Bloc Party

Brit band Bloc Party came on strong in 2005 with a debut, Silent Alarm, that was all wiry energy and big post-punk hooks. The follow-up, 2007’s A Weekend In The City, is one of those classic exploratory second albums, with a wandering sound and contemplative lyrics that touch on things like boredom, consumerism, and racism. Then came 2008’s Intimacy, which goes even further out (comparatively speaking): Taking the place of Bloc Party’s slick, guitar-heavy post-punk past is percussive, synthesizer-laden electronic rock with an even more pronounced predilection for disjointed rhythms. Whether it works on record is open to question, but Bloc Party’s adventurousness augurs well for their live shows.