I find it incredible how young the band was when they made this record! Despite sound pretty generic at times, their debut album has some really great bangers at the start! Unfortunately, it begins to get pretty forgettable and repetitive the farther you go into the tracklist. It's still an impressive debut and it really showed the large amount of potential they had.

I actually really liked this single along with Peace Sign! It's catchy and as far as production goes, it's solid across the board. Pretty hyped for the new album.

Bloc Party had one thing in mind when making this record; ambition. Keep that in mind throughout this review.

Kele had this artistic vision of creating “rock interpretations of dance” using what they’ve learned so far, and they wanted to incorporate more electronic elements to create an entirely new sound. On their previous record, they threw some electronics in there, but they wanted to step it up a notch.

The band themselves knew that before they started recording, it was ... read more

Okay, I will admit that I felt a bit too harsh on this track when I reviewed it initially. I've learned to embrace the electronic and vocal-loopy flavor of Intimacy, and Mercury is an example of a band taking a huge risk. Despite it's poor execution and brass instruments submerging your ears at the end, the synth bass is killer, and that bass drum hits hard! Maybe I am a fan of repetitive lyrics, I think my Mercury's in retrograde!

Chapterhouse released their single "Pearl" with two B-side tracks (or one, if you got the 7" record version, I have the "12 version) which all flow with each other very nicely. For the B-side tracks, they've got everything to love about Chapterhouse's debut album, Whirlpool. Seriously, these tracks are heavily underrated and I find it mind-boggling how they didn't include these on their debut. All three tracks are well deserving of a perfect score.

I was lucky enough to find a CD copy of this pop-punk classic at a thrift store a while back, and I find it crazy how I didn't like it on my first listen, because it hit so much differently on my second listen! Despite the record being mostly pop-punk, its driven by a strong alternative rock influence. That influence and Hayley's ability to deliver excellent vocals is what makes this record stand out from the rest of pop-punk albums released around the time. The drums and riffs are punchy, and ... read more

Never thought I'd see pop-punk legends make post-punk revival BANGERS.

It's groovy, punchy, and Hayley still has the ability to deliver excellent vocals after all of these years. The consistent amount of energy throughout the album kept me hooked, and the album's softer moments are very relaxing. Despite sounding upbeat, the album explores unhappy and anxious themes, which I thought was unique because some tracks sound like a groovy and danceable song, but there's a deep meaning that isn't ... read more

A more electronic flavor of new rave with slight grime influence, Hadouken! introduces themselves to the genre rather late into the genre's life with good ideas, but unfortunately most of these ideas were executed poorly. Despite these tracks being 3 minutes long, you can tell they drag in one way or another. Once you've heard one track, you've basically heard the rest of the album, as most tracks have a hard time differentiating from each other.

Tony Thaxton, the band's drummer, left the band in 2013 due to the band's extensive touring schedule and he was battling depression at the same time. The track is described by Justin as "how we're feeling these days" and that the band had "all this creative energy clawing to get out and a sudden overabundance of material." MCS hired Claudio Rivera and recorded Inside Out as a form of celebration. The track's overall tone is dark, but it's upbeat and fast-paced with punchy ... read more

A very solid collection of AWitC B-sides that sound amazing! The tracks stay pretty consistent with their explosive choruses and groovy as hell drum beats. I'd say this is some of Matt Tong's best drum work! They really should've made a deluxe/special edition of AWitC with a few of these tracks because they're just too good to be left out. For those who seek for more pre-Intimacy Bloc Party songs, this compilation of B-sides are just for you.

Version 2.0 - 85
The Once and Future King - 80
Cain ... read more

Best experienced in the dark for sure!

Probably the best user-made project I've heard on this site, Void is a slow paced instrumental post-rock/shoegaze album that has themes about life and death, it's like a story that plays throughout the album. The quality of this album is amazing, it has a large atmosphere, production and mixing is really good, and the instrumentals are very solid. Very great job on the project!

"DAMN SON, WHERE'D YOU FIND THIS?'

Definitely not my style of music for sure, but there's a lot of potential here for some really solid beats if the project wasn't so disorganized and messy. Some of the "industrial" sounding moments on the album could've been executed far better, kind of disappointing that they weren't this album's best material. Mom I'm sowwy and Swagged out are both solid, especially tos, where there's a good amount of potential to be heard. You got this ... read more

A suggestion from @MacThe49er, this is a groovy, noisy shoegaze record that never deserved the commercial failure it had when it released. There are a bit of psychedelic and dancy elements through out the tracks, which are a great touch and helps the album stand out from other shoegaze albums released around the time. The album is really consistent and I couldn't find any weak points; even with the slower tracks, which just adds to how great of an album this really is.

Two Door Bloc Party? Surprisingly, I'm not the only one who thought of that!

This EP is a pretty forgettable release from Bloc Party, sounds like Alpha Games B-sides with slight changes to the formula. Blue is the standout track here, I enjoyed that track the most but the rest of the tracks have nothing to write about.

This album is pretty decent, although it does feel like a mixed bag for me. You have some pretty good tracks, like Weird Fishes / Arpeggi and Jigsaw Falling Into Place, but then there's a few tracks that are quite forgettable and serve as something to put in the background when you're studying or working on homework. It's definitely better than OK Computer, there's more substance and better execution of their ideas here, which I thought OK Computer had trouble with.

Took a step out of my comfort zone into the Digital Hardcore genre and I'm pretty glad I picked this album. It's ravey, chaotic, extremely energetic, and it hits hard! There are so many genres at play here and they all mix together so well! Absolutely crazy this album can go up to 1500 BPM.

I just love the percussion on this track, this is the closest you're ever going to get to hard hitting Bloc Party post-Four. Lyrics are kinda weird though

Bloc Party's Little Thoughts EP has finally hit streaming services (finally) and now I can confirm that Skeleton is an absolute banger! The other tracks (with the exception of the tracks that made it on Silent Alarm) are also really good, but it's a little clear to see why they didn't make the cut. Despite these tracks being left out, this EP is perfect for those who want more of that good ol' Bloc Party sound. That remix of Tulips goes pretty hard as well!

The memories of playing Skate 3 while blasting Sleeper Hold on my TV at 4AM are all rushing back to me again.

I've always had a soft spot for emo-pop, and this review pretty much solidifies that statement. WTK's self titled debut is a very solid power/emo-pop album that's full of energy and consistency, perhaps it's a little too consistent, because most tracks have a hard time differentiating from each other. Especially when you get towards the end of the album where their sound slowly starts to get old. The ending saves it from getting too repetitive though. Overall, this was a pretty enjoyable listen ... read more