Bloc Party, Banquet & The Second Battle of Britpop | New British Canon
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- Опубликовано: 14 июн 2024
- If 2004 was the year of Franz Ferdinand for the NME crowd, then 2005 was all about Bloc Party. With razor sharp guitarwork, disco beats and Kele Okereke’s anguished yelp, they brought the indie set heartache you could dance to.
In spite of studio issues, Gang of Four comparisons and feuds with Britpop elderstatesmen, with Silent Alarm Bloc Party unleashed one of the most exciting British debuts of the decade. A reaction to the reductive boring rock’n’roll surrounding them, they added life, vitality and whatever they could find into their jagged yet sensitive post-punk. This is New British Canon and this is the story of “Banquet.”
#BlocParty #indie #musicdocumentary
Fact-checking by Serenity Autumn.
Soundtrack
Luar - Citrine ( / luarbeats )
Jesse Gallagher - The Golden Present
Luar - Anchor ( / luarbeats )
00:00 Introduction
00:42 Bloc Party: The Early Days
03:48 Banquet: "Turning Into Myself"
10:30 The Making of Silent Alarm: "...Hoping For a Miracle?"
18:46 The Aftermath of Silent Alarm
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Today, I met Gordon Moakes. He came into my house to collect a Peavey Bass Amp Combo I was selling through marketplace. He was so surprised that I recognized him. He even played Positive Tension when he was testing the amp. He also signed my bass and my Bloc Party Records ❤
Great story 🙌
As a poor, black skater kid leaving all my "city" friends for the suburbs... i NEEDED Bloc Party. For the first time in a long time, i felt cool just being myself after discovering them and Pharrell Williams
i love that. Black artists are massively unrepresented in indie/alternate/rock
This resonates in my soul - I’m from VA so Pharrell/NERD were hometown heroes. Their records and Silent Alarm ruled my life in early high school when SA came out
@@wilhatton2406 No one is stopping them. Just stfu.
you're awesome dude, stay rad!!!!
I am also black and can agree
I was in college when I discovered Silent Alarm, and Bloc Party were like a breath of fresh air. As a black girl who loved rock music and felt different for a variety of reasons, Kele's presence was such a big deal to me, and I think he underestimates his impact. Bloc Party deserves more recognition for their work.
I felt the same way. Still bump the Bloc
Much like the empowerment I'm sure people felt with Jimi, Phil Lynot and Miles Davis amongst thousands of others, those moments mean so much to so many
And their Drummer is Asian as well. Very nice to see
Same here, I was a sad black girl in high school and this was exactly what I needed haha :'D Still listen to them
Add to the fact that they are also brilliant helped me as well
Silent Alarm is a superb album that completely blew my mind at the time. The drummer must have octopus arms as the beats are often insanely quick. A classic album that was on a whole other level to anything else about at the time.
I've always thought this but never seen anyone else say it - he feels a supremely underrated drummer.
@@andrewjenkin that's why I wasn't so into the next album, it seemed to go the drum machine route (from what I remember) So I was nowhere near as into the newer sound, although I think it did well commercially.
A Weekend in the city is incredible, Silent Alarm is brilliant but AWITC is up there and the atmosphere on it reminds me of Burial.
@@MUFFINHEAD1985 - it isn't
It is such a good album! I still listen to it!
Meeting Kele was one of the coolest moments of my life. He was so polite and was genuinely shocked that I had their first EP on vinyl for him to sign. I saw them 3 times and they got better each time. I love the first two albums but Intimacy is one of my favorite albums for all time.
I am insanely jealous. Have been to a number of their gigs in Ireland and they remain one of my favourite bands. Would love to meet Kele (or any of the gang for that matter).
@@somalion298 I truly wish I could share that moment with you. I appreciate your enthusiasm about it. I’ll hope that some day you do meet him!
@@imdoneplus its always good to meet a fellow Intimacy fan! Cheers on meeting Kele!
@@francocavecchia8246 thanks mate, cheers!
23:51 What a legend you are for putting that clip when mentioning Alt-J.
I didn't catch that until I saw this comment, absolutely brilliant
LMAOOO
So iconic, i'll tell my kids those guys are alt-j
What's the significance?
Chants "Put it in my butt, butt..."
