-
8.0
83250
8.0 |
The Observer
A brave and successful reinvention
Read Review
-
8.0
83299
8.0 |
NME
A bewitching new Bloc Party has risen from the grave. Praise be
Read Review
-
8.0
83332
8.0 |
Spectrum Culture
Bloc Party has turned out a well-paced, diverse, interesting and staggeringly beautiful record
Read Review
-
7.5
83368
7.5 |
Beardfood
Fun, catchy, interesting. It's not as full throttle as Four, it's something more
Read Review
-
7.0
83731
7.0 |
AU Review
While many fans may retreat back to A Weekend In The City or Silent Alarm, there is also no reason why Hymns can’t (or won’t) be enjoyed by loyal fans in the future
Read Review
-
7.0
84010
7.0 |
Gig Soup
While it may not bring us any closer to the spiritual revelation it contemplates or live up to expectations set from over a decade ago, ‘Hymns’ certainly retains Bloc Party’s sense of purity and vulnerability
Read Review
-
7.0
83157
7.0 |
The Line Of Best Fit
There was a worry that Bloc Party wouldn’t survive, but HYMNS proves quite the opposite. With this newfound freedom, the future of Okereke, Lissack, Bartle, and Harris looks brighter than ever
Read Review
-
7.0
83168
7.0 |
Uncut
Reinvented with soul boy angst and club-tinged electronics. Print edition only
-
6.9
83161
6.9 |
Earbuddy
Overall the songs just feel a little lacking in originality, even with the new sounds from Lissack
Read Review
-
6.0
83158
6.0 |
Spin
It’s a better album than 2012’s conflicted, twilit Four, but Okereke’s new grace awaits an engine as powerful as the one enjoyed by his old gracelessness
Read Review
-
6.0
83153
6.0 |
DIY
Like the band themselves these days, though, ‘Hymns’ is as patchwork as they come
Read Review
-
6.0
83169
6.0 |
Q
This record is a sideways take on religious music. Print edition only
-
6.0
83170
6.0 |
Mojo
Once-hyperactive indie rockers change lanes, slowly. Print edition only
-
6.0
83246
6.0 |
All Music
Ultimately, Hymns finds Bloc Party stuck between a fresh start and continuing their legacy, leaving their identity - which once seemed so distinctive - compromised
Read Review
-
6.0
84561
6.0 |
FasterLouder
Hymns is at its best when it flaunts finer points of its high-end production flourish
Read Review
-
6.0
83327
6.0 |
State
Overall, Hymns is a difficult but rewarding listen
Read Review
-
5.8
83160
5.8 |
Consequence Of Sound
Their strongest work in years
Read Review
-
5.6
83352
5.6 |
Paste Magazine
Hymns may flatline as a concept album, even a loose one—but then again, nobody listens to Bloc Party for the lyrics
Read Review
-
5.0
83358
5.0 |
PopMatters
Over a decade since their classic debut Silent Alarm, Bloc Party's fifth album does nothing to change the downward trajectory of each album they've released since
Read Review
-
5.0
83163
5.0 |
Pitchfork
As ever, Okereke’s lyrically inspired moments are not perfect but richly specific and poignant
Read Review
-
4.2
83166
4.2 |
A.V. Club
The emotional bent of Hymns meanders like a passing breeze before it dissipates
Read Review
-
4.0
83167
4.0 |
The Quietus
Bloc Party are dead, long live Bloc Party
Read Review
-
4.0
83164
4.0 |
Under The Radar
Bloc Party has always been capable of great and deep thought, even when moving at a high rate of speed. Without that added urgency, Hymns falls flat
Read Review
-
4.0
83247
4.0 |
Evening Standard
It all rings a little hollow — a pastiche rather than a reawakening
Read Review
-
4.0
83154
4.0 |
The Guardian
Guitarist Russell Lissack does his best to insert some typically wiry licks where possible, but there’s none of the claustrophobia or unease that used to make Bloc Party so vital
Read Review
-
4.0
83155
4.0 |
Clash
There’s something close to an excellent EP in amongst some of the very worst things ever to bear the Bloc Party name
Read Review
-
4.0
83156
4.0 |
musicOMH
For those expecting the worst ahead of Bloc Party’s return, Hymns is likely to validate all their fears
Read Review
-
4.0
83159
4.0 |
The Skinny
'Different Drugs' speaks for the entire record; flirting with a series of ideas before simply fading out of sight and mind
Read Review
-
4.0
83423
4.0 |
The 405
They picked the worst possible time to lose their nerve, and turn in something so bereft of conviction and new ideas
Read Review
-
4.0
83513
4.0 |
No Ripcord
The problem with Hymns is that it chugs along with a series of stilted niceties that lack any kind of rhythm or emotion
Read Review
-
4.0
83324
4.0 |
Tiny Mix Tapes
The album is a tiresome listen, almost as tiresome as the narrative arc — “former post-punk revival band releases album to diminished returns” — it inhabit
Read Review
-
3.0
83162
3.0 |
Drowned In Sound
There is a lot to be said for persistence, but one must know when to walk away, too
Read Review
-
2.0
83165
2.0 |
The Music
There are plenty of bands doing this music better right now, and Bloc Party sound tired
Read Review
-