From Silent Alarm to Sonic Storm - Bloc Party’s Glorious Return to Castlefield Bowl

Michael Bond
4 days ago
4 min read

Bloc Party - Sound Of The City - 10th July 2025

IMAGES / WORDS MICHAEL BOND

From Silent Alarm to Sonic Storm - Bloc Party’s Glorious Return to Castlefield Bowl — Bloc Party

Two decades on from their seismic debut, Silent Alarm, Bloc Party return to Manchester’s Castlefield Bowl for Sound Of The City, with a headline set that served both as a love letter to their legacy and a bold affirmation of their current form.

Surrounded by Manchester’s industrial bones, quickly rising skyscrapers and blue skies, tonight’s addition of the Sounds of the City 2025 series is more than nostalgia—its proof that Bloc Party remain as vital and incendiary as ever.

With a rush of energy, The Royston Club are first up to seize their moment in front of a swelling crowd at Castlefield Bowl. Fresh off the buzz from their debut album ‘Songs for the Spine’, the Wrexham quartet arrive the hunger of a band on the rise.

Their set was a blur of dynamic riffs and vocal hooks, with frontman Tom Faithfull leading from the front with equal parts charm and chaos. Opening with ‘The Patch Where Nothing Grows’, the band waste no time in igniting the evening. Newer single ‘Shivers’ hit with unexpected force, with fans already howling it back as if it were a staple. There’s a seamlessness to their performance, a chemistry that makes every pause feel rehearsed and every burst feel spontaneous. Faithfull’s movements are elastic and expressive, dragging the crowd with him as he dives across stage monitors and mic leads.

Standout moments from ‘Blisters’ and ‘Marianna’ turn the open-air arena into a singalong battleground, while quieter tracks like ‘A Tender Curiosity’ gave breathing room without losing the crowd’s attention. As their set drew to a close, it feels like the sun-drenched crowd had just witnessed the graduation of a band destined for bigger stages. With an electric performance, The Royston Club have warmed up Castlefield Bowl, showing they are energetic, confident, and ready for more.

Bloc Party – Twenty Years On and Still Electric, As the sun starts to set over the iron ribs of Castlefield Bowl, casting golden light over a crowd buzzing with anticipation. Bloc Party take to the stage to the kind of roar only earned over decades of building up a loyal fan base. ‘So Here We Are’ is first up, shimmering into life with its delicate arpeggios, setting a reflective, almost reverent tone. But this is just the calm before the storm.

Within minutes, ‘She’s Hearing Voices’ rips through the evening air with jagged drums and stabbing guitars. The crowd shifts, bodies lurching into motion. Then comes ‘Hunting for Witches’, all frantic rhythm and biting lyrics, and arguably one of the most underrated songs of the mid-2000s, and live, it feels newly born. Leaving no time to catch your breath, the band break straight into ‘Mercury’ which hit like a tank.

Kele Okereke’s vocals are flawless, measured, powerful, and as emotionally charged as ever. His connection with the audience is immediate and sustained, from whispered verses to shouting choruses. Guitarist Russell Lissack’s shimmering riffs light up the venue like fireflies, cutting through the humid air with laser-like precision.

Mid-set, ‘Song for Clay (Disappear Here)’ builds slowly from an intro of Sneaker Pimps ‘Spin Spin Sugar’ before exploding into the indie anthem ‘Banquet’. The crowd responded in kind, leaping, shouting, clapping in time. As the dusk sky start to darken, we are treated to ‘Traps’, with its disco-punk pulse proving that Bloc Party’s newer material could hold its own against the classics.

There are deep cuts too, with ‘Different Drugs’ and Blue’ sprinkled throughout. But the show pivots again for the closing stretch, with ‘Like Eating Glass’, ‘Helicopter’ and a personal favourite ‘Flux’, dragging the crowd into a frenzy. A song built for festival closers, made up of glittering synths, throbbing beats, and lyrics designed for mass catharsis, but it’s not over yet!

The night is brought to a close with ‘This Modern Love’. A late-stage curveball that merges the band’s hip-hop leanings with their razor-wire guitars. Its a chaotic, swaggering finish, and it worked. At this point, its hard to tell whether the crowd are singing along to Kele or to each other.

Tonight was more than a nostalgia trip. This was a celebration—of evolution, endurance, and the sort of band that doesn’t just survive the years but thrives in them. There’s a reason these songs have endured; their energy is unrelenting and their edges still sharp. Twenty years on, Bloc Party still sound like the future.

Setlist