For a kid who grew up in a conservative evangelical home, this record speaks right to me. Heartbreaking and brilliant from the first track to the last. It's extremely difficult to rate an Arcade Fire over another, but this one definitely stands out.

Not as good as it's predecessor, but still relevant in their songwriting and progression as a band. I like how they get down with their darker side, where Funeral seems lighter with a bit more of a pop feel.

This album is phenomenal. I'd almost go so far as to say its better than Funeral. Almost.

i love this band and there music

First of all, it is a damn shame this has dropped down to an 81 already. The Playlouder is just stupid and unfair. They pretty much say it would be really good if it was anyone else, but because it's the Arcade Fire, and the expectations are high, it sucks. That makes no sense. If it's good, it's good-they shouldn't be punished just because they put out what is widely considered one the best albums of the decade so far. Anyway, this album is brilliant. Lyrically, it's probably an improvement on Funeral, and while it contains nothing that reaches quite the highs of tracks like "Crown of Love" or "Wake Up," it is just consistently good, if not moreso, than Funeral. "Black Mirror" "Intervention" "Ocean of Noise" and "The Well and the LIghthouse" are all gorgeous. The best album of the year so far.… Expand

So far the worst album them.

I finally understand the term 'art-rock'; and that term is not pretentious here. The most cohesive album since OK Computer

'Intervention' is a theatrical god send. The entire record is blasphemously grand.

As probably the only guy who liked Neon Bible more than Funeral, I thought I'd make my voice heard. The Arcade Fire's last CD was beautiful, but so incredibly subtle that you could only really grasp it if you focused on it and listened. This didn't make it any worse, but I prefer this one because it's a lot more obvious. The softer tunes express well, and so do the heavier tunes ("My body is a cage" is stunning). It's clear that they tried hard to live up to the hype surrounding them, and they succeeded.… Expand

This album has to rate as one of the biggest disappointments I've experienced. Funeral had an effortless mystery and splendour that was completely exhilarating but Neon Bible makes me feel like I've been fooled. It's trite and overcooked - a hollow shell in comparison. It probably isn't a terrible album - it's just that it's not a patch on Funeral and I've really tried to give it a chance.… Expand

I agree with one of the reviews that said this was much more "goth." It sounds a lot like Echo and the Bunnymen, but Echo and the Bunnymen's Ocean Songs is better. Good stuff, but more derivative than Funeral.

Wow - I think this has provoked the most polarised user comments of any album on Metacritic! Personally, not nearly as good as the flawless Funeral, but still gut wrenchingly honest and melancholly. A wonderful experience.

somehow the magic is gone even though its hard to pinpoint exactly what makes this a less fulfilling experience than its famed predecessor. Well maybe the songs just aren't strong enough...only No Cars Go and Keep the Car Running truly stand out, while the title track and My Body is a Cage are downright tedious. The lyrics are really tepid teenage angst musings and reek of ill-conceived self-importance. The word, bloated, springs to mind...… Expand

The music is magnificent, feels like an expansion of their debut sound, a lot darker, richer, and with much improved production. However, the lyrics are pretty bad in some songs. Some of the rhymes make me cringe, my least favorite existing in the title track. An improvement in some ways, a detraction in others. Still one of the greater releases so far this year.

Some people in this forum select 10 or 9 rating very easily. It's a very good album but it is not masterpiece. Which should be the rating for albums as The dark side of the moon, Highway to Hell, Ok Computer etc. etc then? 1000? 2000?

Better? Worst? Simply different and as good as.

imo, not as good as funeral, but then again, funeral took awhile for me to like it. At first listen i enjoyed it alot, hopefully as the listens build up it follows suite, much like funeral. I give it an 8, check it out!

If this is not a 10, I dont know what it! Its not Funeral, its better.

Woah! ALbum of the year???

I loved Arcade Fire's Funeral album and their EP. But, if I had rated Neon Bible two weeks ago on my first listen I would have only rated it an 8. However, I have found myself listening to this album almost exclusively since then and would now rate it an easy perfect 10. It takes a little while to sink in but this album is ultimately one of my favorite albums of all time.

Funeral will be album of the decade. Neon Bible may just have to settle for album of the year :)

So Great!! Have fun singing along to all the great tracks!!!

