A husband and wife leading a band with the guy’s younger brother backing them up?! Surely that won’t last long – remember the fate of sibling formed bands like Hanson who dropped out of the public eye almost immediately after their one hit wonder ‘Mmmbop’, or the constantly feuding Gallagher brothers of Oasis? Imagine adding the complexity of touring with your better half and suddenly that band’s days seem numbered. . .
While all these groups are great in their own right, there is just something special about the Johnny Cash/June Carter style relationship between Win Butler and Regine Chassagne that produces an irresistible kind of music. With each band member being a multi-instrumentalist of some kind their music has a very dynamic feel to it in the sense that no two songs sound the same. Each of their albums also have different underlying themes which appear quite personal to the front two singing them.
It may be something to do with how easy it is to relate to the subjects that Arcade Fire sing about that has propelled them almost immediately after releasing their first album to the forefront of Indie Rock music where they have remained ever since.
Here are a few personally handpicked songs from each of their four studio albums to give a listen to.
#1 Funeral – Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
A rip-roaring, head banging tune unlike any other Arcade Fire song. Butler’s emotions come clean in this song with anger evident in the lyrics and heavy rock style riffs.
#2 Neon Bible – Intervention
The first version of this song I heard was an unreleased somewhat raw acoustic version and it was clear it was a meangingful song to the band highlighting their frustration with the idea of religion in general. The refined studio version contains an organ throughout the song which makes it quite poignant.
#3 The Suburbs – Sprawl II (Mountains beyond mountains)
My personal favourite song of all time (not just by Arcade Fire). In this song Chassagne sings about growing up in a sheltered suburban life in an area commonly referred to throughout the album as ‘the Sprawl’ and being unable to break free. It is quite a melancholic topic but its sung with such energy and with the help of rhythmic synthesiser riffs it becomes such an uplifting song. Relatively simple, but I think it’s a masterpiece!!
#4 Reflektor - Reflektor
This fourth song I included mainly because again it seems to set itself apart from others, despite being the title song of the Reflektor album. Featuring David Bowie in the chorus who has always been an admirer of the band (which is high praise indeed), the song’s repetitive lyrics resemble the theme of the song. Featuring catchy bass lines, a mixture of French and English lyrics and a rising chorus, this is one of those songs you can listen to over and over.
Those who happen across the music of Arcade Fire accidentally rarely turn back and if you still haven't had the pleasure of doing so, you now you have a recommendation to go and do it purposefully. Another accolade they can claim is that they are also widely renowned as being one of the best current live acts around and I can add testament to that - I was lucky to catch them on the last leg of their Reflektor tour in Dublin last year and the concert was just immense! I will be sure to be there on their next tour when it undoubtedly happens as the band's dominance over the Indie rock genre shows no signs of slowing...
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