BLOC PARTY

Bloc Party

Bloc Party are a British indie rock band, composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Russell Lissack (lead guitar), Gordon Moakes (bass guitar, synths, backing vocals, glockenspiel), and Matt Tong (drums, backing vocals). Their brand of music is said to have been drawn from such bands as The Cure, Mogwai, Siouxsie and the Banshees and in their more recent work Radiohead.

The band was formed at the 1999 Reading Festival by Okereke and Lissack. They went through a variety of names before settling on Bloc Party in 2003. Moakes joined the band after answering an advert in NME magazine, while Tong was picked via an audition. Bloc Party got their break by giving BBC Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq and Franz Ferdinand's lead singer, Alex Kapranos, a copy of their demo "She's Hearing Voices".

In February 2005, the band released their debut album Silent Alarm. It was critically acclaimed and was named 'Indie Album of the Year' at the 2006 PLUG Awards and NME Album of the year which both honour indie music. That year, the record was also certified platinum in Britain. The band built on this success in 2007 with the release of their second studio album, A Weekend in the City, which reached a peak of number two in the UK Albums Chart and number twelve in the Billboard 200. In August 2008, Bloc Party released their third studio record, Intimacy. The band went on a hiatus in October 2009 to focus on side projects, and reunited in September 2011, releasing their fourth album, Four, in 2012. As of May 2012, Bloc Party have sold two million albums worldwide

Origin: London, England

Genres: Indie rock, rock, post-Britpop, alternative rock, dance-rock

Years active: 2003–present

Labels: Frenchkiss, Wichita, Atlantic, Dim Mak, Transgressive, Trash Aesthetics, Vice, Arts & Crafts

Associated acts: Pin Me Down, Young Legionnaire

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Bloc Party - Silent Alarm (Full Album)

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LOS CAMPESINOS!

Los Campesinos!

Los Campesinos! are a seven piece indie pop band from Cardiff, Wales, formed in early 2006 at Cardiff University. Although the band formed in Wales, none of its members are Welsh. They released their debut album, Hold on Now, Youngster..., in February 2008 and followed this up by releasing a record titled We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed, in October that year. Whilst many consider it to be an album due to its length, the band have always referred to it as a 'record' or EEP (extended EP) for contractual and artistic reasons. Their second official album, entitled Romance Is Boring, was released on 1 February 2010. Their fourth full-length release, Hello Sadness, was released on 14 November 2011. The band toured the US and UK extensively throughout 2012.

Origin: Cardiff, Wales

Genres: Indie pop, indie rock, noise pop, twee pop

Years active: 2006–present

Labels: Wichita, Arts & Crafts

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NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert: Los Campesinos!

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PETER BJORN AND JOHN

Peter Bjorn and John

Peter Bjorn and John (unofficially abbreviated as PB&J) are a Swedish indie rock band, formed in Stockholm in 1999 and named after the first names of the band's members: Peter Morén (vocals, guitar and harmonica), Björn Yttling (bass guitar, keyboards and vocals) and John Eriksson, known in his solo work as Hortlax Cobra (drums, percussion and vocals). Yttling also worked as producer for the band's first four albums and Seaside Rock.

They are best known for the 2006 single "Young Folks", which featured Victoria Bergsman, formerly of The Concretes, and was a top 20 hit in the UK Singles Chart, as well as being featured in football video game FIFA 08 and the singing game Lips. It was also named NME's second-best track of 2006, beaten only by "Over and Over" by Hot Chip. In Australia it was voted number 16 in the annual Triple J Hottest 100 for 2006.

Origin: Stockholm, Sweden

Genres: Indie rock, indie pop, neo-psychedelia

Years active: 1999–present

Labels: Wichita, Parasol Records, Almost Gold Recordings

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Peter, Bjorn and John - One Eyed Jacks (New Orleans Concert) 9/26/11

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THE STROKES

The Strokes

The Strokes are an American rock band from New York, consisting of Julian Casablancas (lead vocals), Nick Valensi (guitar, backing vocals), Albert Hammond, Jr. (guitar, backing vocals), Nikolai Fraiture (bass guitar) and Fabrizio Moretti (drums, percussion).

Upon the release of their debut album Is This It in 2001, the group met much critical acclaim. Since then, the band has maintained a large fan base all over the world, most notably in the United States, the United Kingdom, Argentina, Canada, France, Brazil and Australia. A number of members have embarked on a variety of side projects, although a fourth album, entitled Angles, was released on March 22, 2011. They are one of the most prominent indie-rock bands to hail from the US at the dawn of the 21st century and helped start the garage rock revival movement. Is This It was ranked number 199 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Origin: New York City, New York

Genres: Indie rock, garage rock revival, post-punk revival

Years active: 1998–present

Labels: RCA, Rough Trade

Associated acts: Little Joy, The Mooney Suzuki, Nickel Eye

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The Strokes - MTV $2 Bill - Full Concert (2002)

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The Strokes - Is This It [full album]

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DINOSAUR JR.

Dinosaur Jr.

Dinosaur Jr. is an American alternative rock band formed in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1984. Originally called Dinosaur, prior to legal issues that forced the group to change their name, the band disbanded in 1997 until reuniting in 2005. Guitarist J Mascis, bassist Lou Barlow, and drummer Murph were the band's founding and current members; Mascis has been the group's sole continuous member.

Their distinct guitar sound, characterized by high gain, extensive use of feedback and distortion, and frontman J Mascis's melodic guitar solos, was highly influential in the alternative rock movement of the 1990s.

Origin: Amherst, Massachusetts, United States

Genres: Alternative rock, indie rock

Years active: 1984–1997, 2005–present

Labels: Homestead, SST, Blanco y Negro/Sire, Merge, Fat Possum, PIAS Recordings, Jagjaguwar, Blast First

Associated acts: Sebadoh, Deep Wound, J Mascis and the Fog, Witch, Folk Implosion

Members: J Mascis, Lou Barlow, Murph

Past members: Mike Johnson, George Berz

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Dinosaur Jr.-Without a Sound

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