Funeral was one of the best, if not the best, album of the decade. Saying Neon Bible isn't as good as Funeral, although true, shouldn't take away from it. Requires a couple listens but once you "get" the album, it "gets" you. On repeated listenings I've gravitated towards the second half of the album , songs 6-11, more than the 1st. Solid sophmore effort...can't wait for the hat trick!!!… Expand

Killer album, grows on you like funeral. However, it also takes the band in a slightly different direction, the lyrics are much more rooted in politics and whats happening in the world right now. I'd agree with others who've posted, this pretty much solidifies Arcade Fire as one of the first truly great bands of the decade, and the best Canadian Indie band ever.

the reason why older NA indie bands are unrecognized is that they can't compete w/TAF. wah wah. if you've ever seen a live show, you know what i'm talkin about.

Their lyrics are clumsy and obvious. More ambiguity needed, pronto.

even though it's cool to slag off the arcade fire now, i just can't do it! this album is great!

One of the best albums of the 2000's. Whatever its excesses may be, they are easily justified.

Two of the biggest mistakes seen in most sophmore albums are that they sound exactly the same and/or lack the musical talent that was seen in its predecessor. The Arcade Fire has created something that equals, or even improves, on their previous musical effort. Not only that, they have taken a new direction altogether... and they pulled it off.

If anything this album is under-hyped.

such a disappointment...

This album is not nearly as good as "Funeral".

I feel bad for the arcade fire because they set the bar so freakin high with "Funeral" that it is really hard, for me at least, to listen to "Neon Bible" "objectively". i don't think that this album will get the respect it deserves it. nevertheless, it is a worthy follow-up. songs like "ocean of noise"", "no cars go", and "keep the car running" are top-notch.

What is someone looking for the deffinative online review of Neon Bible to do? Some praise the Arcade Fire’s sophomore LP, some hate it. Intervention is breath taking or self indulgent to the point of being unlistenable. Butler’s lyrics are great, with a few miss-steps, or so painfully strained at times to the point of overshadowing some good writing. The range of reviews is striking. This, in my opinion, is an indication that the album is inconsistent. Some people are able to forgive the album”s miss-steps because they appreciate the highs (and make no mistake, there are some highs on this album). For others, the lows (offenders making a number of reviewers unhappy include production, lyrics and thematic content etc.) dominate the album and prevent them from enjoying it. You will either enjoy the album or not depending on whether you can forgive the album’s flaws and can appreciate its successes. Either way, Neon Bible will not achieve the same near universal acclaim Funeral did. And I think that this ambiguity is the most telling review Neon Bible will get.… Expand

I love this band, but I have to say that on this one it really seems like they run out of steam. No Cars go is the best track on here, which sucks as it's a re-recording of a track they put out 4 years ago. + if you are looking to buy this, just buythe regular edition. All that you get woth the Special edition are 2 crappy stapled together flickbooks and a hologram. Not really worth the extra $7.… Expand

As strong, if not stronger than Funeral

I just didn't get Funeral like others did, and still don't see what the big deal about Neon Bible is. Yes, the songs are given a little more room, but there's still a cinematic quality that works against them. It's like they try too hard to be hip and give the critics what they want. Concentrate more on developing the songs.

Absolutely brilliant. Those who diss or don't get it are either not listening closely enough or don't enjoy the band for what it is.

It took a couple listens but I am hooked. I think it is just as good as Funeral.

i like it. however there arent enough stand out tracks for me. its very much an album album, like pitchfork said u can only really access it from one point and thats the opening track and then it takes u on a dense, moody, glorious journey from there on in

Not as great as Funeral, but still up there. The scope of the music and lyrics has expanded, and thankfully, on the whole, the songs havent been lost under the need to make a 'new' sound. The one let down for me is that one of the best tracks - No Cars Go - is a revamped version of a 3 year old song from their original EP, and i prefer the old mix!

I don't know why some bands, like Doves, who have a very similar, epic and emotive sound as Arcade Fire (and who, to me, surpass Arcade Fire) doesn't get the overzealous, universal hype, like Arcade Fire. Fate can be fickle, sometimes.

The great success with 'Neon Bible' is that it sounds cohesive and is a far more satisfying listen from start to end than 'Funeral'. The negative side is that some songs only make sense as part of the album and don't really hold their own as individual tracks. The opening and closing songs are particularly average - strange when you consider that Tunnels and Backseat were probably the two strongest tracks on 'Funeral'! Intervention and Windowsill are possibly the strongest songs but I have a soft spot for Black Wave and the title track. Overall I think they have done well with this release and I can't see too many fans being disappointed.… Expand

This may be a little premature but... I think we have the best rock album of the year. I just can't imagine anything else being better. Not only do I think we'll still be talking about this album as being one of the very best of 2008 come December, it may also be one of the best sophomore albums I've heard in years.

