REVIEW: Bloc Party, Cults @ House of Blues 9/19

By Grant Hillyer

Opening for Bloc Party at the Boston House of Blues on Thursday, September 19th, Cults played a mix of old classics and new material in a valiant effort to warm up the crowd that was there early enough to see them. The band of five engaged with the crowd, shouting out those who were dancing and singing along to songs from their debut such as “Go Outside.” Brian Oblivion, the band’s keyboardist, kept the crowd interested between songs like “Always Forever” and “Talk in Circles” by mentioning Boston was their most played city, despite being from New York. The set was short, but the band did their best to deliver live renditions faithful to the records while mixing in an appropriate balance of fun banter and respect for the more serious cuts. 

Bloc Party came on shortly after Cults, ready to play through their classic Silent Alarm. The first twist of the night came when they opened with “Compliments,” and it became clear they were playing through the album backward. Surprisingly, it worked really well. The more downbeat “Compliments” and “Plans” transitioned quite well into the uber-high energy “Pioneers” and “This Modern Love.” The format also made sense as Silent Alarm is a bit top-heavy and this let the band save the fan favorites for later in the night. 

This performance of Silent Alarm was very true to the record, even though the original drummer Matt Tong and bassist Gordon Moakes were missing from the lineup. Louise Bartle and Justin Harris filled in admirably, thanking the crowd several times before their five-song encore consisting of fan favorites from non-Silent Alarm albums. Singer Kele Okereke teased the crowd multiple times, telling them he couldn’t hear them before disapprovingly shaking his head before he was satisfied with the loudness of the group. This was especially effective during “Positive Tension” and the singalong inducing “The Marshals Are Dead.” The band even took a request, as the crowd shouted for “Skeleton” as the group of four came back out to play their encore. 

There was no giant Pikachu balloon on stage as there was on their earlier tours, but behind the band was a giant poster featuring the cover of Silent Alarm and flashing red and blue lights that were timed perfectly to be in sync with the inflections of the songs. The band was on all night, and they reminded the crowd why Silent Alarm is considered a classic, even in the absence of the original lineup.