It's wise to be cautious when dealing with bands that are garnering overwhelming critical praise, especially when they can be seen as part of a larger trend (like say the whole 80's post-punk revival that's been in vogue lately). Sometimes, they're just being hyped in the hopes that they'll manage to deliver something great, and the critic writing the praises will look like a Music Genius(tm). But in the case of Bloc Party, it's safe to believe the hype. I really like the Killers and Franz Ferdinand. They've got miles of style, and some solid songs to boot. Bloc Party doesn't have the style, but man have they got the substance - in spades. Track-for-track I think their debut Silent Alarm is better than both Hot Fuss and Franz Ferdinand and that's saying a lot. They've blended a lot of edgy post-punk influences (Gang of Four, Wire, Sonic Youth) into a diverse set of songs while adding enough melody to compete on the pop playing field. The shifting rhythms keep you hooked for the whole album and the lyrics are nothing if not topical (i.e. "Price of Gas", "Helicopter"). Best album of 2005, so far. 9 out of 10.
But there's plenty of proof for the overhyped band rule. Take, for example, The Bravery -- yet another New York group that wants to party like it's 1989. On their self-titled debut, they've done a passable job of aping The Cure, The Smiths, and New Order. And they've got a potential chart hit with "An Honest Mistake". But most of the album plays like a mix-tape of below average album tracks from their influences. There is no real spark or inspiration. Their lead singer is devoid of genuine personality and the band plays it completely by-the-numbers. They appear to have missed the fact that Robert Smith, Morrissey, and Bernard Sumner were (and still are) pretty eccentric characters whose bands weren't afraid to experiment and take a few left turns in their music. These guys are the to the neo-80's "scene" what Stone Temple Pilots were to the grunge "scene" of the early 90's -- bandwagon jumpers looking to cash in on a trend. STP managed to evolve and put together enough decent songs to fill a greatest hits album. The Bravery would be lucky to make it that far. 5 out of 10.