least on par with the ground breaking ‘Silent Alarm’.
So what’s the next step? Apparently this new single ‘Flux’ is. A stand-alone that can only be tagged onto previous album ‘A Weekend in the City’ (reeks of ’two more years’ does it not?) that came in at number 8 in the charts.
‘Flux’ is definitely something different.
The effects are there, all the usual Bloc Party digital brandishings and croonings, the aesthetics are nice and it doesn’t challenge you. The track is definitely lyrically lighter, they are probably facing label pressure to appeal to a wider audience. There are New Order overtones here too, which can be appreciated, but the hole thing is slightly too over-produced for my taste.
It has Bloc Party stamped all over it that’s for sure, its fast paced, modern in its production and it’ll have all the skinny-jean wearing kids on the dance floor at the local pop and crisp’s disco, but where is the meaning? The passion behind Kele’s voice is definitely missing, perhaps it longs for lyrics spattered with hidden undertones and reflections. It seems directionless and smacks of desperation, like they hurriedly put together a track to show that they can get in there with an audience that’s more familiar with the Klaxons.
Matt Tong has said their new stuff is going to be a lot less textured than their second album and that their next album is going to be rawer like their earlier stuff, but if this track is anything to go by they are more layered and over produced now than ever.
Bloc Party proved they could provide an album that was a true experience, an album that was nostalgic and beautiful. Perhaps taking their political stance a bit too strongly, but the album still had a few cracking tunes. The exposure of modern music and subsequent label pressure is endangering bands like Bloc Party. To release a track like ‘Flux’ after an album like ’A Weekend in the City’ is saddening, and if this is what we have to look forward to in the future from BP, there’s a definite sense of disappointment.
No comments:
Post a Comment