Bloc Party are just one of those bands in which the union of those 4 musicians at that particular time created something which every band strives for. Its electric and exciting and haunting and beautiful. Hearing Silent Alarm for the first time was so eye-opening. They were the first band that made me realise that music could be so much more than just people playing their instruments. No band since has ever so perfectly encapsulated the feeling of being a young adult and for that reason I think they’ll always be my favourite band.
This comment 🔥👌....
I was 16 when I discovered Bloc party nearly 19 years later I don't think a day goes by when I don't listen to them but school / college life as a person starting to see the world more and more this band captured so much and I lived so much through them. Since my children have seen them live and we danced our 1st dance at our wedding to them (Tulips peel session) as my wife is a huge fan too. I owe a lot to Bloc Party.
While SA is incredible I think every album has its merits and Alpha Games is a triumphant return to form too ! God Bless Bloc Party
silent alarm is one of the few albums i truly believe is a 10/10. EVERY. FUCKING. SONG. BANGS. So glad i caught their 2019 silent alarm tour.
A rare accolade I'd also afford it. It's not only that every song bangs, it's not only that it plays through from top to bottom like a symphony but there's so much fucking variety within the album as well, it's actually obscene. Still holds up to this day, still listen to it through at least once a week, still beam from ear to ear whenever a Silent Alarm song comes on the shuffle.
I would love to see an episode of how we used to find music back in the 00s, when everyone kept flexing their knowledge on who knows the best new song and who found it first, along with the "hidden" tracks that were only shared to be listened without sharing the artist or the name of the song.... The time of pirate blogspots and rapidshare. When people were listening tracks months before even NME recommended (because it was fixated with libertines covers allllll of the time). The times before shazam and spotify, where every night at the club was a real bloodshed of who's the best music enthusiast and who wore the best outfit... When you knew the background of each track, song, band, and flexing your knowledge to other people...
Living outside the US/UK getting to know new indie music was a hassle. Allmusic, blogs and magazines were what I had for finding new exciting stuff.
At my school it was just "know some Brits on MSN and ask them what would be cool in the Netherlands in five months"
MySpace
I remember discovering Crystal Castles because some band I liked had them on their music player
As someone who ran a somewhat popular blog back in the early/mid 00's it was and exciting time to be discovering new music. This was before anything/everything was available and the dawn of social media. I miss the forum scene... 😂
Any Americans listen to Yahoo Launch Player? That was my JAM when I was a teen! I’m Ghanaian-American with a lot of family in the UK. I remember my sister went there for her graduation gift and came back with so much music, Bloc Party being one of her favorites. From there, I searched for more on Yahoo Launch - Razorlight, The Zutons, Klaxons, Phoenix, Franz, Bloc Party of course and others from that janky little internet radio. It was wonderful time hearing all of this music coming out of the Europe.
A weekend in the city is one of the most underrated albums from that era, it’s not as fun or punchy as Silent Alarm, but it’s a well crafted moody album whose main sim was to not be Silent Alarm 2
Agreed!
Maybe I’m weird because I always preferred A weekend in the city more than Silent alarm. There’s much more happening in there for me.
Agreed
If you follow the story of AWITC it makes it so much better.
@ghost mall Agreed. See also: close contemporaries, Franz Ferdinand.
What's really cool about this band is that they're clearly heavily influenced by many other musical acts, yet they bring their own unique flavor to it with passion and sincerity. This is exactly how you develop a sound based on your idols without becoming a copycat.
Bloc Party deserves way more respect and appreciation than they're given. They're a genuinely great band.
Electroclash, Dance-punk, Bloghouse remixes/mashups, and Afrobeat. The early 00’s were a good time.
Extra kudos to Matt Tong, the best drummer of his generation for sure, I always liked that he sounded like a drum machine on purpose, so precise and complex at the same time, unique underrated drummer
This 👏🏽
Huge influence on me as well to start playing drums
@@philipvasquez8581 huge influence on me making beats, I believed for years their drums were programmed until I saw the video of Banquet
Incredible skill, they were never the same once he left unfortunately
@@Moveplaylift yeah the girl that drums for them is good but she will never be Matt, plus the new songs are plain awful
this album changed my life a a 15 year old in the middle of nowhere midwest America. this was a delightful and informative watch. also the Alt-J clip murdered me
So cool to see Adam and the Ants still being an influence on younger generations. It was the first band I was ever a fan of back in 1980 :)
I got given Kings of the wild frontier by someone who worked with my nan when I was 4 years old in 1982, my parents reckon I used to ask for it to be put on all the time. Definitely shaped my musical tastes
@@glencurtis6052 That's still a great album.
