Okay, so it’s a while since I’ve done one of these roundup posts (almost a whole month), and I probably should find another name than “daily roundup” if I can’t do one a day!

Recently I’ve been quite busy working my way through university stuff, so new music finding has gone by the wayside pretty much unfortunately, though I did find School of Seven Bells the other day (pictured at top), with their lovely shoegazy dancy sounds… Dancegaze if you will. Smooth, impressive sounds from the ex-Secret Machines Benjamin Curtis and twins Alejandra and Claudia Deheza formerly of On! Air! Library!. I only wish I could have got to London to catch them tonight or tomorrow night - seem impressive, and ones to watch.

I’ve mentioned my love of Dan Black (pictured right) before, but his first “official” single “Yours” is out on 1st December, and I must say the video is looking pretty good. It’s no HYPNTZ, but it’s pretty darned good. And it features dancing on space hoppers, which is always a winner in my books!

I’m trying to resist the urge to proclaim bands as “amazing” too much at the moment - reading back a few old posts I’ve realised I have a tendency to proclaim undying love for bands that ultimately are pretty average. So feel free to yell at me if I proclaim a pretty average band as amazing!

One of my favourite music blogs, Winston’s Zen has been going from strength to strength recently, with a redesign, coverage from the new Freeze Festival in London’s Battersea Power Station, and a new “classic albums” section which started off with my review of The National’s Boxer which is still possibly one of my top 5 albums.

I haven’t really mentioned Lykke Li much recently, but I’ve realised that her album has become one of my favourites of the year. Slow, haunting, its slowly crept its way under my skin and has me craving it on the morning drive to uni. Her new single, Little Bit, came out yesterday, so be sure to download it pronto! The rather good and fitting video is available here.

Finally, I got my new Bloc Party album on Saturday in the post. it seems so long since they first announced Intimacy and made it available for download on MP3, and I fell in love with it for the first time. The CD is amazingly packaged (and somehow reminds me of Placebo’s “Sleeping with Ghosts” in looks) though would have preferred it if the last two “new” tracks had been left out - we just haven’t “clicked” yet.

Coming up, we’ve got more album and EP reviews, along with news of our new end-of-year survey with some great prizes for those of you who help us.

So yesterday I went to see Batman: The Dark Knight at London’s IMAX cinema, and we were blown away at the quality and sound of it on such a big screen. I’d already seen it before on a normal cinema screen, but yesterday was definitely worth the three hour journey each way. Of course, with so much time on a bus and tube, I got through some serious listening on my iPod.

Having received Bloc Party’s Talons on Tuesday night, it’s been pretty much on repeat the whole time. Simply amazing, and is so far right up there with Ion Square as my favourite track of Intimacy. The video fits the song perfectly, and is suitably dark and brooding as Kele’s lyrics.

The press release comments:

Talking about Talons singer Kele said, “we wanted to keep things fresh and we thought the fans would be more excited to get a new song rather than something off the album. Talons is one of the last songs we recorded during the Intimacy sessions and I always had it in mind to be one of the extra tracks we promised for the CD if it turned out well. It turned out great so we decided to make it the next single. I’m enjoying this way of working, not over-thinking things, just make a decision and get on with it! It’s quite liberating in a way, I’m sure it’s going to be the way things happen more and more in the future”

Could this mean that they announce whole tours this way? I’d kinda like it if they just announced “oh, we’re playing London’s Astoria next Wednesday… and then Bristol’s Academy… and maybe some more venues too, we haven’t really decided yet!”. However I doubt they’d do that, for the logistical problems. But it’d be cool.

In my inbox this morning I found a link to a company that film live concerts in Europe, Fabchannel. I haven’t come across them before, but WOW. They have a great range of full gigs filmed on the continent, in amazing quality. I sound like I’ve been paid to gush this much, but I think it’ll be providing me with several evenings of entertainment. They sent me a link to Jack McManus who I haven’t come across before, and sounds pretty good at first listen, but I also came across full sets from Bloc Party, Delays, Los Campesinos (including the “most polite stage invasion ever”), The Courteeners, Pipettes… well, I could go on and on. You get the picture!

Finally, I found in my inbox an MP3 that I’d forgotten about. Sent to me about 4 weeks ago, Melbourne based Ancient Free Gardeners have a great sound - dreamy, a bit Shins-esque, with hints of The National and Radiohead shining through. Download the free MP3, and stop by their myspace to show some love - I’m sure they’d appreciate it.