This is a wonderful disc. Made me fall in love with rock music all over again. Just like when I first heard Patti Smith's "Horses" or Television's "Marquee Moon", or the Stones' "Exile..." or Neil Young's "After the Gold Rush". Arcade Fire's music makes me come apart in a blissful way! A disc for the ages...

Am I allowed to say this? Well...here goes...I thnik this is a pretty weak album compared to Funeral. It sounds like Arcade Fire doing Arcade Fire covers, i.e. a bit formulaic and overly dramatic, plus there's a lot of cringeworthy lyrics. The only surprising bit is the Springsteen impression, but if I wanted that I would have bought one of his own albums. There, I said it.

After The Radiohead Age, came the The Arcade Fire Age. It's hard to compare Neon Bible to Funeral, but, after several auditions, the comparison is over. NB is a great solid album and the new version of No Cars Go is wonderful.

If you don't think this album is perfect then take every piece of music you have and burn it because you obviously don't like music. Here's a better suggestion though, so you don't have to burn all your good music. Take this album and listen to ONLY it for a straight week. If you don't get it, you never will. Black Wave has to be the best NEW song I've heard in 10 years. This album reminds me of a soundtrack to a much darker Jim Henson Productions movie and that makes it old and new to me. Over-hyped? Only if you were that newbie Indie kid that latched on and now they are getting too big for your Indie ears. Well, guess what, memorable, great music of this level is only generated every decade or so and it's bound to break out of its indie roots. And to those older folks that quibble over which song of Bob Dylan's was the best, don't over-analyze this album. Funeral was perfect and Neon Bible is too. I am almost expecting their third release to be just as quality, if not perfect as well. WOOT. Buy this album.… Expand

Masterpiece, one of the best in decade and in my opinion even better than Funeral. I enjoy every single piece of it.

Another great album from this wonderful band.

If this record came out before Funeral people would not have thought nearly as highly of it. For me, it lacks the energy it's predecessor has. The album is okay, but nothing special.

Ive only just discovered this gem..........I listened to Funeral after hearing this..........what great talents and hopefully more to come...........truly the best release for 2007 so far.....

Fantastic Sophmore!

Inventive. Refreshing. Complex. Pure genuis! "Neon Bible" solidifies Arcade Fire's prominence into modern, uncomercialized music.

Another great album. They've taken the best song of their first LP remastered it and it serves as a heavy hitter to end the second LP. I don't know if its good or bad that they will never have another album with angst and frustration that we found with funeral. But lets hope they keep making music like this.

It doesn't have the same twists and turns that Funeral did, but that results in a more solid and focussed feeling album.

I loved Funeral But this is just plain boring to me. The songs just dont sound very good to me aside from a couple of songs (neon bible, and keep the car running are good). the rest is just plain not very interesting music.

Funeral is an album for the ages, and gets my vote for best album of the decade, so far. I'm still listening to it at least 2 times a week after 2+ years. Neon Bible is a very good, approaching great, album. But it suffers somewhat in comparison to Funeral -- as do 99% of all albums. The album seems designed for a wider audience, which diminishes Arcade Fire's strength. For example, there is no "Laika" on this album -- a song that with its out-of-tune choruses is initially almost painful to listen to, but with patience reveals its depth and beauty.… Expand

I was looking forward to this album, however there is nothing new or good here. The first album was powerful, emotional and brilliant. However, the lyrics here are base and do not provoke any kind of feeling or power; they are dreary and without any real purpose or meaning.

There are certainly a number of missteps here - namely the clunky lyrics on "Black Mirror", the sterile "Neon Bible" and "My Body is a Cage" - but when The Arcade Fire stick to what they do best - play earnest, emotional art rock including all the instruments under the sun - they are as damn good they ever were on Funeral.

Obviously it would be next to impossible to expect this album to live up to Funeral, so I won't even go there. It is a very strong album emotionally and has several moments when they use their crescendos to perfection. However, a couple of the songs are duds, and that really has an effect on the overall cohesiveness. All in all, it's made me even more excited for their next release.

