Another seminal album of the mid-'00s indie rock boom is getting reissued this year: Bloc Party's debut Silent Alarm.

A 20th anniversary edition of the album, available on two CDs or four white vinyl LPs on September 26, will pair the original album (featuring favorites "She's Hearing Voices," "Helicopter," "So Here We Are" and "Banquet") with 23 B-sides and rarities, including nine unreleased demos and live cuts. An accompanying booklet will feature rare photos from the band's personal collections as well as liner notes, including a foreword by the album's co-producer Paul Epworth.

Silent Alarm was the culmination of several years of work by the London-based band, founded by singer/rhythm guitarist Kele Okereke and lead guitarist Russell Lissack in 1999. The band's initial line-up featured bassist/keyboardist Gordon Moakes and drummer Matt Tong; their combination of nervy, danceable approach to post-punk and lyrical existentialism aligned perfectly with what rock radio listeners on both sides of the Atlantic were craving at the time. Positive feedback from BBC Radio 1 programmers transcended the band's insistence on not signing to a major label (Silent Alarm was released in the U.K. by London indie Wichita and in America by Steve Aoki's Dim Mak label, then affiliated with Vice Media.), and the album eventually sold some one million copies worldwide, propelled by dynamic live appearances. NME would name it the year's best album, while Pitchfork would later place it on a list of the 200 best albums of the 2000s. Bloc Party continue to record and tour with Okereke and Lissack leading the band; they are reportedly working with producer Trevor Horn on a new album. (Silent Alarm producer Epworth, for his part, would have a varied and acclaimed career, working with Adele, Coldplay and U2.)

A double vinyl edition of the original album will also be available. All formats will be reissued on September 26 and can be pre-ordered below. (As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.)

Silent Alarm (20th Anniversary Edition) (PIAS, 2025)

2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
4LP: Official Store

CD 1/LP 1-2: Original album (released as Wichita WEBB075 (U.K.)/Vice/Dim Mak 93815 (U.S.), 2005)

1. Like Eating Glass
2. Helicopter
3. Positive Tension
4. Banquet
5. Blue Light
6. She's Hearing Voices
7. This Modern Love
8. The Pioneers
9. Price of Gasoline
10. So Here We Are
11. Luno
12. Plans
13. Compliments

CD 2/LP 3-4: B-sides and rarities (* previously unreleased)

1. Little Thoughts
2. Skeleton
3. Storm and Stress
4. Always New Depths
5. Staying Fat
6. Tulips
7. Two More Years
8. She's Hearing Voices (Original Version)
9. The Marshals Are Dead
10. The Answer
11. The Present
12. Every Time is the Last Time
13. So Here We Are (John Peel Session - 11/4/2004) *
14. Tulips (John Peel Session - 11/4/2004)
15. Luno (John Peel Session - 11/4/2004) *
16. Compliments (John Peel Session - 11/4/2004)
17. Banquet (Demo) *
18. This Modern Love (Demo) *
19. The Pioneers (Demo) *
20. So Here We Are (Demo) *
21. Helicopter (Demo) *
22. Price of Gas (Demo) *
23. Skeleton (Demo) *

Tracks 1 and 3 released as Wichita U.K. single WEBB067S, 2004
Track 2 released on "Helicopter" U.K. single - Wichita WEBB070S, 2004
Track 4 released on "Helicopter" U.K. CD single - Wichita WEBB070CD, 2004
Track 5 released on "Banquet" U.K. single - Moshi Moshi 10, 2004
Track 6 released on "Little Thoughts" U.K. CD single - Wichita WEBB067CD, 2004
Track 7 released on Wichita U.K. CD single WEBB095SCDX, 2005
Tracks 8-10 released as Trash Aesthetics U.K. single TA 701, 2004
Track 11 released on Help! A Day in the Life compilation - Independiente ISOM59CD (U.K.), 2005
Track 12 was a hidden pre-gap track on original CD pressings
Track 14 released on Kats Karavan: The History of John Peel on the Radio box set - Universal 271 415-1 (U.K.), 2009
Track 16 released on "Banquet" U.K. CD single - Wichita WEBB078SCD, 2005