Bloc Party Make A Triumphant Return To Splendour 2012

July 29, 2012

The second day of Splendour has drawn to an end and with sunshine drenching the masses, the ankle deep mud from the day before was easily forgiven. Putting my gumboots through their paces, I can say with confidence that I could probably win gold at the Olympics for mud dancing (if only it was a real sport), with acts like Band of Skulls, Seekae, Ladyhawke, Tame Impala and Miike Snow keeping my feet busy. But it was nothing compared to the workout my phalanges got for main event, Bloc Party.

With the Supertop packed to the rafters and one daring punter dangling from the scaffolding, Bloc Party announced their long-awaited return to Splendour with a bang. Proving that their four-year hiatus hadn’t affected them one bit, the band leaped on stage with all their former swagger intact. With new album, Four, set to drop in August, their set was peppered with new delights, golden oldies and a particularly awesome nod to cult classic The Room, with drummer Mike Tong’s random outburst of “Oh Hi Mark”.

Opening with new track, 3×3, their heavy guitar riffs interspersed with Kele’s angst-filled wails, ‘no one loves you’ was textbook Bloc Party, easing into sing-along-to favourites, Mercury and Hunting for Witches. From there on in they pumped out a slew of classics, causing the crowd to lose their minds, including Banquet, So Here We Are, One More Chance, The Prayer and the goosebump-inducing This Modern Love scattered with latest single Octopus and new gem, The Truth, bringing out their low-tempo ballad side.

Coming out for an Encore, Kele announced that they only had fifteen minutes left to play, but it was enough to blow our minds. Blow our minds it did! Covering Rihanna’s We Found Love branded with Bloc Party’s signature stamp, they merged into Flux and Ares to earth-shattering applause. For their final number, the crowd was rewarded with favourite Helicopter and the dancing and cheering that ensued was out of this fucking world.

Bloc Party are what you would call bonafide Splendour veterans, something they admitted themselves, stating that this year was very special being the third time they have played Splendour in the Grass. Well it’s true what they say, third time’s the charm, and I think I speak for everyone when I say they’re welcome back anytime!