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(Review and photo by DCist contributor Ryan Avent)
For the critically minded, a play of Bloc Party’s Silent Alarm is sure, at first blush, to scream comparisons to the other dance-floor rock bands of the moment, most notably the overproduced and omnipresent juggernauts The Bravery and The Killers. As everyone from NME to Pitchfork has instructed us, however, BP is not there for the critically minded; it’s there to knock your socks off, and even the most ink-stained, grizzled music journalist must struggle to make it through “Like Eating Glass” without doffing his fedora and shaking it around the newsroom.
Further listens seem to justify the ease with which one is able to hit repeat on this album without offending one’s scenester conscience. Bloc Party has personality. Or, more accurately, the immensely likeable lead singer Kele Okereke imbues every note, every shouted turn of phrase with something dangerously close to approachability. His urgent, Mike Skinner-accented eruptions of rhythmic vocal acuity create an intimacy that glossy acts like The Killers can’t hope to duplicate.
Their Thursday night performance at the 9:30 Club glowed in the reflected love that Bloc Party’s magnanimity inspires. DCist came prepared to rock out, but the evening was more family reunion than throwdown, and the Orange-Line-at-rush-hour feel of the packed house meant that dancing was, at any rate, to be confined to a head bob. The band emerged onto the stage to thunderous applause, Kele’s inimitable grin melting hearts before the first note sounded. BP opened with the subdued “So Here We Are,” before wasting no time ripping out fan-favorites “Like Eating Glass” and “Banquet,” the collective voice of the crowd drowning out all but the concussive drumming of shirtless Sean Lennon look alike Matt Tong. The impressive work on the skins was the signature sound of the night, with the guitars difficult to pinpoint on all but the rip roaring-est riffs, and Kele’s stylings dissipated by a hundred adoring backup vocalists. The short first set was peppered throughout by the band’s more distinctive numbers: the more textured “Blue Light,” the designated goose-bump fetcher “This Modern Love,” and by the loveable asides between songs. Kele accepting flowers. Kele giving a fan a guitar pick. Kele addressing a request to take off his shirt (“Take off your bloody shirt,” corrected the drummer).
“Helicopter” ended the set, and set the stage for the highly planned encore, throughout which the gang of four continued to endear themselves to the crowd. The second act saw the band bid a heartfelt farewell to a member of the BP team, saw Kele chase the mop-headed and extremely reserved guitarist Russell Lissack around the stage (with hilarious results), and saw Kele announce to the crowd, “Thank you very much for paying attention over the last hour,” before signing off with “Pioneers,” as if every member of the crowd didn’t already feel like they were cheering on their best friends.
By the end of the night, it was hard not to see that a Bloc Party show isn’t really about the music. Between the drum work, the appropriate if not stunning guitars, and the compelling vocals, there is much to like (and shake it to) in the BP repertoire, but that’s not what packs the house for these guys, night after night. There is a freshness and an honesty to this foursome that eludes many of the dance-rock, New Wave-retread set (I’m looking at you, Louis XIV). If anything will give Bloc Party staying power beyond their nifty debut, it’s the goodwill that personality gets them with their fans, the spot lit, singing, balloon-swatting masses that left last night thinking, “Can’t you just imagine hanging out with those guys?”
(Ed. note: For those of you not able to attend the show, NPR has a recording of the concert here.)
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i see that jake has more pictures here.
This was the third time I've seen Bloc Party, and the sound really detracted from the show. Both guitars were mixed poorly and not loud enough, particularly the lead singer's. And the back-up vocals were far too loud. A buddy of mine complained that the vocals were too loud, but from where I was (the balcony, so my 13-year old nephew could see), the vocals sounded fine. Even though I do not go to big venues as a rule, I made an exception for the Pixies/Bloc Party show on Monday, and I'm glad I did, as Bloc Party sounded ten times better up there. Ultimately, the 9:30 show was good, but it could've been much, much better. One other small disappointment: No Engineers CDs! Only one vinyl album, and I just took the record player out of my car.
Staying power beyond their nifty debut
I think it's more like Silent Alarm and this tour (I've seen them twice now) have proved that they absolutely have staying power beyond their self-titled debut EP, which is what prompted the initial hype over Bloc Party to begin with!