Silent Alarm was such a perfect debut album that the band was almost doomed from the very beginnimg to never really better it. Perfectly encapsulated the feel of the mid-00's
A Silent Alarm is such an amazing classic album, has always been one of my favorites.
I don't know how I missed this band in my younger years, but I randomly heard "Hunting For Witches" randomly on a music platform, and I immediately knew I had to hear everything else. Been listening to the first two records constantly. Forever one of my favorites.
Finally, I knew this was coming. Helicopters dual wielding teles blew me away at 16. They were the band I took with me to college and kept growing with. I'm still obsessed with their music. I watch live sets on youtube from the mid and late 00s all the time. Truly the greatest band of that era for a student, cause every songs holds up while other bands make me sick either from being terrible people, lyrical misogyny, or just being too damn boring.
One of the all-time great debuts. Loved all the singles, b-sides, and rarities around the debut as well. While I like all their material, they had the promise of being the next Smashing Pumpkins at the start having that perfect union of accessible songs, massive sound ready for stadiums and still a lot of heart.
Thanks for preserving this kind of niche musical history. This is the kind of history that is so easily lost and it's great you're documenting it.
honestly would love to see a video about Foals, they had a huge Bloc Party influence obviously but have carried it into the modern era in a way that doesn't sound forced. really great live performers as well
Bloc Party created a space for Foals have the freedom to unleash their unique sounds and emotive lyrics to people that were searching songs like Cassius and Two,Steps Twice without ever knowing it.
Those people have evolved with the band that speak to them.
Foals.
If you know you know ❤
There is no song in history that makes me want to buy a drumkit as much as Banquet does. Driving around with it blasting out of the speakers and hammering out Matt Tong's ridiculous fills on my dashboard is just so satisfying.
I'm an old American guy in my 50s and I'd heard the name of the band but couldn't name any songs by them. Hearing the songs in this video, with the story and analysis has made me want to listen to more of their music. That's the best thing this kind of channel can do- give people a chance to discover music. And it's why rights holders blocking and demonetizing videos is a really stupid shortsighted practice.
I still listen to Bloc Party almost daily. I'm 34 now. Still one of my favourite bands.
I’m so glad I stumbled on this video. I’d forgotten how much I loved Bloc Party when I was younger, and how many great songs they released.
It’s cool to look back and realise how important they were.
Now go listen to them and Gang of Four
I can't say I am a Bloc Party fan, but I am a huge Silent Alarm fan. I adore this album, it is in my top 10 of all time it's simply fukkin brilliant. Every song is amazing and every instrument is played with beautiful intensity and the vocals and lyrics are great. For me the way the drummer carries tracks on this album is unrivalled.
Silent Alarm is still my favorite album of all time. Nothing quite compares.
Discovering bloc party at 13 on mtv was one of the best things that ever happened to me, silent alarm was one of the first albums I ever listened to and this video reminded me how much I still love it, I’m gonna go listen to it again now!
The world needs more Bloc Party! One of favs!
Imho, Intimacy is an amazing album that doesn't get the props it deserves.
Thank you so much for covering Bloc Party. Their music defined my late teens! “Silent Alarm” has got to be up there as one of the great albums of the 00s.
I was a university student when they hit the scene, and have great memories of seeing them live!
"Like Eating Glass" is one of the best album openers ever. Matt Tong is a beast of a drummer! 😍😊
Silent Alarm is one of the very rare albums where you don’t want to skip a single track.
Oh man, if I even attempt talking about bloc party and the company they have been in my life since I was 12 (I'm 29) I would literally start crying out of nostalgia. One of the best bands ever, forever in my heart.
Favourite album of all time. Without shadow of a doubt. This Modern Love is just perfect.
Kele's response about Oasis was so spot on, but also Liam calling Bloc Party a band from Univeristy Challenge was also hilarious.
