Kele: 'Tenderoni'

Before announcing their hiatus, Bloc Party were always trying to break out of the indie guitar-pop groove in which they initially found themselves. A bit of experimentation is always to be applauded, but more than once the band's self-conscious urge to be different came across a bit try-hard, stymieing their ability to record a proper tune. Now though, Kele Okereke has put his bandmates on gardening leave and jumped straight onto the dance/pop scene with this debut solo single.

So, does he pull it off? Oooh... just about. 'Tenderoni' is a sleek slice of electronica which bounces along happily until the chorus hits - at which point the volume knob's cranked up a few notches and the effects on his vocals go a bit barmy. There's also a lovely bit of Speak & Spell - of the title, of course - and the whole thing is crying out for a raft of filthy remixes. It's not really anything that hasn't been done before, but Kele's new-found freedom has allowed him to cast aside the clumsy crossover vibe of Bloc Party's dancier efforts and do the whole beepy/squelchy thing properly. Can he keep it up for a whole LP? Well, he certainly earns himself the benefit of the doubt here.



> Click here to watch the video for 'Tenderoni'