Hymns (Bloc Party album)

Hymns
Studio album by Bloc Party
Released	29 January 2016
Recorded	March – August 2015
Studio	Lynchmob Studios (London, England)
Genre	Alternative dance indie rock
Length	47:37 (standard edition) 65:01 (deluxe edition) 67:55 (vinyl edition)
Label	BMG Infectious (UK) Vagrant (US)
Producer	Tim Bran Roy Kerr
Bloc Party chronology
Four (2012) Hymns (2016)
Singles from Hymns
"The Love Within" Released: 9 October 2015 "The Good News" Released: 2 December 2015 "Virtue" Released: 13 January 2016

Hymns is the fifth studio album by English indie rock band Bloc Party. It is the first album to feature new members Justin Harris (bass, keyboards) and Louise Bartle (drums). It was released worldwide on 29 January 2016 through BMG.^[1] The album was recorded between March and August 2015, at Lynchmob Studios in London, following a hiatus that saw band members Matt Tong and Gordon Moakes depart the band. Hymns was inspired by many sources and focuses more on electronic music compared to the album's predecessor, Four (2012), which featured a return to Bloc Party's rock style after experimentation with electronic music on their third studio album, Intimacy (2008). Upon release, the album received generally mixed reviews from critics. Three singles were released from the album: "The Love Within", "The Good News", and "Virtue".

Background and recording

During the summer tour of 2013, drummer Matt Tong left the band.^[2] Lissack told a Canadian newspaper, the National Post, that the band were planning to take an indefinite hiatus following their appearance at the Latitude Festival on 19 July.^[3][4] In October 2013, Kele assembled a DJ Mix for !K7's Tapes mix series, released under the Bloc Party name.^[5] In September 2014, Okereke stated that Bloc Party were working on a fifth album.^[6] In March 2015, bassist Gordon Moakes tweeted he had parted ways with Bloc Party.^[7]

Bloc Party unveiled their new line-up at two intimate gigs in the Los Angeles area (19 August 2015 at The Glass House in Pomona and 20 August 2015 at The Roxy in Los Angeles). Following these performances, Bloc Party also subheadlined FYF Fest in Los Angeles on 22 August 2015.^[8] At these shows, the band confirmed that they had finished recording their next album. The shows marked the live debut for new bassist Justin Harris of the Portland, Oregon, indie rock outfit Menomena,^[9] who had previously opened several Bloc Party US tour dates in April 2009;^[10] and Louise Bartle, who was accidentally announced a month earlier as Bloc Party's drummer by instrument manufacturer Natal Drums in a since-deleted tweet, leading to fan speculation regarding her membership that was ultimately proved correct.^[11] These shows also included the first performances of three new songs called "Eden", "Exes" and "The Good News".^[12][13][14]

In a performance at Maida Vale, Bloc Party performed "The Good News" and "Exes"; hours later, "The Love Within" was featured as "Hottest Record in the World" by Annie Mac on BBC Radio 1. Okereke revealed the album's title as Hymns.^[15][16][17] The album's release was later confirmed on social media as being 29 January 2016.^[18] On 12 October, the band announced via Twitter that the album was produced by Tim Bran and Roy Kerr, and mixed by David Wrench.^[19] According to Lissack, the album's recording "was all done in a studio in north-west London, which was next to a gigantic graveyard".^[20] The liner notes reveal that he was referring to Lynchmob Studio.^[21]

Composition

I'm a big fan of synths but I didn't play any on this record. Pushing my pedal board to the limit!

Lead guitarist Lissack confirming he used his instrument to create non-rock sounds, ^[22]

Hymns is aligned with the alternative dance and electronic music influences demonstrated in Okereke's solo material and the music Lissack and he had listened to since making Four.^[23] In addition, according to the band members and affirmed by DJ John Kennedy during a track by track rundown, it also shows their indie rock side but a "more stripped back" version informed by different subgenres than previously, including blues rock and gospel rock.^[24] According to critic Mark Beaumont, Lissack's guitar work is often reminiscent of shoegaze,^[25] a new style for him which is typified by significant use of distortion, feedback and the blurring of parts into indistinguishable "walls of sound".^[26]

Hymns is inspired by various sources, including the Spirit of Eden album by new wave band Talk Talk and A Love Supreme by jazz artist John Coltrane as well as Donna Summer's R&B song "State of Independence" and The Consolers' gospel track "May the Work I’ve Done Speak for Me". The Songs of Innocence and of Experience illustrated poems by William Blake, especially "Laughing Song", provided inspiration for the lyrics. Okereke visited his parents' house prior to recording and found various hymns and religious memorabilia from his youth and used these to make a spiritual, meditative album. For example, "Only He Can Heal Me" is reflective of the Hebrew music hymn "Shalom Chaverin".^[27] Okereke also learned to play the electric piano for the album, specifically on "So Real", while new member Harris provided a wider range of playing as a multi-instrumentalist.^[21]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	55/100[28]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[29]
Drowned in Sound	3/10[30]
Entertainment Weekly	A–[28]
Mojo	[28]
NME	[25]
The Observer	[31]
Pitchfork	5.0/10[32]
Q	[28]
The Skinny	[33]
Under the Radar	4/10[28]

Hymns received generally mixed reviews from critics. On Metacritic, the album holds an average critic score of 55/100, based on 29 reviews.^[28]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Okereke and Lissack, except where noted. 

