Bloc Party Still Remembers How to Rock

Bloc Party is coming stateside. Billboard reports that the U.K. buzz band has unveiled the following North American tour dates:

March 11: Seattle (Paramount Theatre)
March 12: Vancouver (Orpheum Theatre)
March 13: Portland, Ore. (Crystal Ballroom)
March 15: Austin, Texas (South by Southwest)
March 17: San Francisco (Concourse Exhibition)
March 19-20: Los Angeles (Wiltern Theatre)
March 23: Chicago (Congress Theatre)
March 24: Detroit (Royal Oak Theatre)
March 25: Toronto (Kool Haus)
March 27: Montreal (Metropolis)
March 28: Boston (Orpheum Theatre)
March 30-31: New York (United Palace Theatre)

Billboard also reports that opening acts will be rotated among The Strokes' Albert Hammond, Jr., Final Fantasy, Sebastian Grangier, The Like and Smoosh.

Meanwhile, MTV2 has an exclusive video premiere of Bloc's first U.S. single, "I Still Remember." The Aggressive-directed clip is available here.

Additionally, Reuters recently shed some new insight on the band's forthcoming sophomore effort, "A Weekend in the City."

"A Weekend in the City," particularly on its back half, is dominated by slower, richly textured songs that stretch into pop/rock territory.

"It's got everything that makes a Coldplay song, plus more," bassist Gordon Moakes says of the band's more introspective material. "It has a lush sound without being too syrupy."

It also features much more direct vocals from frontman Kele Okereke, who makes a big leap as a songwriter and lyricist on this loose song cycle that thematically mirrors its title.

"I wanted to make something that could be more easily understood, without dumbing it down," Okereke says.

The article mentions the aforementioned headlining March U.S. tour and also confirms 3 more domestic visits before the end of 2007.

With the newly released single plus "The Prayer," there is no doubt that Bloc Party is on the list of most anticipated albums of the year and quite near the top to boot.

What are on your list of the most anticipated albums of the year?


For more on Bloc Party: http://www.blocparty.com