I first had a taste of Arcade Fire when my brother was playing their debut album "Funeral" in his car. I had no idea who they were, but I liked their sound. I finally found out it was Arcade Fire and I immediately bought my own copy. It turned out that the song "Wake Up" was also getting commercial exposure in movie trailers and Super Bowl ads during that time too. The album was aI first had a taste of Arcade Fire when my brother was playing their debut album "Funeral" in his car. I had no idea who they were, but I liked their sound. I finally found out it was Arcade Fire and I immediately bought my own copy. It turned out that the song "Wake Up" was also getting commercial exposure in movie trailers and Super Bowl ads during that time too. The album was a masterpiece as a whole. I found out that the band was comprised of many musicians and I loved it. Then I checked out their second album "Neon Bible" and it was more of the amazing baroque indie sound but much darker. Though the album is my least favorite of theirs, I still love it to death. Finally, "The Suburbs" was released and it was their first number one album. It was also just as good, if not much better than "Funeral". Beautiful music. It won Album of The Year at the Grammys and I was so happy for them while most people were confused at who they were. They really deserved the win. Now, 3 years later they release viral videos and graffiti ads promoting a new album. Then they released the music video for the lead single and title track of the album "Reflektor" featuring David Bowie. It was a different sound, but a very great song. I think Ive listened to the song at least 10 times a day until they released yet another lyric/music video of the song "Afterlife". It was in my opinion even better than "Reflektor" and the video was just perfect. I just couldn't wait for the new album. Well it has finally arrived and I could not be happier. I thought they wouldn't be able to top their last album, but I think they might have with this epic double disc set. Here is a track by track review.
Disc 1:
1. Reflektor: The beginning tribal drums remind me of The Rolling Stones "Sympathy for the Devil" a bit. Then the song turns into an indie rock disco track. Many immediately compared the sound to LCD Soundsystem, who's frontman produced the album. At first I didn't think the chorus was great, but then as it was repeated more and more it became so infectious. The way Regines and Wins vocals intertwine is magical. Regine also sings some verses in French beautifully. David Bowie gives a haunting guest vocal. Favorite lyric is "Thought you were praying to the resurrector, turns out it was just a reflektor". Great song to start off this great album with. 10/10
2. We Exist: The song immediately starts with a bass similar to "Billie Jean" with some sexy "na na nas". The vocals are so smooth. This is probably Arcade Fires most groovy song. It was first played live on Saturday Night Live, but I'm glad I can finally hear the studio version. 3 minutes into the song the synths take over a bit and the vocals become more calm. The last 3 minutes of the song get even better. The songs bass will definitely get you moving. 10/10
3. Flashbulb Eyes: At first I thought I wasn't going to like the song because of its short length. But I'm glad I was proven wrong. This is a groovy trippy song. The instrumentation of this song is amazing. I can see this playing at a parade in a forest at night in Haiti. I wish the song was at least a minute longer though. It does lead into the next song rather smoothly. 9.5/10
4. Here Comes The Night Time: Another song that was played on Saturday Night Live well, but I'm glad to hear the album version finally! The song starts out quick before slowing down into a groovy dance beat similar to The Killers song "Believe Me Natalie" just slightly. The synths really give this an 80s feel at times. Nearly 2 minutes into the song it turns into a slightly different sound with playful keyboards. 4 and a half minutes into the song things pick up pace in beautiful fashion similar to in Funerals "Wake Up". This change in pace makes you feel like youre in the middle of a celebration in Haiti with Arcade Fire at "night time". See what I did there? The last minute of the song is a perfect sing along to end the song with! 10/10
5. Normal Person: This song is like a rocking sister song to "Modern Man". This is definitely Arcade Fires most rock n roll sounding song. There is a perfect guitar riff that permeates the song throughout. It is destined to become a classic guitar riff that will be covered over and over again! This is going to be a great concert song to get the crowd hyped. Regine also has a haunting vocal part during the bridge. The ending has a really quick fast guitar part that I kind wish was used more! 10/10
6. You Already Know: This hand clapper of a song is really feelgood. This song took me a few listens to get into, but its worth it. It really gets better with repetition. The chorus sounds the best toward the end of the song with Regines backing vocals! Great song about seizing the moment! 9.5/10
