Battle of the Bands: Deerhoof vs. Bloc Party

It's time for another round of Battle of the Bands. Deerhoof released their Friend Opportunity album a couple of weeks ago, and it received significant reviews from the online music community. But can the trio survive against an assault from Bloc Party, fresh off their 2005 Silent Alarm success?

Deerhoof's album is quite a bit of progressive and eclectic rock. I don't lump them in with the likes of Dream Theater, Allman Bros., etc. when I say "progressive rock," but I will make the reasons for the use of the term clear shortly.

Instantly you are struck with a powerful attack of keyboard synth, bass beat, and furious drumming as the album opens with "The Perfect Me." You will probably enjoy the novelty of the chord progression, but a tension build under the changes and you seek some form of resolution. Ironically, the relief comes from Satomi Matsuzaki, and initially her voice sounds foreign and peculiar to the indie afficionado who has his sights turned to the East Coast and Europe. Matsuzaki, like so many other singers, can initially put you off and make you feel uncomfortable. But her voice is an acquired taste, not unlike black dark roast coffee. The singer's voice is not merely a thing at which you scratch your head and mutter "Ok, that's cute...," but it become endearing and a valuable part of Deerhoof's arsenal.

After more than 40 years of rock and roll, it might seem like all the creative riffs have been discovered, and that all of the various arrangements of instruments have been made. But Deerhoof's Friend Opportunity continues to press the limits of their instruments, their artistic abilities, and the genre itself. The result is a rich diverse album that is at the same time simple, thoughtful, and most importantly, enjoyable.

Listen to Deerhoof's "+81."

Bloc Party released A Weekend in the City last week, and I downloaded it (from emusic.com) to see if it could live up to the pressure of a great debut album. I loved Bloc Party's single from their last album, "Helicopter." The fact that FIFA 06 used that single as the soundtrack to an English Premiership highlight reel made the song even more enjoyable, but now when I listen to it I want to play soccer.

I was expecting more of the same, with a few artistic developments when I downloaded the album. My thoughts on it are mixed, and while I've listened to the album the whole way through a couple of times, there are songs that make me instantly switch what I'm listening to on iTunes. A reviewer at Cokemachineglow tellingly wrote, "Okereke now sings instead of barking, and, well, oops on him." Okereke's style was unique and sincere, but his newer efforts at lyric-singing reduce him to an average singer, and it seems that anyone with a similar range (and his isn't that marvelous) could fill his shoes. And I will let other reviewers online comment on the poverty of some of the lyrics. Okereke...I don't care if you want to drive to Brighton on the weekend.

With the singer out of the way, we are left considering the rest of the band. Russell Lissack provides a few fun riffs just as he did in "Helicopter," and Matt Tong's drumming is as fast-paced as ever. The problem involves what happens between the riffs, which are scattered and uneven throughout the album. Bloc Party seems to be committed to the electric lead and rhythm guitars, a full drum kit, and an unimpressive bass as their means of communicating their thoughts and music. Unfortunately, this reveals that they are more instrumentalists than musicians. On Weekend in the City, they bound themselves to a very limited form of expression, and while they may express some art-rock norms, they are unable to push the boundaries and advance music in a significant way.

Watch Bloc Party's live performance of "Hunting for Witches"


That's why Deerhoof wins out in this issue of Battle of the Bands. Deerhoof provides the listener with clearly identifiable rock patterns, so that the listener feels comfortable. Bloc Party does the same, but Deerhoof uses that comfort to gradually introduce new thoughts on music, and thus helps the listener appreciate even more forms of music, and isn't that what releasing an album should be all about?