MP3: Ancient Free Gardeners - Innards Out

Just a quick one tonight, as I’m plain and simply cream crackered at the moment - working 30-40 hours a week and then going to a gig or so a week and the usual pub evenings is pretty hard work… (boy, it’s a hard life, no?)

Bloc Party did another one of their suprises last night, announcing the release of Talons, their second single, and one that wasn’t on Intimacy, but will be on the physical release in October. In short, it’s pretty darned amazing, as with all of their Intimacy era stuff. A bit 80’s rock, a bit dark and murky, but ultimately good. I’m not posting the MP3 as I think it’s just asking for me to get (another) cease and desist, but I’m sure those of you in the know can get a copy for free.

Of course tonight is also the Mercury music prize, with my money firmly on Laura Marling to win, though I doubt the judges will choose her, probably sticking to a safer bet like Radiohead, Elbow or Last Shadow Puppets. If Adele or Estelle wins I won’t be a happy bunny though - they’re good, but not Mercury material.

There are still some reviews of Hydro Connect coming in, almost 10 days after the event, and just make me yearn for Scotland again. Only about 50 weeks now until Hydro 2009, eh? Rock Sellout have put up a guest blog from the festival, along with a better (and more indepth) interview with Rab from Glasvegas than we did.

Meanwhile, Mike over at Chromewaves caught this weekend’s Virgin Festival in Toronto, with Bloc Party, Kooks, Fratellis and more. I’ll be checking out some of the smaller (and larger) bands I haven’t heard of when I actually have a day off.

This post originally appeared on MoreMunkeyBiz

Bloc Party have never been a band that you could pigeon-hole into a specific category, musically or personally. They further showed us this last Monday when completely out of the blue they announced that their third album, Intimacy, was to be released – on Thursday, just three days later. Not quite doing a Radiohead, they managed to stun and beat the pirates, and get people to buy it – some of my friends who don’t normally buy music actually paid money to hear if the new Bloc Party album was just as good as Silent Alarm – and it is.

Their sophomore album, “A Weekend in the City” was a bit marmite-esque for many people – you either loved it or hated it. Personally, I loved Kele’s story-telling and mystical meanings, the atmospherical sounds and bleeps and bits which showed a bit of a growing up compared to the lyrical vague-ness and punchiness of Silent Alarm. “Intimacy” seems to take the lyrical strength Kele and co found on last year’s album, mixed with the anthems of “Silent Alarm” and updated to 2008 – and it sounds good.

Co-produced by Paul Epworth (producer of “Silent Alarm”) and Jacknife Lee (producer of “A Weekend in the City”), Intimacy manages to combine the two albums to create one that is greater than the sum of its parts. Kele commented to Zane Lowe that they wanted the “rawness” of Silent Alarm, but the “experience” of A Weekend in the City.

Opening with the three-pronged attack of “Ares”, “Mercury” and “Halo”, they are all brutal yet anthemic, they’ll no doubt go down amazingly well next weekend when they headline Scotland’s Hydro Connect Festival – glow sticks at the ready! If you loved Mercury from first listen, then you’ll most likely love these three.

Electronic drum beats and a synth drone are big on “Biko” and the jangly “Signs” sees a return to “So Here We Are” era Bloc – they’re wearing their hearts on their sleeves, and are so much better for it.

“Trojan Horse” is my least favourite track – a bit chaotic, it sounds like they’re trying too many things at once, and it doesn’t exactly gel compared to some of the other stompers they have on the album.

Surely the next single will be the fast paced “One Month Off”, we see bitterness rear its ugly head in the shape of a dancefloor filler. “Translucent and sun-bleached skin / Yeah, when did you get so LA? / How can you desert me after what we’ve been through?” asks Kele over Helicopter style guitars.

It all comes together at the end of the album with “Ion Square”, which is possibly the greatest Bloc Party song done to date. Building slowly, you’re just waiting for it to explode, and when it does you just know it’d be an amazing set closer at the festivals. Kele commented that it was his favourite song on the album “because it evokes a really great time in a relationship when everything was going right”.

Kele commented ahead of the release that Intimacy was his “breakup” album, following on from the end of a relationship at the end of last year, and whilst some of the lyrics are a lot more personal and feels like he’s bearing his soul, they also haven’t forgotten to get us to move – you simply cannot stay still whilst listening to Intimacy. Go and download it now, or wait until October to buy the CD – it’s worth it.

Top banner image comes from Bloc Party’s official website’s photos archive and was taken by Emma Svensson. Bloc Party’s Intimacy is available now from their webshop, and in shops from Monday 27th October.