London band Bloc Party turns in a mixed effort on “Four,” with superb roaring vocals and guitars, but tepid slow songs. (
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Albums of the Week
BLOC PARTY
“Four”
★★ 1/2
THE electronic experiments that characterized Bloc Party’s 2008 album “Intimacy” (and also brought them to the edge of implosion) are no more. For their newest effort, the London quartet has plugged their guitars back in and are letting it rip. It’s an approach that yields some exciting results, particularly in the shape of “Kettling,” which roars like the feral offspring of Nirvana and Rage Against the Machine, while the sexual tension of “3×3” ignites in a fiery finale that features singer Kele Okereke delivering one of his finest vocals to date. The problems occur when they choose to slow the pace for more timid offerings such as “Day Four” and “Real Talk,” which do give Okereke a chance to display his more tender side, but they ultimately get drowned out by the raucousness going on elsewhere.
THE DARKNESS
“Hot Cakes”
Half a star
AFTER splitting up in 2006, the Darkness returned to the national consciousness earlier this year when their hit “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” was featured on a Super Bowl commercial. Sadly, they’ve parlayed that brief moment of rekindled interest into a tiresome third album. Their long absence hasn’t changed the British group’s novelty-rock shtick in the slightest — but this time, they’ve also seen fit to include a harrowingly awful version of Radiohead’s “Street Spirit (Fade Out),” which has Justin Hawkins belting out his grating falsetto while his band plays out all of their Iron Maiden fantasies, apparently oblivious to the existence of the past 30 years. It may all be done with tongue firmly in cheek, but just because the Darkness employs all their hoary rock clichés knowingly, doesn’t make them any less painful to hear.
Downloads of the Week
LUPE FIASCO
“Lamborghini Angels”
★★★
AHEAD of his new “Lamborghini Angels,” Lupe Fiasco tweeted warnings that easily offended people should give the single a wide berth. A slight exaggeration, but the track (taken from the upcoming album “Food and Liquor II,” out Sept. 25) certainly pulls no punches in this dystopian portrait of society, which includes one verse that graphically documents child abuse. Provocative for sure, but Fiasco deserves credit for daring to stand out from the vast majority of mainstream hip-hop.
ARIEL PINK’S HAUNTED GRAFFITI
“Only in My Dreams”
★★★
LA oddball Ariel Pink has attracted a cult fan base for years, but he and his band are finally gaining some widespread exposure for his ability to create dream-pop gems like this one. Taken from his sex-obsessed new album “Mature Themes,” “Only in My Dreams” beautifully brings together a myriad of ’60s references, such as the Beach Boys and the Byrds, for a song that seems to capture the innocence of unrequited love, but sneakily hides a menacing stalker within.
YEASAYER
“Damaged Goods”
★★ 1/2
HAVING made a minor splash in the mainstream with the psychedelic synth-pop of 2010’s “Odd Blood,” Yeasayer has cut back on the melodies for new album “Fragrant World” in favor of more experimental adventures. It makes for a frustrating listen overall, but the more direct “Damaged Goods” proves that the Brooklyn band can still write a great hook when they feel the need.
OWL CITY
“Dementia”
★ 1/2
OWL City’s introspective and often unbearably wimpy electronica has been largely scrapped on new album “The Midsummer Station,” and this collaboration with Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus is part of the group’s attempt to man-up. But for all the rock bombast of the track, “Dementia” is dragged back into unconvincing adolescent angst by some 10th-grade lyrics. Must try harder!