Arcade Fire – The Suburbs

I wasn’t expecting something like this, I really wasn’t. And trust me, I know that it's’ super lame of me to be discussing an album that is probably already starting to hit overdrive but come on, this is just too good. I was in a ‘love at first then hate afterwards’ kind of relationship with Arcade Fire and when Neon Bible came out, I was definitely feeling good about their music. It took me a good two years after that to finally come around to Funeral, again, and now, there’s The Suburbs.

For starters, it’s spectacular. It’s an album that latches on to you and pulls you around its every corner. And for me, it was something that hit me like no other, and I wasn’t even expecting it. Their sounds are much more diverse on this album, some would call it sprawling and yet, they still sound personally identifiable. Some stuff revels in the Springsteen stuff of the past, other stuff is like the best of U2 and R.E.M.; they’re like Talking Heads in the way everyone contributes (female and male vocals, string instruments, synths) and like the great music of the 80s and 90s meshed together.

Here is “Rococo” which will surely melt your heart away. The pace is subdued and the focus lies on the harmonies and the vocals singing the chorus together. The enunciation is the best but it all stunningly hits you:


“Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)” is like Blondie of the 80s, with her synths dancing around her. The female vocals take over and you get a penultimate song that leaves you in awe. It’s like your looking over the hill on to better things and seeing the sun burst through is given you some peace of mind. It’s a heavenly good sound and a beautiful way to close it all out. Check it here:


-Bryan