Liam’s been making comments about newer bands forever. He had some comments about The 1975.
I feel like people take what Liam says a little too seriously. He's a caveman and he's hilarious and that's about it. There doesn't seem to be much activity going on in that brain of his. He has a ton of "I don't give A F", alpha energy and I don't think he generally means much harm; he just lacks a filter.
It also sounds like a barely clever way to say something racist without saying something racist.
Bloc party called the Gallagher bros the inbred twins so I guess it balanced out
@@selalewis9189 how does it sound racist?
I remember that time frame of when the Bravery was on the scene with “An Honest Mistake” and someone on an Internet forum said to check out Bloc Party, so I did. Being a huge Radiohead fan I LOVED Ok Computer - so Silent Alarm felt right at home for me, such a great record and a really great era for music.
Just got through listening to Silent Alarm for the millionth time it's so wonderful still. I saw their last U.S. show in Atlanta for their first American tour. The drummer was set up in front beside the lead singer and it was so energetic and probably the most fun I've had at a concert. The atmosphere they created was so great. The second album was different but also great with a different tone. I love this band so much and I try to introduce them to as many people as possible.
Flux is such an excellent, unforgettable song from their second album, I am saddened it’s not mentioned in this video.
Yesss, Kele and Matt meant so much to me growing up. Seeing dope ass bipoc ppl inspired me to play fr
Being a young adult, having just moved to East London and studying audio engineering while playing in bands back in the early 00’s Bloc Party were a huge influence on me. Sadly I never got to see them live back then but happily I did so for the first time last month and was blown away by how energetic, sincere and focused they still were. Now I can appreciate them even more and hope they continue for many years to come!
Thanks for the clip of the Oasis gig! A nugget of history that was a joy to witness.
I'm 29 yrs old, I remember this band and album. Unfortunately they fell off after they came back from their hiatus. This album is still gold.
I love Kele's take on Oasis, because I've always thought they were garbage.
One man's trash...
he seems like a boring pretentious guy tbh
Oasis were coming from the heart, they didn’t care about being liked. Bloc Party frontman seemed to take not being liked personally which reeks of insecurity.
Calling Oasis but thinking Bloc Party is decent is a weird one.
Everyone’s entitled to their own view but imo Oasis at least have some songs that will be remembered in several decades whereas Bloc Party just have a load of shite.
"A powerful sense of dread"
I loved hearing that (what I'm assuming was a deliberate) Peep Show reference!
Their drummer was pure energy
Silent Alarm is one of the best albums of 2005, and one of my favorite albums to come out of all Post Punk Revival. Every song is great. Every b side is great. It is still in regular rotation in my most listened playlists after 17 years.
Totally agree!!!
I love bloc party alot, I always showed an interest to intimacy because of the story in their songs and the jagged and glitchy production , a band willing to challenge themselves, I'd love a deep dive on that album , but silent alarm is the true great of what bloc party could create
I still count "Intimacy" as my favourite Bloc Party album. It's so unapologetically soppy. And that jagged production gives his words an added rawness.
I've always thought that the best electronic music sounds unpolished.
@@daviddalrymple2284 ah yes I can't even think of a top 5 you ?
I caught Banquet on Fuse/Oven Fresh and I was hooked inmediately. Silent Alarm came at the perfect time in my life when I was starting to figure out who I was as a person and it's still my favorite album. It was like the final corner of my high school music triangle.
As a black indie kid in the States growing up in the 2000s I always wanted to have black frontmen that represented me. Then I heard Bloc Party; I’m don’t have same sex attraction, but I relate a lot to the emotion Kele writes. A lot of the abstraction in A Silent Alarm still resonates with me today. All of their albums, especially A Weekend in the City and Intimacy matter big. They still influence how I create as a musician because they introduced amazing guitar laden music with electronic sounds and STELLAR drums. Only other group like that to me now are Mutemath and Twentyone Pilots, that do it in a way that’s not super mainstream (IMO). While their current music may not have the post punk sound I love, I appreciate all that they have done and are doing for the genre. I’m glad Bloc Party is still around and I’m thankful for Kele, Russell, and everyone past/current who helps me in all manners of life. They deserve more recognition!
