1. kango

   9

   Arcade Fire's third album is a little different to their previous two. On first listen, it appears that the crescendos and walls of sound we've come to expect have mostly been faded out to be replaced by more space and an unhurried saunter through the places the Butler's grew up in. None of this is bad; the band as tight and melodies as gorgeous as ever. Two tracks highlight the band's fondness for new sounds. The first, Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains) goes into electro territory, Regine's vocals perfectly complimenting the mirrorball soundtrack. The second, Month Of May takes things in the direction of straight ahead punk rock but is no less stirring than when the church organs are ramped up to 11. These are sounds I hope we will be hearing more of in the future. For now though, this is a very modern blend of folk rock and synth pop which should open the door to wider popularity. Best of the homely gems for my money is City With No Children. It quickly achieves lift-off the same way as Rebellion or No Cars Go do on previous albums. And then back down to earth... but never for long. It's this pattern of peaks and troughs that run throughout the album; a collection of stunningly played songs put together with some thought. One reason to press an album on to plastic, and then play it from beginning to end.… Collapse

   • Helpful? 6 of 6 users said Yes.
2. aabender002

   8

   Arcade Fire are definitely maturing and expanding their sound, and those who say that they can never top 'Funeral' might want to give their subsequent albums a more careful listen.… Expand

   • Helpful? 1 of 1 users said Yes.
3. Armington

   6

   I don't think I'm quite feeling the brilliance of this album the way most seem to be. It's a pretty solid effort for sure but to me that's it. The band seemed to be stretching and testing themselves far more on their previous 2 albums, which were both outstanding. Their toning down on The Suburbs has lessened the impact of course, making this album more of a grower, but after several listens I still find myself zoning out and forgetting it's on. For me the stand out track is undoubtedly 'Sprawl II', as this seems to be the song where their sounds actually mutates into something new and interesting. I may be in the minority but I think Arcade Fire have played it safe with this album, and that's not just because the songs are less grand. Where's the sparkling invention of tracks like Une Année Sans Lumière and Crown of Love, where the songs change pace and rhythm on a whim. On the first two albums I didn't know what to expect from one track to the next. With The Suburbs, at times its quite difficult distinguishing one song from the next, with none of them rivalling their best work… Expand

   • Helpful? 1 of 2 users said Yes.
4. JayTee

   1

   Arcade Fire just might be the second most overrated and pretentious band around today (the top spot would have to go to Animal Collective). Every song on The Suburbs is bland and lacking in even the smallest amount of entertainment. Funeral had it's bareable moments, but their last two releases prove that music nowadays has been cheapened to lazy and boring melodies. It makes me shudder to think great indie bands go unnoticed while the lame ones seem to thrive.… Expand

   • Helpful? 1 of 13 users said Yes.

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