By: Cyn Collins
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Win Butler of Arcade Fire at First Avenue Thursday night - Photo by Steve Cohen (click photo for full gallery of photos from this show)
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Montreal’s Arcade Fire is easily one of the best live bands in the world right now, or at least the best I’ve had the pleasure to see. Year after year Canada continues to produce some of the most brilliant, friendly musicians in the world (as does Australia, but I’ll get to that in another review.)
I’ve come to the conclusion that a winning formula for a live band = 8+ members who enjoy playing together, a horn section, a fiddle or two, a melodica, and innumerable percussion instruments.
Montreal’s Belle Orchestre began the Canadian aural onslaught with 5 or more members, 3 of whom were from Arcade Fire, performing Bela Bartok style Klezmer, jazz and gypsy folk in the darker minor keys with a funky dance beat. Then Wolf Parade from British Columbia brought it up a notch, with energy reminding me of locals Thunder in the Valley (with whom they’re playing at the Entry October 13th.) Tall, hooded Arcade Fire lead singer Win Butler was watching Wolf Parade near the front of the bar and joined them on the drum kit for songs at the end.
I had come to see Arcade Fire with high anticipation having seen the webcast Austin City Limits festival. The show had been the talk of the town and sold out for weeks due to enthusiastic word-of-mouth about their live performances and their extraordinary full-length debut CD Funeral.
People danced and clapped along to the exquisite fusion of musical styles from many decades, countries and genres – jazz, soul, rock, funk, classical, Brit-pop, gypsy folk, and more. The numerous whoo oo oo’ing and whoa ohhh, ohhh choruses provided great sing-along opportunities in which nearly the entire room joined in – it was full-on audience appreciation and participation such as I’ve never seen. The excitement built higher and higher, till everyone around me could hardly contain themselves, a few even saying they could die happy now.
Somber orchestral beginnings such as in first song “Tunnels” – the intro to which was a solo French horn played from the DJ booth on the second floor -- progressed into wildfire rhythms played with urgency as though there were no tomorrow. The dramatic violin of Sarah Neufeld was offset by the equally intense, but cooler poses of a second violinist. Frequent instrument swapping depicted rare versatility, making the show even more exciting. Most of the musicians in Arcade Fire, if not all, come from multiple generations and a culture of musicians. Neufeld played violin since 3 – (in Canada, fiddles are often placed in babies’ cribs, music is a required school subject, and it’s common for child musicians of 12 have cut at least two CD’s).
Continual antics amidst numerous living room lamps in a dramatic black and scarlet backdrop made the show incomparable visually as well: pairs of fiddlers and drummers playfully beat on snare drums, cymbals, pipes, each others’ backs, helmets and speakers, with sticks and bows. The guitarist ran back and forth like a duck in an arcade shooting gallery for the length of a song. The French horn player playfully caught and reflected light with his instrument, and slumbered with the two fiddlers until they woke him. Butler challenged percussionist/upright bass player Richard Reed Parry to play lead guitar and Parry responded by stabbing towards Butler like a swordsman/cat as he tore into the song.
Singer/keyboardist/percussionist/accordionist/etceteratist Haitian French Regine Chassagne, wife of lead vocalist Win Butler juggled melodica with keyboards and shakers and struck mime-like poses while singing Bjorkian-style . . . the theatrics were enhanced by the lighting, casting dark silhouettes, black and white, and flashing the living room lamps in time with the music.
Butler sang soulfully in the spirit of the Beatles, Bono, Bowie, Byrne, and more, striking a deep chord when he sang Bowie’s “Five Years.” (Bowie joined this compelling group onstage at Summerstage, New York City this month.)
There were so many favorites, but “No Car Go,” stood out, with an urgent percussion, a breakdown featuring the French horn which really got me in the gut, and the violin swaying, while rat-a-tat-tat military percussion persisted amidst a rousing, yet sorrowful cheer, all reminding me of a New Orleans funeral march. Other songs I particularly loved were “Submarine,” “Seven Kettles,” and the particularly powerful, “Power Out!”
Arcade Fire began their encore with the rousting eye-opener “Wake Up.” (I learned U2, who Arcade Fire tours with next month, uses “Wake Up” as intro music in their shows.)
Members of Wolf Parade joined them for the finale.
Location Info:
First Avenue
Artist Info: Arcade Fire, Belle Orchestra, Wolf Parade
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