No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Love Within"	4:37
2.	"Only He Can Heal Me"	4:04
3.	"So Real" (Okereke, Lissack, Harris)	3:23
4.	"The Good News"	3:49
5.	"Fortress"	4:38
6.	"Different Drugs"	5:26
7.	"Into the Earth"	3:59
8.	"My True Name"	5:34
9.	"Virtue"	3:57
10.	"Exes"	4:04
11.	"Living Lux"	4:06
Total length:		47:37

Deluxe edition bonus tracks
No.	Title	Length
12.	"Eden"	4:00
13.	"New Blood"	4:40
14.	"Paraíso"	3:58
15.	"Evening Song"	4:46
Total length:		65:01

Vinyl edition hidden track
No.	Title	Length
16.	"The God Vibration"	2:54

Personnel

Bloc Party

• Kele Okereke – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, electric piano
• Russell Lissack – lead guitar, programming
• Justin Harris – bass guitar, synths, backing vocals

Drummer Louise Bartle had not yet joined the band when the album was recorded although she did provide unlisted vocals.

Other musicians^[21]

• Alex Thomas – drums
• Roy Kerr – production
• Tim Bran – production
• David Wrench – mixing
• Max Hayes – engineering (all tracks)
• Ben Jackson – co-engineering (11)
• Nicky Brown – choir member and vocal arranger (2, 4, 10, 14, 15)
• Jesse Grant – choir member (2, 4, 10, 14, 15)
• Geo Gabriel – choir member (2, 4, 10, 14, 15)
• Jermaine Foster – choir member (2, 4, 10, 14, 15)
• Nigel Walton – mastering

Additional personnel

• Sony / ATV Music Publishing (UK) – publishing (all tracks)
• ASCAP – co-publishing (3)
• Tony Perrin at Big Life – management
• Colin Roberts at Big Life – management
• Rachael Wright – polaroids
• Phil Armson at Big Active – design and imagery

Charts

Chart (2016)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[34]	15
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[35]	29
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[36]	25
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[37]	39
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[38]	78
French Albums (SNEP)[39]	84
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[40]	30
Irish Albums (IRMA)[41]	61
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[42]	38
UK Albums (OCC)[43]	12
US Billboard 200[44]	198

References

1. https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/hymns-deluxe-edition/id1046607276
2. "Creative Spotlight: Episode #306 – Matt Tong of Bloc Party". Japan Cinema. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
3. Dekel, Jon (13 June 2013). "Bloc Party plans indefinite break after summer festival circut". The National Post. Postmedia Network. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
4. Reilly, Dan (12 June 2013). "Bloc Party going on indefinite hiatus". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
5. "Bloc Party - Tapes". !K7 Records. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
6. "Bloc Party's Kele Okereke on Being Gay and Black in the Dance and Rock Worlds". Vice. 11 September 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
7. "Gordon Moakes leaves Bloc Party". It's All Indie. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
8. "FYF Fest 2015: Bloc Party demands dance party, gets crowd on their feet Saturday". Retrieved 24 August 2015.
9. Helman, Peter (20 August 2015). "Watch Bloc Party Debut Two New Songs in Pomona". Stereogum. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
10. http://blocparty.net/gigography2009.html
11. http://blocboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=46
12. "Bloc Party make live return, debut new songs". DIY. Retrieved 21 August 2015.
13. NME.COM. "Bloc Party debut new line-up and play new songs live ahead of fifth album release - watch". NME.COM. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
14. YouTube. "Bloc Party (Live) - FYF Fest - New Song". YouTube. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
15. "Bloc Party's Upcoming Fifth Album - Everything We Know So Far About 'Hymns' | NME.COM". NME.COM. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
16. "Bloc Party name fifth album 'Hymns', share 'The Love Within'". DIY. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
17. "Bloc Party announces new album, Hymns, premieres "The Love Within" -- listen". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
18. "Bloc Party unveil new single 'The Love Within' and announce new album Hymns". HMV. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
19. https://twitter.com/BlocParty/status/653579040645902336
20. Campbell, Brian (29 January 2016). "Bloc Party back on the scene with album Hymns and two new members". The Irish News.
21. Hymns (liner notes). Bloc Party. BMG. 2016.
22. Twitter. "Russell Lissack on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
23. Matthews, Nammie (11 January 2016). "BN1 chats with...Bloc Party". BN1. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
24. "X-posure with John Kennedy". X-posure. 28 January 2016. Event occurs at 11pm. Radio X.
25. "Bloc Party - Hymns". .
26. All Music: Genre: Shoegaze. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
27. "Anatomy of an Album: Bloc Party's 'Hymns'". Out magazine. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
28. "Bloc Party - Hymns". Metacritic. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
29. Phares, Heather. "Hymns – Bloc Party". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
30. Hanratty, Dave. "Bloc Party Hymns". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
31. "Bloc Party - Hymns". The Observer. Retrieved 26 January 2016.
32. "Bloc Party - Hymns". .
33. "Bloc Party - Hymns". The Skinny. Retrieved 26 January 2016.
34. "Australiancharts.com – Bloc Party – Hymns". Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
35. "Austriancharts.at – Bloc Party – Hymns" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
36. "Ultratop.be – Bloc Party – Hymns" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
37. "Ultratop.be – Bloc Party – Hymns" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
38. "Dutchcharts.nl – Bloc Party – Hymns" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
39. "Lescharts.com – Bloc Party – Hymns". Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
40. "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
41. "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 5, 2016". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
42. "Swisscharts.com – Bloc Party – Hymns". Hung Medien. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
43. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
44. "Bloc Party – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Bloc Party. Retrieved 9 February 2016.