Hymns
by Bloc Party
User Score
5.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 69 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 30 out of 69
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 69
  3. Negative: 19 out of 69
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  1. adamdonal
    Jan 29, 2016
    7
    Better some Bloc Party than no Bloc Party, I say. I am and always have been a huge fan of Bloc Party and Kele's solo work. So you can imagine I was excited about this album so let's review song by song

    1. The Love Within The love Within is moving upwards, so don't you want to get high. No, no Kelle that's why you had to replace two band members you fool. Jokes aside I heard this    Better some Bloc Party than no Bloc Party, I say. I am and always have been a huge fan of Bloc Party and Kele's solo work. So you can imagine I was excited about this album so let's review song by song

    1. The Love Within

    The love Within is moving upwards, so don't you want to get high. No, no Kelle that's why you had to replace two band members you fool. Jokes aside I heard this track back in October and originally hated, but it's so feel-good and catchy I have grown to love it, nurse it and create children of our own with it. Great start to kick off the album

    2. Only He Can Heal Me

    You certainly won't miss this songs name as it is chanted by backing vocals through the whole song. Accompanied by a drum beat throughout kele sings about being defeated and wanting to rest by his saviours feet. On the Coke again? I can only assume this song was written for a partner? idk. Not a thrilling song but satisfying decent.

    3. So Real

    This song is beautiful. Kele really shows he has a great voice in this one. The guitar just feels so right as well. Shortest track on the album wished it went on longer.

    4. The Good News

    Another early release, this one I don't feel it has an IM FROM TEXAS YEEHAH feel. the same feel you would get from Hey Brother by Avicii. Sorry Bloc Party it is not The Good News you wanted. hahaha .    … Expand
  2. A7sus4
    Jan 29, 2016
    8
    It's a far more mellow and spacious affair then we're used to from Bloc Party, but it's definitely still Bloc Party. The more subdued soundscape imbues the album with a very personal and contemplative feel. As a whole it's also a more cohesive record than any release before it. It's a very good, solid collection of generally strong tracks (some more than others), but it's probably notIt's a far more mellow and spacious affair then we're used to from Bloc Party, but it's definitely still Bloc Party. The more subdued soundscape imbues the album with a very personal and contemplative feel. As a whole it's also a more cohesive record than any release before it. It's a very good, solid collection of generally strong tracks (some more than others), but it's probably not gonna return Bloc Party to the lime light and I'd guess many "fans" will hate it as the band's deviated even further from Silent Alarm. However, if you're like me and you like when bands continually try to reinvent themselves you'll probably like it to some degree. It definitely suits their history from that perspective.… Expand
  3. WadeVS
    Jan 29, 2016
    8
    There is a definite loss of urgency here (noticeably the once frantic drumlines are now so simple they're uninteresting), but this just reflects life. You grow up, you mellow. It's real and it happens. & so this might be the most organic and natural the band has ever sounded. It's not overwrought or trying too hard, as they were maybe prone to do in the past.
  4. unholythoughts
    Jan 30, 2016
    10
    Have you guys even HEARD Paraíso? It's incredible. This LP may be more spacious and atmospheric than their previous work but it is by no means BLoc Party's worst. I think the track listing could have been shifted around a bit (replace TLW with Eden and The Good News with Paraiso on the non-deluxe version) for sure but Hymns is ethereal and genuine and well-paced and most importantly, unique.
  5. Pbieliunas
    Jan 29, 2016
    9
    not best,but someone new.Can praise that isnt sitting on one ,virtue nice synth track someone like mando diao aelita . Certainly i miss matt thong drum.
  6. DankMeme
    May 19, 2017
    7
    The album is pretty conceptual, you see that Kele is writing from the deepest on his hearth, and lyrically the album is generally good. It's definitely worst then their past work, but I would give then a shot, there is potential here to then to grow in this different style.
  7. CosmotheSloth
    Mar 27, 2016
    8
    For full disclosure before I start this review, I am a huge Bloc Party fan and have loved everything they've done so far. However, upon reaching 'Hymns' I initially thought I'd reached an impasse with one of my all-time-favourite bands.

    'Hymns' is the epitome of the term 'a grower'. Upon hearing 'The Lover Within' I didn't feel anything less than physically ill (and still do mind). I    For full disclosure before I start this review, I am a huge Bloc Party fan and have loved everything they've done so far. However, upon reaching 'Hymns' I initially thought I'd reached an impasse with one of my all-time-favourite bands.

    'Hymns' is the epitome of the term 'a grower'. Upon hearing 'The Lover Within' I didn't feel anything less than physically ill (and still do mind). I still maintain this is one of the worst songs I've ever exposed my ears too and I've really tried to like it. However, after removing this from the equation, the album makes much more sense (minus 'The Good News'). The album is much more akin to a Kele solo album and once I treated it as such, I began to thoroughly enjoy it.

    'Only He Can Heal Me' is simply brilliant. The background vocals and lyrics are possible the high point of the album for me personally. 'Fortress' and 'Different Drugs' are also well-crafted songs with a decent dose of dark-edginess for good measure.

    Whilst 'The Good News' has been a significant point of criticism for the album, it's a song that's well written and one I find really catchy and enjoyable. The country-style slide guitar and easily follow-able chorus makes this one an easy target for a single, however I do agree that it does not fit in with the rest of this album in any shape or form.

    'Into the Earth' was a big weak point in the album for me. This where Kele's lyrics reach an all time low in my opinion, with cheap lines and bland guitar riffs really bottoming out the album's quality. However, perseverance pays off and the gem 'Exes' is a beautiful song to really pull the album back to the level it was at previously.

    I've seen a lot of comparisons between 'Ion Square' and 'Living Lux'. Whilst I appreciate the sentiment, 'Living Lux' doesn't come close to the greatest of 'Ion Square'. In a strange metaphor for the overall album, the song builds wonderfully but doesn't quite reach the heights and peaks of where you feel the songs should go. In other songs, this works in a strange melancholic way and makes you crave more, however, for a final song on the album, it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth and I always end up feeling slightly short-changed.

    All-in-all, 'Hymns' is not a Bloc Party album in the classic sense. It's reserved, dark, and vulnerable in a way that can definitely be unappealing to the masses. Whilst many constantly crave a new 'Silent Alarm', I've always appreciated Bloc Party's boldness to go in a new direction with every era, and I can confirm that this is the case once again. They didn't half make it hard but I've really come to love the album and if you have the time to commit to this album, I'm sure you'll appreciate it as much as I do.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

62
#62 Most Discussed Album of 2016

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
55

Mixed or average reviews - based on 29 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 21 out of 29
  3. Negative: 2 out of 29
  1. Austin Chronicle
    Mar 17, 2016
    40
    Lacking the band's prior specificity, too much of the album languishes in uncommitted sprawl.
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  2. No Ripcord
    Feb 16, 2016
    40
    The problem with Hymns is that it chugs along with a series of stilted niceties that lack any kind of rhythm or emotion.
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  3. Punknews.org (Staff)
    Feb 8, 2016
    20
    It's such a musically bare record. "Into The Earth" is the only song that feels like a rock song and it's also very soft and drab. So many songs riff off the same synth beats that HYMNS end up being a contemplative session that puts you to sleep as opposed to prodding at your mind.
    Read full review
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