7. Joan of Arc: The song starts out with a punk rocker spirit. Then it turns into an anthemic song for the road. The drums have that "We Will Rock You" spirit just a bit. Regine showcases more of her French vocals, but not as good as in the title track, but still good! The chorus seriously gets better every time I hear it! This song might become a grower for most though. There are some nice guitar moments sprinkled throughout the song, especially toward the end. The song ends abruptly with silence to end the track. Great way to end dico 1 of this masterpiece. 9.5/10
Disc 2:
1. Here Comes the Night Time part 2: The silence from disc 1 leads into this sequel to the previous song of the same title. This calm electronic song is very relaxing, especially toward its end. Great calming start to the second disc. 9/10
2. Awful Sound (Oh Eurydice): The song starts out with the tribal drums before a sexy Bass starts up. There is an apocalyptic sound to the beginning, but 2 minutes into the song it starts to sound more uplifting and beautiful. There is something very emotional about Wins vocals, especially considering the Greek story of Orpheus this and most of the album is inspired by. 3 minutes into the song it gets even more beautiful with added backing vocals from Regine! This is a very experimental epic and beautiful song. This will sound great live. 10/10
3. Its Never Over (Oh Orpheus): This song is more dance-y after the heartwrenching previous song. This might instantly be one of my favorite tracks of all time. The guitars and dance beat are just infectious! Regine is more prominent in this song and she does more of her French vocals. The chants of "Hey Orpheus" are typical Arcade Fire and remind me of "Neighborhood 2" just a bit. There are nice horns in there too! Near 4 minutes into the song Win and Regine compliment each other vocally so perfectly! The final minute of the song is very very chill. Probably the best progressive indie rock songs ever. 10/10
4. Porno: This finger snapping song is very synthbased in a great way. As many of said, this one sounds like it could've been used in the Drive movie soundtrack. This is a really really sexy song. The sexiest song from the band. I mean the title already hinted at that though. Win gives some of his best vocal performances too. Honestly this one sounds like it was produced by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails. That is a compliment! Great different song for the band. One of the best as well. 10/10
5. Afterlife: This is my new favorite song from the band. The dance beat and the U2 Achtung-Baby-esque guitars are amazing and catchy. The music video works so well too using clips from the classic movie "Black Orpheo", which I now need to see! The subject of this song is touchy and very emotional. The chorus is one of the best from the band. If I was in charge, this would be the next song of the year at the Grammys! I don't know what else to say. Just perfect and timeless. 11/10
6. Supersymmetry: The title sounds like something "Muse" would do. I had two feelings when I saw the 11 minute length of the song. I was excited for epicness, and I was also hesitant at having to sit back at a possibly boring track. Luckily, this track is far from boring. In fact, its one of the more exciting songs from the band. Very beautiful vocals from both Win and Regine symmetrically. The song is very relaxing at the start with some 80s synths. The U2 inspired sound is also present. 3 minutes into the track it starts to pick up the beat and get more anthemic and gorgeous! The vocals also come to a halt turning the song into an instrumental the rest of the way. At first this might sound off putting considering the length of the song, but I promise you this is one of the best. Halfway in it seems to fade out, before slowly fading back in again. It takes a while but the song ends with the last 4 minutes or so being a spacey sound. It is said this is a hidden track, but I don't hear a real track. I just hear ambient spacey noises. I honestly wish they wouldn't have wasted all that time, but some will think its really artistic while many will call it annoying and pretentious to end the album this way. I think the first 5 minutes make up for the last part of the song. I do think if there were a movie based on the album that the spacey ending would fit well, but not for casual listeners. 10/10 strictly for the first part of the song.
So I may sound biased since I gave most of the songs on the album a perfect score, but I'm confident that this is one of the best albums released in the past 10 years. Some are saying this is Arcade Fires "OK Computer"/"Kid A". I somewhat agree. I might get a lot of disagreements for what I'm about to say, but I think this was much better than both of those Radiohead albums that seem to be brought up whenever an artist experiments nowadays. This is Arcade Fires "REFLEKTOR". This album has so many textures and layers that one will discover with each repeated listen. I already keep discovering new things in the songs I didn't hear before. As many have stated, the album does have a more dance-y feel to it. It works really well though. If there was any doubt that Arcade could surpass their "Suburbs" or "Funeral" album, this is the answer. This album is almost too good. This really is epic. At over 70 minutes long, you really have to get settled in to really enjoy the album, but its worth it. I won't be surprised if this album sweeps the next Grammy award season. This will be analyzed by critics for years as one of the milestone albums of the 2010s decade of music. Do yourself a favor and get this album if you like good music.… Expand