Bloc Party
(Atlantic)
With its texturally advanced second record failure far behind them, Bloc Party move into CD three with its bruised egos now bolstering the band's most exquisite melodies and squawking front man Kele Okerkeke's hurt-as-hell lyrics. What doesn't kill you makes you wronger; or at least push the wronged to be stronger.
With that, Mr. Okerkeke talks up a bloated humorous brand of heartbreak atop thickly pulsing new drum machine sounds and the slender density of Party's usually icily angular guitars. Oddly enough he finds both sounds inviting, even finding some new influences (Chemical Brothers, Kanye West) to go with the old ones (Cure, Buzzcocks). Kele may come across as mawkish on occasion ("I love my mind/When I'm fucking you") but wounded by unrequited love and unrelenting fans, there's a sense of wise victory on this record that can't be denied.
Standout Tracks: "Your Visits are Getting Shorter," "Signs" A.D. AMOROSI
