A Weekend in the City

Infobox Album
Name = A Weekend in the City
Type = studio
Artist = Bloc Party


Released = start date|2007|2|5|df=yes
Recorded = Grouse Lodge Studios, Westmeath, Ireland
Genre = Indie rock, art rock
Length = 51:50
Label = Wichita (UK)
Vice (U.S.)
Producer = Jacknife Lee
Reviews =
*Allmusic Rating|4|5 [http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:kt6qoaqa5ij9 link]
*"Blender" rating|3.5|5 [http://blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=4372 link]
*Drowned In Sound (9/10) [http://www.drownedinsound.com/release/view/8770#r1540272 link]
*"Entertainment.ie" rating|4|5 [http://www.entertainment.ie/reviews/review.asp?ID=4834&subcat=CD link]
*"NME" (8/10) [http://www.nme.com/reviews/bloc-party/8144 link]
*Pitchfork Media (7.5/10) [http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/40927/Bloc_Party_A_Weekend_in_the_City link]
*"Q" Rating|3|5
*"Spin" rating|3|5 [http://www.spin.com/reviews/2007/03/0702_blocparty link]
*Stylus (C+) [http://stylusmagazine.com/reviews/bloc-party/a-weekend-in-the-city.htm 5 February 2007]
*punknews.org Rating|4.5|5 [http://www.punknews.org/review/6029 link]
Last album = "Two More Years EP"
(2005)
This album = "A Weekend in the City"
(2007)
Next album = "Intimacy" (2008)
Misc = Extra album cover
Upper caption = Alternate cover
Background = lightsteelblue


Lower caption = Special CD+DVD edition
Misc = Singles
Name = A Weekend in the City
Type = album
Single 1 = The Prayer
Single 1 date = 29 January 2007
Single 2 = I Still Remember
Single 2 date = 9 April 2007
Single 3 = Hunting for Witches
Single 3 date = 9 July 2007
Single 4 = Flux
Single 4 date = 12 November 2007

"A Weekend in the City" is the second studio album by Bloc Party, which was released on 5 February 2007. The album was produced by Jacknife Lee. The album cover is "A Modern Project" by Rut Blees Luxemburg.This album deals much more with normal day working life than was addressed on "Silent Alarm", drawing themes from the 7 July 2005 London bombings, immigration, drug abuse, Black British lifestyle, and criticism of youth subculture and casual sex. The album has been met with largely positive reviews by web-critics and fans alike. [http://www.themusicnazi.com/?p=565 Bloc Party - "A Weekend in the City".] Posted 15 November 2006.] [http://ericnuzum.typepad.com/orangejellolemonjello/2006/11/weak_leak.html Weak Leak?] Posted 22 November 2006.] [http://earfood.typepad.com/mimr/2006/12/a_weekend_in_th.html "A Weekend in the City.] Posted 2 December 2006.]

The album came in at #56 in the UK end of year album chart, selling around 266,500 copies in 2007. To date over 1 million copies of the album have been sold worldwide.

The first UK single, "The Prayer", was released on 29 January 2007. The first single in the U.S. is "I Still Remember". The album itself entered the UK chart at number 2. In the U.S., the album debuted at number 12 on the "Billboard" 200, [cite web
url=http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/esearch/chart_display.jsp?cfi=305&cfgn=Albums&cfn=The+Billboard+200&ci=3082448&cdi=9199601&cid=03%2F03%2F2007
title=Top Music Charts - Hot 100 - "Billboard" 200 - Music Genre Sales
publisher=www.billboard.com
accessdate=2008-04-01
last=
first=] with 47,726 copies sold (according to Nielsen SoundScan). [IndieHQ, [http://indiehq.com/2007/02/14/independent-sales-chart-2-14-07/ "Independent Sales Chart 2-14-07"] , IndieHQ.com, 14 February 2007.] The album has sold 148,000 copies in the U.S. up to August 2008. [Paine, Andre. [http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003841773 "Bloc Party Says Download 'Definitely Working'"] . "Billboard". August 22 2008.]

Album history

"Song for Clay (Disappear Here)" was originally titled "Merge on the Freeway", and "Song for Clayton" (and is inspired by the novel "Less Than Zero" by Bret Easton Ellis), [http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/page/news/2006/6/8/Exclusive_Kele_Okereke_Talks_New_Bloc_Party_Album#36828 Exclusive: Kele Okereke Talks New Bloc Party Album.] Posted 8 June 2006.] "The Prayer" was originally "A Prayer to the Lord", "On" was originally "Wet", "Where Is Home?" was originally "Death of a Century", "Machine" and "Perfect Teens", and "I Still Remember" was originally "It Started in an Afternoon".

