Silent Alarm (+DVD) - Bloc Party

...2005 when their debut album, Silent Alarm, was hailed as the best album for ages by all the trendy music magazines. Being so far behind the trends in modern music, I only just recently purchased this album after hearing the song Helicopter on the BBC's commonwealth games coverage. Is Silent Alarm as good as the hype suggests?

It certainly starts off with a bang. Like Eating Glass builds up with guitars before a heavy drum beat comes ...
...Overall, I think Bloc Party's Silent Alarm is truly stunning and an amazing achievement. For once, the hype is fully justified, since this album has originality, zest and in Kele Okereke, a great lead singer. The thing that swings it for me though is their willingness to lower the pace and perform some beautiful ballad-type tracks. I can't wait to hear more from them soon.
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Bloc Party are an indie/rock four-piece from Essex. They're led by singer Kele Okereke, who also did the vocals for the Chemical Brothers' recent single "Believe". They were launched onto the scene in the beginning of 2005 when their debut album, Silent Alarm, was hailed as the best album for ages by all the trendy music magazines. Being so far behind the trends in modern music, I only just recently purchased this album after hearing the song Helicopter on the BBC's commonwealth games coverage. Is Silent Alarm as good as the hype suggests?

It certainly starts off with a bang. Like Eating Glass builds up with guitars before a heavy drum beat comes crashing in, and it's all really high-tempo and spiky. Not the best song on here, but it certainly sets out their stall for what is to come next, and it zips along nicely. Helicopter is next, and it's probably the most immediately enjoyable track on the album. Kele's unique voice is the best thing about the band, and it's probably at its best on the verses of Helicopter. He doesn't always stick to the notes, but he has a lot of force and commands attention. Helicopter also demonstrates the excellent guitar riffs that the band has in abundance.

Positive Tension carries on in the same vein as Helicopter, with more drum and guitar-based arty rock. The vocals in the verses are again fantastic, and this time they're matched with a chorus of the same standard. This song adds a bit of electronica to the mix, so at the moment they're sounding like a mixture of Arctic Monkeys/Maximo Park/Franz Ferdinand.

The next track is Banquet, and you may know it as they've released it as a single. Apparently this song is about sex ("she's got such a dirty mind"), but it must have been a relationship that didn't work out if the music is anything to go by; very jagged, angry and in-your-face. At this point, you maybe be pretty sure that you know where the rest of the album is going, but to their credit, Bloc Party decide to slow the tempo right down, and add a little more Radiohead influence to the mix.

Blue Light at first listen seems dull, especially after the furious opening tracks. But the more you play it, the more it grows on you, and it develops into a beautiful, relaxing song with some cryptic lyrics. She's Hearing Voices is another stand out track. It borrows the same pounding drums from earlier, but pairs it up with a more mellow sound thanks to Kele's adaptable voice. The chorus is quite electronic, and then some crashing guitars come in, and it's a really great mixture of sounds and genres.

This Modern Love drops the pace right down again, for a gentle love song. The vocals are distorted and distant, and seem to be coming from different directions when you listen in headphones. The lyrics are completely gorgeous and sad yet at the same time idiosyncratic, with random calls of "jump right" and "jump left" in the middle of the verses. By now I think there's a bit of The Killers' sound in there too.

Pioneers is another medium-paced track; kept quite simple, to good effect. I think a lot of the songs on here are based on past relationships, including this one, and it's not world-beating, just another well-crafted song. Price Of Gasoline is another spiky, jagged tune, this time with a bit of political protesting against the rising price of petrol. The chorus and backing vocals are particularly good, as are the hand-claps and swirling electro in the background.
The next track, So Here We Are was the first single they released with the album, and it was the track that brought Bloc Party to my attention. It's been used in another BBC commercial recently, for The Virgin Queen I think. BBC has great music taste! It starts very slowly, building up layers of drum and guitar, before Kele's wonderful voice comes floating over the top. Then about half-way through, it suddenly kicks into life and becomes a feel-good, up-tempo ballad. I think this is the best song on the album; it inspires so much emotion and it just sounds amazing.

Luno is completely different again, this being very fast and furious, bordering on the violent with the chorus of "your nose is bleeding; you've been lying to me". This shows a darker, more gritty side to Bloc Party that hadn't been apparent before. This isn't one of the best songs, but it still boasts some great guitar work. Add The Strokes to that musical melting pot.

The final two tracks fit together somewhat, since both are a return to the slow-paced ballads of the middle of the album. Plans has a good chorus and nice lyrics, about the ravens leaving the tower; very spooky. Compliments is the slowest track on the album, as if the band are gradually winding down and sneaking out quietly without us noticing. It won't be to everyone's taste, especially those who prefer the opening rock tracks, but it just goes to show what a diverse range of sounds they can pull off convincingly. They sound a bit like Editors at their slowest.

This version of the album comes with a DVD, which features live footage of the band performing live at the Heaven nightclub in London. The tracks they do are Positive Tension, Banquet, So Here We Are and She's Hearing Voices, which is quite good as they're the most mainstream and exciting songs in my opinion. You should be aware that although this comes with a DVD, it is not the "Special Edition" CD + DVD which features two extra tracks and a 25-minute long Tour Documentary. If you want that version, make sure it has the silver sticker on the front.

Overall, I think Bloc Party's Silent Alarm is truly stunning and an amazing achievement. For once, the hype is fully justified, since this album has originality, zest and in Kele Okereke, a great lead singer. The thing that swings it for me though is their willingness to lower the pace and perform some beautiful ballad-type tracks. I can't wait to hear more from them soon.
 

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