Kind of surprised about the love for Reflektor. I strongly dislike at least half of that record. The second half is better than the first, but it’s still a way weaker album than what came before it. Better than Everything Now though.
I’m touch and go with Reflektor, pretty let down by Everything Now, but those first three albums would probably all be in my top fifty. Suburbs is close to the top spot.
I'm a full on weirdo with this band because The Suburbs is my least favorite album by them I like Everything Now, "We Don't Deserve Love" is such a gorgeous song.
Funeral is a perfect album and one of the best debuts of all time. Suburbs and and Neon Bible are both excellent and not far behind. Reflektor is okay but really hit-or-miss. Everything Now is a turd except for two or three songs.
I absolutely despised Everything Now bar a couple of songs but they were on a great run up to that point. Hopefully it was just a blip and they can recover from it, and Win Butler from Lead Singer Syndrome.
There are three or four songs I like a lot but otherwise, it just didn’t grab me. Funeral and Neon Bible gripped me immediately front-to-back and that didn’t happen with this one. And I’ve fallen off AF in general since then really.
Lol, just looked it up on Wikipedia and I had no idea it was inspired by the suburbs The Woodlands down here in Texas. I wouldn’t even call them suburbs, they’re one of the richest areas in Texas, haha
The Suburbs is definitely my favorite Arcade Fire album. Funeral and Neon Bible have higher highs, but The Suburbs is such a great album-length statement.
The final chorus of The Suburbs when Regine comes in is one of the most chilling moments in all of music.
My old friends I can remember when You cut your hair I never saw you again Now the cities we live in could be distant stars And I search for you in every passing car Still one of my favorite stanzas along with: The last defender of the sprawl Said "Well, where do you kids live?" Well, sir, if you only knew what the answer's worth Been searching every corner of the earth Can’t believe it’s been a decade already. One of my favorites and I must have listened to this over and over that year. I loved the campaign behind it.
minus the part about falling off AF since, I’m in the same place with suburbs. I have tried to make it not the case so many times! Just doesn’t pull me in. It defies logic too, because I agree with all of the positive observations about the record. It’s actually one of my biggest personal music mysteries haha
Agree. I don’t follow this band in the press enough to know: what’s Win been doing? Showing off or something?
His entire vibe during the Everything Now cycle was way off honestly, part of the reason why I came down so hard on that album.
Listening back through The Suburbs this morning and put on the bonus tracks as well. Culture War in particular feels incredibly prescient and damning from the opening lines all the way back in 2010: Now the future's staring at me Like a vision from the past And I know these crumbs they sold me They're never going to last Though we know the culture war We don't know what it's for but We've lived the southern strategy You know it's never going to last So keep it in the past Jump to the end of the song after Winn spends the majority of it railing against conservatives for carrying on with their archaic politics and it gets particularly chilling to listen to now: Now the kids are growing up so fast And paying for our crimes We'll be soldiers for you, mommy and daddy In your culture war We'll be soldiers for you, mommy and daddy But we don't know what it's for We're soldiers now in the culture war We're soldiers now but we don't know what it's for So tell me what's it for You want it? You got it here's your culture war You want it? Now you've got it so tell me what's it for