It has been 21 years since Bloc Party released their legendary album “Silent Alarm,” which helped define the indie rock era of the 2000s. This Friday, Bloc Party returned with their seventh studio album and first in four years: “Anatomy of a Brief Romance.” Is Bloc Party back? Or have they fumbled once again? Let’s dig in.
Lead singer Keke Okereke told NME earlier this year that this record is their “most personal to date.” The LP opens with “22.01.22”; this song serves as the beginning of a relationship, and that feeds into the overwhelming theme of the album. Okereke called it a concept album about the end of a long-term relationship and the beginning of a new one. This track however is bland and uninspiring; Okereke’s vocals sound very out of place, and there is a weird autotune vocal effect that does not sound good. Not a great start.
“Coming On Strong” immediately feels off, the instrumental is clunky, it wants to be dark and cool but sounds messy. Okereke’s vocals come in, and he’s off beat, like he cannot find the rhythm. The chorus comes and goes; it’s so unmemorable that I didn’t realize it was the chorus until it came back around. Then we get a useless guitar solo, and the song continues to meander on for another 50 seconds before thankfully ending.
“Love Bombs” starts off interesting; this little riff that plays at first is a bit appealing. Okereke kind of comes out here with a disco-inspired sound. We almost get some trap-like drumbeats, and Okereke sort of sing-rapping. His vocals so far have not been great. The chorus isn’t awful; it’s not an earworm though. The second verse feels like “Fairly Local” by Twenty-One Pilots but with worse lyrics somehow, and if Tyler Joseph was not a decent rapper. ‘Love Bombs” is the best song so far, but that’s not saying much.
“Pigwig” got a bit of attention on TikTok, not positive attention though; most people slandered it. However, “Pigwig “is not awful, this is Okereke’s best vocal performance so far, the chorus is fun and the melody of the chorus is very pleasant. The lyrics on this track and most of the album are too detailed; there is no subtlety.
Okereke did tell NME that “Every lyric you’re hearing on this record was something that actually happened to me. I had to tell the story, from start to finish.” This is a sweet sentiment, but it does not work. There are a lot of odd lyric choices that don’t sound good and are just oddly placed.
“Lagoon Blue” starts out like a slow ballad and is frustrating. Bloc Party is a band that delivers on more up-tempo, bright tracks, and then that opens them to make their lush ballads. If the quick tracks are not hitting, the ballads feel like a slog to get through. Out of all the ballads on the album, this track is the best. Is it a good song? I wouldn’t go that far; it’s fine. There are a few moments that feel as pretty as some classic Bloc Party. But overall, the song is in one ear out the other. This song is the biggest show of how Okereke’s almost musical theater vocal delivery. The way he enunciates is very dramatic, and it can make his talk-singing feel very musical theater-esque. On the ballads, that can work, but for the tighter, quicker tracks, it just doesn’t fit.
Tracks like “Muscleworks,” “Clark Kent,” “Worst Birthday” and “Not Your Problem” are either complete filler of awful. If they don’t sound ugly, they sound cheap. They continue the clunkiness of the first half, overly detailed lyrics that get very grating. “Muscleworks” has a key change down a step that is very rough on the ears. “Not My Problem” is a huge lowlight, a repeating chorus that wasn’t good the first time, a weak instrumental and Okereke just shouting anything that comes to his head. I would rather marathon Vortex at Carowinds than listen to this track ever again.
“Now We Can’t Be Friends” has a nice build up but leads to absolutely nothing. It has no punch and desperately feels like it’s missing something to make it fuller.
“Rotherhithe” feels like it was ripped straight out of a dramatic scene in an on-stage production. In the context of a Bloc Party album, it’s not very ideal. I think Okereke should genuinely go write a musical; I think he would be great.
The final three tracks are all uninteresting and keep up the blandness of this album.
Overall, “Anatomy of a Brief Romance” is a huge miss from Bloc Party. This album is a mess, Okereke is honest, and I can admire that, but it does not work as a full-length Bloc Party album. Just go listen to the first two albums and pretend they stopped after that.
Score: 1/5