Four Frenchkiss***

There's nothing like a short hiatus to get a band, especially one racked by infighting and a frontman with an ever-inflating ego, back on the straight and narrow. In Bloc Party's case the choppy indie shapes of their first two albums and the electro-anxiety of Intimacy have been replaced by a liberated aural assault. The crunching riff of 3x3 gives a nod to Deftones while Kettling offers a tip of the hat to The Smashing Pumpkins (who also learned that Pro Tools isn't a cure for creative lethargy). The album is peppered with catchy tunes – check out Octopus, V.A.L.I.S. and Truth – and even Kele Okereke's penchant for hyper-earnest preaching is pared back. Arguing whether this marks a step forward or backward misses the point: Four is about a band rediscovering their passion for making music together and sounding all the better for it. blocparty.com

Download tracks:Octopus, Coliseum, Truth