Only an OK album, specially when compared with such a masterpiece as Funeral. It seems a bit overproduced, with too many instruments cramped into every song (from mariachi trumpets to a church organ), as if the storm of sound will serve to disguise the lack of inspiration. At its best (Intervention, No Cars Go), it doesn't even comes close to the explosion of joy and emotion that was Funeral. At its worst (Black Wave/Bad Vibrations, Ocean Of Noise), it sounds like a couple of bad covers of Pink Floyd, or a christmas carol album sung by Paul Young (never a good thing to be compared to).… Expand

Funeral was a mind blowing spectacle with uplifting, beautiful songs fueled by death.The Arcade Fire' sophomore, Neon Bible, is a brilliant and compelling follow up that morphs the beauty of Funeral into a barrage of emotional cannon fire. Church themes fire through the album which seems fitting seeing that Funeral had relatives of the band dieing. You have to shed a tear somewhere near the end of this masterwork, it couldn't be any more haunting without killing your enthusiasm cold.If any album could be a wake up call to the #%@& music poisoning the world now its this life saver.… Expand

YAY! Thank god these people were put on Earth. Music is this and only what this should be.

Brilliant. Intense!

Although the songs on Neon Bible are on par with the songs on Funeral, I have to admit that Funeral is the overall better album. Also, as Kris B stated, the special edition is quite lame and is not worth the extra $12 (Canadian).

A whole new direction seperate from Funeral. I love this album.

Everything I wanted, and more. Keep the Arcade Fire Running.

What to say, what to say. To be honest, I really did want to like this album. Although suffering production wise, I thought Funeral was an amazingly well done. It was a beautiful and lush soundscape filled to the brim with ideas. Songs would careen wildly, often fitting a few great ideas into one pop length statement. As for Neon Bible, all I can say is this: What happened? The production has been beefed up, thats for sure, but the album feels like the process that went into Funeral was reversed. From my first encounter with the band, a pre-Funeral opening spot for The Unicorns, it was clear that this was a little band trying to do big things. A ragtag group of kids making weird ELO-esque pop. With the Neon Bible however, it sounds like they wrote a bunch of intense little songs and then realized they had all this money left over to dump a bucket of instruments and effects all over it. The songs seem to begin and end without ever reall going anywhere. As a brief example I would use "Keep the Car Running." The entirety of the song feels like what would have been simply the beginning of a song on Funeral, but it never takes off. The songs all just chug along nicely with one very basic idea. But too much of this chugging, or more aptly plodding, makes for a very boring album. It sounds wonderful, but the album never really soars like Funeral did. I welcome the idea of switching up your sound, but simply doing this does not a positive review make. As a side, i find the inclusion of "No Cars Go" absolutely befuddling. The new version sounds absolutely fantastic, far surpassing the original. As much as I appreciate it, I don't understand why it was put on here, perhaps it was more fitting as a B-side. The real problem with including it is the fact that it underscores how much the rest of the album is lacking in its song construction. It puts together the wonderful new production and their more crafty form of songwriting. If only the good production and lyrical ability synched up with the rest of the band, then it would have been an absolutely amazing album.… Expand

Anyone who has always been a fan of Springsteen's voice but couldn't bare his horrendous lyrics and show-bouty James Brown rip off act should like this album. No lyrics about dancing and waving a flag around here just great lines and fine musicianship. Glad he finally decided to stop imitating Byrne!

This is an album of moments, events, and heterotopic spaces. Unfortunately, the band's approach is hindered in some tracks by static forms; and in others by movement/s which lose their relation to time and form. A great album--if it were by any band other than Arcade Fire.

Pure Magic.

Most powerful disc since PearlJam vs.Oh, and Rollingstone and NOW have a bunch of fags writing for them. Your skinny freaking legs in tight jeans are making your brain bleed!!!

I have to say I was fearing the worst when I listened it first, but when you give it few listens (like many said), you realize the Masterpiece it is. My Body Is A Cage, No Cars Go, Ocean of Noise and Intervention are my favorite so far. I think only The National can beat them for Album of the Year

The more I listen to this album, the more it resonates with me--to the point where now it's as important a cultural companion as my favorite novels. Some reviews call the lyrics stilted or pretentious in parts, so maybe I'm stilted and pretentious, but I've been hearing Neon Bible lyrics echo through my head more and more as I take stock of how we live. Perhaps the greatest praise? I think I prefer it to Funeral!… Expand

Excellent Sophmore effort.

Why does this band get such high nods all the time. They are total crap.

They deliver in spite of the insane expectations.

After I listened through this album the first time I let out a massive sigh of relief. My beloved Arcade Fire had made an album that maintained the immensely high standard of Funeral. If you loved Funeral, you will love this.

Best band ever.

Here's an idea: stop being so fixated on Funeral. This obsessive need to rank Neon Bible as "better" or "worse" is getting tiring. Neon Bible is an amazing record and fully stands on its own without the need for Funeral to prop it up. I realize we're only 3 months in, but so far there's simply no album this year that comes even close to the brilliance and power of Neon Bible.

