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Arcade Fire

  National Flag

All hail The Arcade Fire. You might as well, everyone else is! Even David Bowie! Seriously though, if you can get past all the hype that's surrounding this band, you'll understand why all the hype started in the first place. The Arcade Fire just have a way of crafting songs that cut deep into your soul to where it can toy with your emotions. It's a perfect balance between party music and shoe-gazing melancholy. Some find the group pretentious, but I believe that's just because they associate the sound with that of other Montreal-based bands like Godspeed You! Black Emperor and A Silver Mt. Zion. Groups who have gained such a reputation through their obscure political views hidden behind long pompous, instrumental compositions (which are nonetheless quite beautiful). The comparisons stop after the beauty factor however.

A lot has been made about the personal tragedies the group has encountered during the recording of Funeral, their first album. Many close relatives of the artists have died in a short period of time. The title of the album is believed to be taken (in part) from the fact that they attended many funerals during these few months. I don't know if all this has really made an impact on their creative process or affected the mood of the album. It sure has added a certain mystique to the group. Would they have recorded such a strong album had none of this happened? I don't doubt it for a second.

I found out about the group through the press. It took a while, but I decided to download a few songs to hear what the fuss was all about. This was almost a year after Funeral was first released. It only took a few listens though to realize how addictive it was. A few weeks later I ordered my copy through Amazon's Marketplace and it's been in my CD-player ever since!

Genre Button Genre Button
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Album Cover Arcade Fire
Label: Arcade Fire Music
Release: 2003
Format: CD
Cat. no: AFCD001

Song list:

  1. Old Flame (3:59)
  2. I'm Sleeping In A Submarine (2:47)
  3. No Cars Go (6:04)
  4. The Woodlands National Anthem (3:59)
  5. My Heart Is An Apple (4:27)
  6. Headlights Look Like Diamonds (4:25)
  7. Vampire/Forest Fire (7:20)


Album Cover Funeral
Label: Merge Records
Release: 2004
Format: CD
Cat. no: MRG 255

Song list:

  1. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) (4:48)
  2. Neighborhood #2 (Laika) (3:32)
  3. Une Année Sans Lumière (3:40)
  4. Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) (5:12)
  5. Neighborhood #4 (7 Kettles) (4:49)
  6. Crown Of Love (4:42)
  7. Wake Up (5:35)
  8. Haiti (4:07)
  9. Rebellion (Lies) (5:10)
  10. In The Backseat (6:20)


Album Cover Neon Bible
Label: Merge Records
Release: 2007
Format: CD
Cat. no: MRG 285

Song list:

  1. Black Mirror (4:13)
  2. Keep The Car Running (3:29)
  3. Neon Bible (2:16)
  4. Intervention (4:19)
  5. Black Wave/Bad Vibrations (3:57)
  6. Ocean Of Noise (4:53)
  7. The Well And The Lighthouse (3:56)
  8. (Antichrist Television Blues) (5;10)
  9. Windowsill (4:16)
  10. No Cars Go (5:43)
  11. My Body Is A Cage (4:47)