Who's this year's F Ferdinand?

Bloc Party, y'all. Forget about Kasabian (well, don't forget, but don't get too caught up in it.) New album, Silent Alarm, is coming out in the UK, next Tuesday, February 15. We in the states have to wait until March 22nd. In the meantime, listen to their great self-titled EP from last year.

You don't have to wait, though... you can listen to the whole Silent Alarm album streamed here (thanks to brooklynvegan for pointing it out, and thank goodness for MTV Europe.)

Gang of Four, The Strokes, Joy Division... danceable post-punk w/ thoughtful lyrics and some surprise angular elements make this my pick for album of the year (I reserve the right to change that once I hear Spoon's Gimme Fiction.)

Silent Alarm is the unpigeonholeable soundtrack to 21st-century life as a cast-off. In a world of posers, fakers and bandwagon-jumpers, Bloc Party are unquestionably ‘4 real’. They never shy away from showing their truest feelings, even if those are of vulnerability or weakness. It’s this honesty which has spoken to people and will speak to a hell of a lot more when Silent Alarm rings out beyond the desks of music journalists.
-NME

Messily truthful lyrics, sirens, guitars, rock tracks and heart-breakers: Silent Alarm is exactly what we want to wake up to.
-Manchester Online

You can instantly stop thinking of buying any other records this year, Silent Alarm will be the most important purchase you'll make in 2005.
-rawkstar.net

UPDATE 2-15-05
Pitchfork just reviewed and called it unchallenging, yet still gives it an 8.9