Brought me to tears hearing you talk about This Modern Love. You summed the song up perfectly. Once again, fantastic video
Ahh man that little nu-rave medley at the end got me so nostalgic. Such an under-rated era of music man was so open and free... Was in my early 20's and felt so old at many gigs back then ha ha. The irony of that now. Still, the 20 year cycle is almost upon us... Soon everyone will be dressed up as Socrates, with glow sticks at the ready!! ;)
He forgot DIOFYY 😭
@@TrueFaith94 It's not "forgetting" to not include the thing you wanted specifically. The most annoyingly selfish type of comment.
@@OrgaNik_Music You might be taking things a little too seriously. Chill out 😂
Late of the Pier, in particular, feel like a magical musical diamond just waiting to be rediscovered.
@@daviddalrymple2284 For sure man, both the Paul Epworth and Errol Alkan produced stuff was something just really special.
I really appreciate your work and this is a stunning video. A few things you smashed: pacing, stills and bitesize clips, insight to the genres applied in a brilliant and clear setting, personalisation, relevant history without dredging too deeply/long and touching on both mainstream familiar sounds with some more unfamiliar bits. This takes tons of time and talent and I'm so chuffed you put it together. Thank you bud.
I'd never heard of Bloc Party, but I can't count how many times I've listened to Banquet now, great song. Thank you for doing such fantastic music docs, Trash Theory!
Silent Alarm is an astonishing album. There are plenty of records from that era I really loved that sound pretty bad to my ears now. Silent Alarm is timeless.
Bloc Party played the Royal Albert Hall eventually, so well done to the lads.
The 2000's were incredible for live music in England.
The first Bloc Party song I've ever heard was Helicopter on the paper Jamz Gutair Hero toy I had as a kid. Later on as a teenager I happened to run into Banquet on Spotify and learned how to play the whole song on my Drum-kit so blessed to have discovered this band again 🙏
Hello Ash! Thanks for another great video! I would like to add another interesting fact about Bloc Party: ‘Eating Glass’ actually made into the soundtrack of Tony Hawk American Wasteland video game. In the video there is a story of how their front man did his best to promote the band, sending their promo CDs wherever possible, well, some fans must have discovered the band through this soundtrack as well.
Brilliant. Bloc Party hit me at a time I was not engaged with much if any contemporary music; Banquet pulled me out of the past and into what has been a consistent engagement ever since.
“Sonic promiscuity” is exactly how I’d describe post-punk/pop/alt/garage/EDM ever since. Good thing, that.
I was a death metal kid and this along with Crystal Castles 1st record and Klaxons 1st record made me listen to other music, it sounded so fresh and new to me, it was so emotional at the same time, I cant believe how much downhill Bloc Party went after each record, they need Gordon and Matt back in the band, I hope Bloc Party can come back with something as amazing as those two first records
Would you ever do a video on Skins? I felt like it was such a great collection and amplification of indie bands of the time. Still to this day, I think the best soundtrack in any show or movie (the original, not the releases that strip out all the licensed music).
That would be interesting, given Skins essentially launched the career of Foals and arguably Adele given Hometown Glory became her first big hit after it was used in Skins.
The problem with Skins is that a lot of the songs only appeared duting each episodes premiere.They had to replace a big percentage of the music for reruns and home media/netflix. So most people havent even heard the original soundtracks.
@@aspaceproductions oh yeah that's true. I think my DVD boxset only replaced the songs on the first two seasons and occasionally in season 3. Ironically on one occasion they replaced a Lily Allen song with I Kissed a Girl which is a more popular song.
Regardless I believe you can find the original soundtrack on All4.
Would love to see this too, some of my favourite songs of all time were used on skins (Walcott, New York I Love You But You’re Bringing Me Down)
@@joelatkin1214 I had no idea they used a Vampire Weekend song in Skins. What episode was it in?
I went to see Bloc Party live in Copenhagen a couple of months ago. I remember them mentioning how they still had sentimental feelings for the city because they recorded Silent Alarm here, and it was given the biggest cheer of the night. Even 17 years later that album is still viewed as being akin to religious scripture in modern rock music.