A low-quality rip of the album was leaked in its entirety in November 2006, three months before the official release. [http://www.stereogum.com/archives/003945.html "A Weekend in the City" Watercooler] . Posted 13 November 2006.] Faculty from V2 Records have been trying to delete the leaked files from P2P and torrent networks while keeping the leak unknown to the public.Fact|date=February 2007 A high-quality rip of the album became available through various torrent networks on 11 January 2007.

When the album was previewed (seemingly in its entirety) on MySpace, the song "Where Is Home?" was omitted, suggesting it may not appear on the album upon its release. However, the song was indeed included on the CD and vinyl releases.

The song SRXT takes its name from the drug Seroxat (a.k.a. Paroxetine) (with all of the vowels removed), controversial for the suggestion it causes suicide. This relates to one of the two mains themes of the song, one being suicide and the other being depression. The track was originally called Seroxat, but was later changed to SRXT in order to avoid legal issues. In that song there is the line "I called up Eugene, Told him I was drowning". Eugene is Kele Okereke's father's name.

In an interview with MTV Canada, Okereke has also said that due to their "four album deal" with their record company, they made it so that each member of the band gets to put their own influences into the album (besides Okereke's lyrical content). This album features more of Russell Lissack's influences.

Lyrics

The changing nature of Okereke's lyrics compared to those on "Silent Alarm" has gained much of the critical focus of this album. The highly direct approach has divided critics and fans. Allmusic praises the band for "conveying ambivalence and yearning in remarkably direct terms" [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:ne5k8qtfbtq4~T1 All Music review of "A Weekend in the City"] ] while The Guardian remarks that there is "barely a song that isn't kneecapped by one of Okereke's lyrical clangers"' [http://arts.guardian.co.uk/filmandmusic/story/0,,2003636,00.html The Guardian Review of "A Weekend in the City"] ] .

pecial editions

On start date|2007|1|23 the album became available for pre-order on the U.S. iTunes, with two bonus tracks added, one of them "pre-order only" (see below). There are several different editions of the CD that are only available in certain countries or at certain retailers, containing one or two other bonus tracks. On these editions, the bonus tracks are separated from the others by a silent three minute pregap.

A special two-disc limited edition version of the CD was released alongside a bonus DVD containing "The Making of A Weekend in the City" and the music videos for "The Prayer" and "I Still Remember".

As with Bloc Party's debut Silent Alarm, there were two vinyl editions initially released: a standard, single LP on black vinyl, and a limited edition picture disc LP, which featured the album cover on its A side and a tracklisting on black background on its B side. There are only 1000 copies of the limted edition picture disc LP.

Two songs that have been played live prior to the album's release but did not make it onto the album are "England" (formerly "Blue Moon") and "We Were Lovers" (formerly "Into the Blue" and "Cells Shaped Like Stars"). Both serve as B-sides to "The Prayer" as well as bonus tracks to the Japanese edition of the album.

On start date|2007|7|23 the album was reissued in Australia as a double disc CD/DVD tour edition. The CD was expanded with bonus remixes and the second disc was a DVD featuring tracks recorded for Britain's Channel 4.

In the UK, the album was reissued on start date|2007|11|19 in both CD and CD/DVD formats. The tracklisting was reconfigured to include new single "Flux".

Track listing

CD: Wichita / WEBB120CD (UK)

All songs by Bloc Party
#"Song for Clay (Disappear Here)" – 4:49
#"Hunting for Witches" – 3:31
#"Waiting for the 7.18" – 4:17
#"The Prayer" – 3:45
#"Uniform" – 5:32
#"On" – 4:46
#"Where Is Home?" – 4:54
#"Kreuzberg" – 5:27
#"I Still Remember" – 4:23
#"Sunday" – 4:59
#"SRXT" – 4:51

* also available on LP (WEBB120LP) and picture disc (WEBB120PD)

CD/DVD: Wichita / WEBB120CDL (UK)

CD as above plus the following on DVD:
# "Studio Footage"
# "Interviews"
# "The Prayer" (video)
# "I Still Remember" (video)

