Bloc Party, "A Weekend In The City (Vice Records) - 4 stars

Get your unwashed hipster dance gear out of the closet, fire up the barbecue, tell Dave Chappelle to go home, and prepare for the real Bloc Party.

Nearly two years after their debut album “Silent Alarm,” Bloc Party released their sophomore effort Tuesday to the waiting arms of their ever-growing fan base of indie lovers and adventurous, dabbling mainstreamers.

The band worked on the album with Garret “Jacknife” Lee, who has produced albums by Kasabian, Snow Patrol, and U2. The resulting LP, “A Weekend In The City,” will not likely disappoint, as it builds upon the success of their first album with catchy up-tempo dance beats and the moody lyrics of lead singer Kele Okereke.

The album opens with Okereke in an almost theatrical falsetto on the track “Song For Clay (Disappear Here),” before the entrance of a fast snare and surging guitar riff that brings the energy to a classic Bloc Party peak.

The lyrics set a theme for the rest of the album, which features more overt allusions to the issues of stardom and even the drudgery of life in the band’s homeland, England: “Because East London is a vampire / It sucks the joy right out of me,” shouts Okereke.

“Hunting for Witches” expands upon Bloc Party’s typical dance beats with a much more electronic feel that leads with layered sound bites and synth bass before the entrance of live drums and distorted guitar chords.

Although it’s easy to get swept away by Bloc Party’s melodies, a closer look at the lyrics reveals a discussion of England’s recent bus attacks and the ensuing terrorist witch-hunt: “The newscaster says the enemy’s among us / As bombs explode on the 30 bus / Kill your middle class indecision / Now is not the time for liberal thought,”

The third track on the album, “Waiting for the 7.18,” mimics the pace of the first with another slow-paced intro—accented by glockenspiel and Okereke—leading into an epic chorus.

“The Prayer” opens with a steady, stomp beat over a low, Gregorian hum, and showcases electronic ambience and Okereke’s playfully arrogant lyrics.

This interesting blend of sounds is, strangely enough, the album’s first single.

“Uniform” and “On” are reminiscent of the ballads on “Silent Alarm” like “So Here We Are” and “This Modern Love,” dabbling with more sappy lyrics.

Although not the strongest track on the album, “Where is Home” makes the cut with its chorus alone. Okereke’s falsetto is so haunting that returning to the verses is disappointing.

The last several tracks on the album wind into a beautiful, mellow trance until the intense, Sigur Ros-like explosion near the end of final song “SXRT.”

The outburst quickly fades, though, into eerily peaceful bells that float off like a wisp of smoke.

Now the wait begins once more. Bloc Party has proven itself twice and has just begun to brush the surface of its own potential with a smattering of musical genres.

Okereke and the rest of Bloc Party leave you with the hope of still being able to fall into a deep, modern love.

—Reviewer Andrew Nunnelly can be reached at nunnelly@fas.harvard.edu.