Bloc Party made the accidental yet unexpected mistake of making a goddamn masterpiece as their debut. Everything else is good, but I mean, you know
Fantastic video. As someone who was at university and editing the music section of the student paper when Bloc Party appeared, they quickly became a huge favourite of mine and a staple of every clubnight I attended for a number of years. I went on my own to meet them at a signing at Piccadilly Records in Manchester, and got a photo with them - but unfortunately this was in the pre-smartphone days and I lost the only copy I had many years ago :(
This video brings so many memories from my teenage years. I looooved Bloc Party when i discovered through Ratchet and Silent Alarm, AWITC and Intimacy were practically the only albums i listened in the summer from when i was 15 hahah. But Silent Alarm specially holds a special place in my heart, every pain and joy i felt at the time was accompanied by its sound, be it a small awakening of critical thinking about politics with Helicopter and Price of Gasoline, dealing with loneliness and existential crisis with Plans and Compliments, crying because of crushes with Banquet and This Modern Love... I could go on and on. Nice to revisit this band I used to love so much with another great video
Silent Alarm is a masterpiece and just a flawless perfect album.
I got into them via MySpace in 2005/6 and AWATC is one of my favourite albums of the decade. Not really been a band like them since.
Silent Alarm is one of the greatest albums of the 2000s. Happy to see someone talking about it and increasing its reach. Love Bloc Party so much.
Thanks for bringing attention to important aspects of British music culture and music culture in general
Listening to bloc party takes me back to being 18, looking back it was a cool time, I always loved the drumming
A Weekend In The City is one my favourites albums ever.
I was given the album as a gift on my big European backpacking trip (on an original ipod nano)
Discovered "Kreuzberg" while walking past the East Side gallery after a 2 day bender in Berlin.
A few weeks later "Waiting for the 7:18" was playing as I walked up up the Discovery Monument in Lisbon as the symbolic end to my train trip that started on Vadivostok.
Loved this video!
it was 2013, I saved up my min wage salary to see them live in Manila... Kele was fantastic and Matt Tong probably was one of the best drummers I heard live. I still have the crumpled setlist from that gig... good times
Nice!! Is it hard to find people with your music taste?
I was just remembering that I bought Silent Alarm having never heard of Bloc Party on a visit to Manila. It was in some record store in green belt at one of the displays with the headphones you could listen to.
Thank you for making this. I found "Helicopter" through GH3 in '07. It was such a stand out track to me, and their music has made it's back to me here and there. This video has convinced me to give them the true deep dive they deserve.
Oh, and that snippet of "There is a Light..." was my introduction to Erlend Øye. Looking forward to the rabbit hole this video will take me.
Really loved these guys at the time of their first two albums, I remember playing a weekend in the city over and over on my shitty mp3 player and then for whatever reason it seemed like they disappeared and I moved on to other stuff. Recently went back and listened to a weekend in the city and was really struck by just how good it was, especially after having grown myself not just physically and emotionally, but musically.
A powerful sense of dread!!! I look forward to a career retrospective on Coming Up For Blair/Mama's Kumquat/Various Artists.
Silent Alarm is probably my favourite album of all time. I never really look into the history of music, but I do also enjoy The Klaxons, Late of the Pier and HADOUKEN!, so it's interesting to think that they might not have made it anywhere if not for Silent Alarm. Interesting stuff, thank you!
Great review. Silent Alarm was iconic for Americans whose high school years included 2005. Thanks for the memories
Bloc Party was the last band I felt attached to. I became a fan at their first Coachella appearance. I knew very little about them but my brother and friend raved about them. They came out and played Eating Glass and was a fan instantly. Great video!
The clapback to Liam Gallagher was BRUTAL but not a single word of it was untrue.
Maybe. But in the annals of Rock history, Oasis will be remembered, and these guys won't be.
Lol. WRONG. Bloc Party will forever be influential and will be rediscovered by generations. Oasis will be married to their time in music history. Popular, yes. Timeless - nope.
@@JS-kb4imyou are so delusional. Bloc Party had one song which resonated. One!
Silent Alarm and A Weekend in the City are two of the most seminal albums of britpop. How they create Silent Alarm and then somehow create and even more powerful second album. So good.
You calling Bloc Party Britpop?
Of all the debut albums from that era (Franz Ferdinand, Kaiser Chiefs etc) Silent Alarm has aged the best by far.
So far off the mark.
Arctic Monkeys‘ debut was amazing, as was Kasabian’s.
