Shazam’s Music Of The Decade – Arcade Fire
The Montreal based Arcade Fire released their debut album in 2004 to a cacophony of critical praise – and quite rightly so. Taking in a wide range of influences including pop, post-punk, opera and disco; ‘Funeral’ is a staggering, assured debut. Fronted by husband and wife Win and Géraldine Butler, the album was influenced by the deaths of several band members’ relatives. Naturally the influence of these events had an effect on the band and their music and ‘Funeral’ gave them an outlet for this grief and frustration. It would be unfair to categorise the album as a depressing listen, however it’s clear the events had an influence on Butler’s reflective lyrics.
With tracks as varied as the rabble rousing ‘Wake Up’, to the slow burning ‘Crown Of Love’- a track that starts out as a lush orchestral number and gives way to a storming disco beat – the album isn’t never predictable and entices the listener back again and again. While the band would go on to release another album in the decade, 2007’s ‘Neon Bible’, it’s ‘Funeral’ that stands up as their essential album. The band have recently confirmed that they’ve completed work on their third album, due for release in May 2010.
