Album:

Bloc Party - Silent Alarm

With bands from the UK getting so much attention in rock, at first glance Bloc Party might blend into the pack. But if you listen closer "Silent Alarm" is a surprisingly deep album. It has generic new wave hits in "Helicopter" and "Banquet," but it also has contemporary fusion in "Positive Tension," and social commentary in "Price Of Gas." The album can be entertaining by its catchy tunes or its involved lyrics. Bloc Party has a distinct sound for a basic four-piece music set. The two guitars tend to start off intertwined but as the music goes on the separate and enter their own moving riffs. The tempos are quick and striking and move the album along with little effort. Bloc Party isn't trying to change the sound of rock and roll its just trying to use it differently. The real genius of the album is that it can be listened to over and over again and each time a new sound or sharp lyric is discovered. It is a complete album, never straying to far from the original sound but never repeating in any way. If you haven't listened to this album, you haven't heard what a new wave album should sound like.