East London Is a Vampire!

I finally went to see Bloc Party. Finally.

My road-blocked Bloc Party (see what I did there?) journey began almost two years ago with the release of the first record, "Silent Alarm." You may remember my blog review of that there record. Not a bad song on it, I'm here to tell you. I listened to it first on an obscenely long drive from Bellevue to Seattle across the 520 bridge during rush hour. Needless to say, I was able to listen to the entire album and then some, and somehow didn't mind the traffic so much that day.

So they came to Nuemos promoting the album, but I heard about it after the fact. Then it was off to Austin for Austin City Limits (hey, I blogged that, too!), where Bloc Party were once again playing. I was actually at the venue that day, seeing Aqualung and passing by a sadly boring Death Cab For Cutie, but then it was like, 3 hours until Bloc Party, it was 108 degrees out, and well... I didn't make it. My friend Tom assured me that Bloc Party are a band best seen in a small club, and while I wholeheartedly agree, not seeing them was one of the biggest disappointments of the weekend.

Then came the V Festival in TV's England in August of 2006. I bought a day ticket, thanks to my excellent friend Tina, specifically to see Bloc Party, Keane, Editors, and Radiohead. But due to delayed planes and things of that nature, I made it time for most of Keane's set, then all of Editors and Radiohead, but I missed Bloc Party. AGAIN.

Then the band I'd been chasing and missing for a year and a half put out their new album, "A Weekend in the City." First listen: yea it's good. Different, but good. Second listen: holy shit, can't get "Hunting for Witches" outta my head. Third listen: best album of 2007, no contest.
Then came the announcement: Bloc Party at the Paramount Theatre on Sunday, March 11th. My friend Kerry and I immediately got general admission tickets, and it wasn't until I saw that cute little Kele Okereke actually bounce onto the stage that I really believed I was finally going to see this goddamned band.

I'm actually not sure what I was expecting. As I mentioned in my review of "Silent Alarm," Bloc Party take themselves very seriously. They're little arty boys who just think that what they have to say is the most important stuff ever in the history of forever, so I guess I was expecting... not a lot of talking, no smiling, perhaps some Ben Harper-esque lecturing... that kind of thing. Great songs; some of my favorite songs. But I didn't expect much out of the band in terms of energy.

I was so, so wrong.

I have been going to shows since I was 13 years old. I've seen everyone from P.I.L. to The Who to Radiohead to The Cramps to the Indigo Girls. My show-going life has been fairly diverse, I think. And in all that time, never have I seen a show as fun, as energized, as engaging, and as purely joyful as Bloc Party.

I can count on one hand the number of shows I've seen that I've wished would never ever end. I could have stood there in that painfully hot, crushingly crowded theater all night if Bloc Party would have obliged.

Pitch perfect, exuberant vocals from a constantly smiling Okereke, spot-on drum-machine-like beats from Matt Tong, and everything in between made their entire set sound like a set full of greatest hits. Even if you had never heard the sound before, you were bouncing and singing and smiling along. The entire crowd shouting, "EAST LONDON IS A VAMPIRE, IT SUCKS THE JOY RIGHT OUT OF ME!!" is something truly to behold.

Their Seattle show was the kick-off to their national tour, so that might explain the freshness and eagerness of the band that night. But their banter was funny and sweet and comfortable, their performance was exciting, and the songs were perfectly turned out. The crowd, as usual, was the only downside of the evening, but even the worst offenders became smiling compatriots toward the end, as we remarked to each other about how much we were sweating and how amazing the band was.

Bloc Party was truly one of the very best performances I've ever seen from a band. I'm even more of a convert than I was before, and I take back everything I said about their self-important art school rantings. They certainly didn't even show a hint of that kind of thing during their show, so now I'm wondering if it's just an unfair assumption because they are proud of the smart music they write.

If you get the chance, get thee to a Bloc Party show, poste haste. But first, buy "A Weekend in the City." You won't regret either.