Franz Ferdinand had some great songs on it.
I could go on and on but imo most of the music on Silent Alarm sounds really bland.
One of my all time favourite bands. A Weekend in the City was the first album I remember getting excited about, I knew of the debut album but this, THIS album is what made me fall in love with Bloc Party. I'll forever be grateful that I was introduced to music like this, it's helped me to be who I am today.
This is so so good. A walk down memory lane. Keep these coming please!
Kele is such a good vocalist. Tulips (Club Mix) is also a fantastic song by them that I think is underrated
Saw them at the welly club in hull in 2004....there was about 50 people and it was brilliant...you could tell they where special
I would love to see a video that showcases the latest musical trends that may become future British canon
Silent Alarm is nothing short of a masterpiece. It is wild that they have never been able to replicate or to put out an album close to it. They could have disbanded right after it
Bloc Party are one of the many bands I like that peaked with their first album. In fact, they were hottest of all before it even dropped. As with many punky bands their records sold more copies and moved to higher chart positions as time went on, but while the later releases might have been more polished, they were a disappointment to those of us that preferred the sharp edges of the more angular early work. Kele and the guys had their whole lives to make the first album. They only had about eighteen months for the follow-up. It might have been produced better and they might have played their instruments better, but it lacked the unpredictability and excitement of the earlier releases.
You should do one episode on Kasabian, their first albums were extraordinary and iconic
More people need to talk about ANOTHER WEEKEND IN THE CITY!! Those B-sides are so so so so good!! But even if no one talks about that record, Im really glad people can appreciate Bloc Party and their influence, I always felt like they sounded different than other rock bands , I couldn't describe why though , but I can still listen to Bloc Party after 10 years and still groove and rock out ! Forward thinking stuff for sure , thanks for making the video !
Bloc party always reminded me of a modern version of "the jam"
Outstanding video. Really I have nothing to add other than thanking Guitar Hero 3 for introducing me to Helicopter and later How I Met Your Mother for introducing me to This Modern Love.
Holy shit, thank you for this video! Bloc Party are one of my favourite bands of all time and hugely important to me. Having been listening to them growing up and even adoring their newer releases, they have had a huge influence on my taste in music, introducing me to different bands and genres and of course, Matt Tong being my main inspiration to learn the drums. I got to see Bloc Party for the first time back in May and they are absolutely incredible live. If you've only just found out or heard about them from this video, please go listen to them!! All their releases have been amazing and of course, Silent Alarm is a 2000's indie rock masterpiece, however they have probably inspired a lot of the bands you listen to already, so, I widely recommend them! Like you said, their newer records aren't 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘦 as great as their first two, but are still extremely great in their own rights. If you're reading this and haven't heard them, again, go check them out for yourself!
As a black kid in my late teens, discorvering bloc party was one best things that happened to me. It let me know a black person can lead a rock band besides the typical hip hop/R&B/rap music.
Was waiting for this one. All you need is time. All you need is time. All you need is time. All you need is time.
Silent Alarm is an Awesome 👌 debut album ! The 🥁 are incredible.
Bloc Party and Silent Alarm was, for me, a musical awakening. I remember only listening to exclusively chart music and Now! That's What I Call Music. I turned on the TV while home alone and flicked past Bloc Party playing at V Festival. I sat and watched their entire set and went into town and bought A Weekend In The City that weekend. But Silent Alarm gripped me like no other album had before or since. Every song hit hard and I consider it to this day to be a near perfect album. I got the chance to see them play twice on their Silent Alarm Tour in 2018/19 which was a dream come true. This album will always be one of, if not, the greatest albums of all time (for me).
This was so good. Bloc Party are so good. Glad you made this.
Man I could wax poetic about the influence Bloc Party had on my life growing up in the aughts. So glad someone made a video about the genius of their first album. It literally shaped my life
Great review! Imo, you should have included "Intimacy" because it wasn't just the first two EPs that people remember from their early years. The original lineup released the amazing "Intimacy," their third studio album, which was also relevant from that initial era.
My God, I forgot all about Bloc Party! I think here in the States, people saw them as just another garage rock/post-punk indie band.
Yeah. They had a huge cult following, but most people I knew were only interested in the jangly guitars.