Getting Intimate

On their 2005 debut “Silent Alarm,” the brilliance of British indie rockers Bloc Party shined so brightly that the band was held to unrealistically high expectations for its follow-up. The end result of “A Weekend in the City” turned out to be the antithesis of its debut and was met with horrid reviews.
 
Over the years, the quartet bounced around from the dance rock of “Silent Alarm” to stadium-size riffs, sounding utterly unfocused each time. But alas, Bloc Party is back with its third studio album, “Intimacy,” and it seems the boys have finally found a way to cleverly combine the chaotic club grooves with the big hooks to deliver a formulaically flawless rock record.

“Intimacy” spans the musical spectrum from sample-heavy dance tracks and vibrant synths to hauntingly beautiful ballads. A self-proclaimed break-up record, it’s not surprising that lead singer Kele Okereke’s lyrical content is both confessional and poetic with subtle glimpses into his heartbreak. The music itself is, at times, evocative of New Order or Joy Division then takes on its own raw incarnation of danceable indie rock.

But for all the concern about club land concessions, the influence wanes considerably after album opener “Ares” and lead single “Mercury.” “Halo” is a more cacophonous take on the structure of Silent Alarm standout “Positive Tension,” “Trojan Horse” is another effective near-cousin and “One Month Off” might have been an outtake from the debut. “Biko” and “Signs” continue a run of devastating love songs with an undeniably ethereal feel. Okereke treats his voice like a strange instrument, chopping it up and dropping it into the mix. He sounds liberated, airing deeply personal details about a bad breakup, reminding his ex-lover, “I can be as cruel as you” and announcing “you used to take your watch off before we made love.” It’s what makes “Intimacy” intimate and gets Bloc Party back on track.

Unwise detours aside, the restless vitality that made “Silent Alarm” such an electrifying debut returns in massive waves, pulsing with new life. The three bonus tracks at the end, “Letter To My Son,” “Your Visits Are Getting Shorter” and “Flux” more than make up for any shortcomings on the last record. “Intimacy” sounds like the product of the band that was ready to take on the world back in 2005 and there a lots of reasons to believe they have only just began to hit their stride.  - Kyle Eustice

The Mighty Underdogs

“Dropping Science Fiction”

Sometimes when seasoned musicians and lyricists get together, the chemistry is instant. Such is the case with Oakland-based super group the Mighty Underdogs. Comprised of Blackalicious’ Gift of Gab, Latyrx’s Lateef the Truthspeaker and Crown City Rocker Headnodic, the Mighty Underdogs are Definitive Jux’s newest familial additions. After releasing a five-track teaser aptly titled “The Prelude EP,” the boys converged again to put the finishing touches on their first full-length, “Dropping Science Fiction.” For an album that sounds like it took endless hours to perfect, surprisingly it was written in just over a month. Whether or not that adds to the lack of cohesiveness of the album remains a mystery, but “Dropping Science Fiction” is all over the place (and not necessarily in a bad way). From breezy, jazz-infused tracks to hard rock backbones sprinkled with comical lyrics, each track has its own unique sound. “The whole point of this record was to have fun with creative storytelling and add a lot of humor,” Gift of Gab reveals. “A lot of our stuff is so serious. We’ve always been considered socially conscious and intellectual. But Lateef and I decided we’d paid our dues so we wanted to do a fun, fictional record.”
 
The playfulness of “Laughing At You (featuring Casual)” or the Lyrics Born-assisted “Gunfight” with its Wild West feel really exemplifies the Might Underdogs’ versatility as artists. On the subject of guest spots, this album is swollen with incredible contributions from DJ Shadow, Damien and Julian Marley, MF Doom, Chali 2Na of Jurassic 5, Mr. Lif and Akrobatik. Where this can sometimes take the spotlight away from the actual artists, it manages to add to the Mighty Underdogs’ colorful catalog of material. Aside from its organized chaos, “Dropping Science Fiction” finds three hip-hop heavy-weights freeing their spirits to make a solid album brimming with promise. – K.E.

New releases

Here’s a look at some new releases set to hit shelves on Tuesday, Nov. 18:

All-American Rejects – “When The World  Comes Down”

Beyonce – “I Am ... Sasha Fierce”

Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan – “Sunday at Devil Dirt”

David Cook – “David Cook”

Billy Ray Cyrus – “Back To Tennessee”

Dido – “Safe Trip Home”

The Fireman – “Electric Arguments”

Sammy Hagar – “Cosmic Universal Fashion”

Il Divo – “The Promise”

Mudvayne – “The New Game”

Nickelback – “Dark Horse”

Zac Brown Band – “The Foundation”

Loney Dear releases new single

Swedish songwriting machine Emil Svanâgen, aka Loney Dear, just released the single from his forthcoming album “Dear John.”

Clawing his way out of obscurity, Svanâgen began his musical career in his parents’ basement recording shimmering songs with falsetto vocals, guitars and woodwinds and handed out CD-Rs of the results to his friends. The results were good enough that a few years later he was signed to Sub Pop, which released his U.S. debut “Loney Noir.”

“Dear John,” his fifth album, should come out early next year.

Asobi-Seksu unveil new album

Shoe-gazing throwbacks recently Asobi-Seksu announced the skinny on their third full-length. The album, entitled “Hush,” is due in American on Feb. 17, 2009. Supposedly written while the band was feeling down and out, the entire record has a “phoenix rising vibe to it,” according to a band statement quoting guitarist James Hanna.

Well, whatever – your hundreds (or is it thousands?) of fans will surely love it.