CD: Wichita / WEBB120CDX (UK)

#"Song for Clay (Disappear Here)" – 4:49
#"Hunting for Witches" – 3:31
#"Waiting for the 7.18" – 4:17
#"The Prayer" – 3:45
#"Uniform" – 5:32
#"On" – 4:46
#"Where Is Home?" – 4:54
#"Kreuzberg" – 5:27
#"I Still Remember" – 4:23
#"Flux" – 3:37
#"Sunday" – 4:59
#"SRXT" – 4:51
* released start date|2007|11|19

CD/DVD: Wichita / WEBB120CDX2 (UK)

CD as above. Includes DVD with bonus footage:

Live at the Reading Festival 2007
#"Song for Clay (Disappear Here)"
#"Positive Tension"
#"Hunting for Witches"
#"Waiting for the 7.18"
#"Banquet"
#"This Modern Love"
#"The Prayer"
#"So Here We Are"
#"Like Eating Glass"
#"She's Hearing Voices"
#"Helicopter"All tracks are BBC Live Versions"

Videos
#"The Prayer"
#"I Still Remember"
#"Hunting for Witches"
#"Flux"
* released start date|2007|11|19

CD/DVD: Wichita / WEBB120CDAU (Australia)

CD
#"Song for Clay (Disappear Here)" – 4:49
#"Hunting for Witches" – 3:31
#"Waiting for the 7.18" – 4:17
#"The Prayer" – 3:45
#"Uniform" – 5:32
#"On" – 4:46
#"Where Is Home?" – 4:54
#"Kreuzberg" – 5:27
#"I Still Remember" – 4:23
#"Sunday" – 4:59
#"SRXT" – 4:51
# "Uniform" (James Rutledge Remix) – 8:34
# "Hunting For Witches" (Fury666 Remix) – 3:42
# "I Still Remember" (Speaker Junk Bass Bin Remix) – 5:13
# "Hunting For Witches" (Crystal Castles Remix) – 4:57

DVD
# Channel 4 Music Special:
## "Banquet"
## "Hunting For Witches"
## "I Still Remember"
## "Sunday"
## "The Prayer"
## "Uniform"
## "Waiting For The 7.18"

Bonus tracks

A collection of most of Bloc Party's B-sides has been dubbed by fans as "Another Weekend in the City":

*"We Were Lovers" (Japanese edition) – 4:12
**Also a B-side to "The Prayer"
*"England" (Japanese edition) – 4:15
**Also a B-side to "The Prayer"
*"Cain Said to Abel" (iTunes US) – 3:24
**Also a B-side to "I Still Remember"
*"Atonement" (iTunes US pre-order) – 3:46
**Also a B-side to "I Still Remember"
*"Version 2.0" (Best Buy version) – 3:19
**Also a B-side to "The Prayer"
*"Emma Kate's Accident" (Best Buy version) – 5:38
**Also a B-side to "Flux"
*"Secrets" (Canadian version & Target version) – 4:06
**Also a B-side to "Hunting for Witches"
*"The Once and Future King" (Canadian version & Target version) – 3:20
**Also a B-side to "Flux"
*"Rhododendrons" (eMusic US) – 4:49
**Also a B-side to "Hunting for Witches"
*"Selfish Son" (Napster and Rhapsody) – 4:59
**Also a B-side to "I Still Remember"
*"Cavaliers and Roundheads" - 3:44

Use of songs in other media

* The songs "Kreuzberg" and "I Still Remember", were featured in an episode of "The O.C." aired on 15 February 2007. [cite web | url = http://www.musicfromtheoc.com/weekly_mix_season4.html | title = Weekly Mix - Season 4 | accessdate = 2007-02-17| publisher = Music from the O.C. ] "Kreuzberg" was also featured in the second episode of "Drive", which aired on 15 April 2007.
*SRXT was also used in an episode of "Grey's Anatomy".
*The song "Song for Clay (Disappear Here)" was used in the "" teaser trailer.
*The song "The Prayer" was used in the "Smallville" trailer for April-May 2007.
*The song "Version 2.0" was used in the soundtrack for "Tony Hawk's Proving Ground".
*The song "The Prayer" was used in the soundtracks for "NHL 2K8 and Project Gotham Racing 4".
*The song "I Still Remember" was partly featured in "Prom Night"
*and also in "Keinohrhasen", a german movie.

References