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Top » Bands and Artists » B » Bloc Party » Biographies

Biography: The Answer

Kele Okereke and Russell Lissack knew each other vaguely through mutual friends in Essex, where Kele went to school and Russell lived. At the Reading Festival in 1999 they met again and upon realising they had similar music tastes, vowed to start a band together. They wrote together for months. In early 2000 Gordon Moakes came on board via the pages of NME. In 2003, after eight drummers, they met Matt Tong and Bloc Party was formed. September 2003 saw Bloc Party gain their first major gig - supporting Franz Ferdinand at Elektrowerkz in London. They were a fierce live act, and picked up the attention of BBC Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq, who began playing their first single 'She's Hearing Voices'. After releasing two more singles, 'Banquet' and 'Little Thoughts', they spent a frantic month in Copenhagen with producer Paul Epworth recording their first album, Silent Alarm. The title was taken from a New Scientist article on earthquake warning systems. It fits with the music - unrest, tension and energy. There was certainly tension to get hold of it - having debuted at no. 3 in the British charts. The success was complemented by a year of manic touring. Not only the UK but Europe, America, Japan and Australia, headlining a few festivals along the way. Silent Alarm has been re-released in Deluxe and Remixed format. A truly vital album from a band passionate about music.
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