How could you not be disappointed after Funeral? Decent, but I've heard much much better albums this year alone.

A generation-defining release of tension from post-modern pressures. A couple of weaker songs ("Intervention" and "Black Wave") are a little too melodramatic for me, but this is some of the most genuinely emotional alternative rock of the decade.

Simply the best. Arcade Fire has the power to evoke emotion out of their listeners like no other band out there. Can't get enough of this album.

How they didn't disappoint us after Funeral is beyond me...but this album picks up at just the right spot, with a different sound, but a great listen again. These guys are on fire.

I really love Funeral, but i've listened to this a couple of times and I just don't get excited. For the most part it's just got too many slow songs for me and the production was really boring and predicable - enough with the violins. The subject matter is just so cliche at this point as well. oooooh religion and war are bad....we get it. A few of the songs are pretty good. The songs on Funeral were about something so under explored and pondered in spite of the fact that death and loss is something all of us are surrounded with.… Expand

After 8 listenings and countless hours fitfully tossing in bed trying to shake the sense of guilt at hating this album, I am proud to be one of the (very few) detractors. While the sound booms, the lyrics are laughable high school poetry, complete with awkward rhyme schemes, obvious imagery, and a melodramatic sense of self-righteousness that would embarrass even a 15-year-old girl. The arrangements can be impressive, but they are impressive in the same sense that, to paraphrase Wayne Coyne of Flaming Lips, a crane is an impressive flyswatter. The whole stinking turd is coated in layer after layer of nougat and caramel, but underneath it's still s***. The songwriting here is remarkably dull, essentially a group of goth teens aping Echo & The Bunnymen covering Bruce Springsteen. At least two of the songs are re-recordings of old songs, and one of these old songs was covered by another band in a far superior form some two years ago. Unfortunately, in the effort to make 'universal' music, Arcade Fire have made a massive, plodding bore full of platitudes and overwrought pap.… Expand

despite that i never found myself listening to "funeral" that often, i saw the majesty in it's sound. however, i believe this sophmore album is bordering on classic. it is their "room on fire" a gentle exansion of their existing sound, modern and perfect in it's way, but still not likely to please everyone who loved thier debut. anthemic and driving, in a way that will win over even more u2 fans, yet a little subversive (i.e. the title track self-referencial nature) and deeply nuanced enough for the trad indie set. the presence of one or two clunkers, and a few points where i feel they would have benefited from my luscious baritone vocals on back-up, keep this one from recieving a 10 from me. worth the purchase.… Expand

Pure genius. Give it a few listens before you dismiss it as an 'ok' follow up to Funeral. I can't stop listening to it. 'Intervention' gives me chills. In my mind, this record stakes a claim for the Arcade fire as the 'best band on the planet' right now.

Looks like people are suffering from a Radiohead syndrome with Arcade Fire now, trying way hard to like whatever they make just because they are Arcade Fire. There are 4 strong tracks on the album, but none of them reach the heights of Funeral. The rest of the album ranges from mediocre to unlistenable to me because of its bizzare broadway-musical-like quality. Overall, an extremely mediocre followup.… Expand

Boring and contrived... is there a pulse out there in Montreal? Two good tracks surrounding by garbage... this band gets more "they are so David Bowie cool" milage than any other I can remember. This is a limp comparison to Funeral......

Good record, but failed when the record is not make with the same reasons like Funeral, with the heart and soul and fatalities, sounds more artificial and some poor lyrics, but it's a awesome second album.

I wasn't astounded by this album as quickly as I thought I'd be. It took me time to fall in love with the first album as well. But after multiple listens, and listening to hundreds of other songs these past two weeks, 5 or Neon Bible's songs have been constantly stuck in my head. This is a very powerful album, that you'll know its great at first, but realize its a masterpiece later. Album of the Year as of this moment… Expand

Overrated.

I feel a stronger connection to this album than Funeral. Powerful album, talented artists.

The musical equivalent of WMDs in Iraq. We kept hearing all about them (i.e. the great songs supposedly on this record) but when looked for, nothing was found. Funeral was bloated and directionless, but at least energetic. This is just bloated.

As a follow up for funeral it feels a little sad at first. But after a few listens it really does add a whole new great sound to the Arcade Fire's history. The only thing it could use is some more variation, but what it does focus on it does very well. Would love to see them live..

It's a near-perfect attempt at gothic gospel rock. Deep, lyrically and musically, Neon Bible proves this band as being the most important band of the decade. "Funeral" was a brilliant album, Neon Bible sounds nothing like it but still has this essence of childlike innocence even if it is darker. They are back!