ARCADE FIRE - Neon Bible

It amuses me to imagine it went like this. The phone rings in the dead of night, the voice of the old friend somewhere between irritated and resigned: "Hi David, it's Brian […] listen, I can't keep going on like this, the years go by and by now I can't even write something good for myself anymore […] I'm sorry: from today on you'll have to manage some other way, find yourself someone else […]".

Ok, ok, I'll get serious again. Not that it changes much, because, even setting aside the joke, it's obvious that Win Butler and Regine Chassagne are quite in debt to Mr. David Bowie. Maybe you're here because OndaRock has a sharp eye, and three years ago, well ahead of the media hype, enthusiastically reviewed that "Funeral" that's been so talked about since. Well, good for you, you enjoyed it earlier, but it wasn't you who changed the life and career of the aforementioned Canadian couple and their various bandmates.

Success does in fact exert a huge influence on artists. You have more responsibilities and more opportunities. It's possible you'll obtusely keep going your own way: but it's far more likely you'll take a look around. The fact is that Arcade Fire, unlike many of their contemporaries, took a good long break before putting out another record, riding the long wave of success they'd achieved.

They thought carefully about what to do, developed a new sound, worked the songs into shape, honed the orchestration; finally they went "somewhere by the ocean to record the vocals" – as Butler states, explaining – "A lot of the songs on the new record make me think of being on the shoreline, near the water, at night"*. Three years, taking a real risk of fears – which never actually spread – about a dip in inspiration. That's how long it took to bring "Neon Bible" into the world, a title and cover as fitting to the vision and lyrics as they are ugly.

Anyone who has already heard the first previews of Arcade Fire's sophomore effort (two songs deliberately posted online, plus one that leaked by mistake) knows I'm not talking about the influence of success for no reason. The band has managed to win over a sizable audience thanks to its two-faced nature, that is, being at once indie (loser attitude, quirky song structures, not exactly conventional arrangements) and mainstream (the epic quality that all their songs give off, evident above all in tracks like "Crown of Love"), while still leaning heavily towards the former.

Well, "Neon Bible" pushes that dividing line a little further, without actually crossing it. In doing so, it makes the following changes: a) a fuller, more physical, more forceful, more all-encompassing and more rock sound rather than a danceably introverted one b) less elitist, more mass-oriented references c) more concrete and less imaginative lyrics. All while still remaining Arcade Fire, even if, obviously, no longer the Arcade Fire of "Funeral".

The first single taken from the album, as well as its opening track (a good choice on both counts), the beautiful "Black Mirror", sums up pretty much all the main traits of this new course. The sound of the ocean accompanies the whole track, acid, garage guitar, orchestration pumping up its tone, bursts of epic melody that make its repetition all the more surprising. Two other new developments then come to light. First, the vocals: Butler sings much better, while Chassagne scales back her involvement, relying mostly on sudden arrangement counter-choruses with a very eighties feel (assuming they are indeed her work) and faint backing vocals. A smart choice, since his clipped delivery suits songs of this kind better than her dreamlike one would. Second, the work on the strings, much more professional and precise (and here the hand at work is certainly Chassagne's).

But what confirms that this is, once again, a work of quality well above the norm are the tracks that follow shortly after. The reckless "Keep The Car Running": laden with strings, drums and handclaps, insistent piano notes, airy melody and a commanding bass (a pulse that keeps the movement going, scales that launch it skyward). "Intervention": a long organ drone, acoustic guitars and bells, religion and war, fear and love, thick melody, spoken word and singing. "Ocean of Noise": a Waits-like tremor of bass underpinning a mournful ballad, chimes and strings that shake and accompany the most beautiful melody the band has written so far. A sincere, deep embrace, with a surprise ending bursting with horns. These are three of the album's four masterpieces, and they show how the band is seeking, and managing to find, a path of its own, ending up in a kind of modern new wave: a second new wave, more than just a revival derived from the Strokes.

Let me explain better: where "Funeral" was more singular, but drawn from a precise inspiration, this second chapter is more conventional but broader in scope; and talk of wave should refer more to the method — an all-round recycling — than to the substance. One could even try to trace a lineage running from the Fiery Furnaces to TV on the Radio (another reason for the playful homage to Bowie, a better critic than those who criticize him).

These are semi-academic speculations, which find their justification in the greater variety on display, at times quite openly, as "(Antichrist Television Blues)" demonstrates: a long, breathtaking guitar ride, lifted almost verbatim from the archives of Bruce Springsteen (who was already hovering over other tracks on the album). Whereas, on the opposite end, it's only "The Well and the Lighthouse" that fully gives itself over to pastiche, with its Interpol-like guitar, vocal interplay and retro orchestra.

Before wrapping up, it's worth dwelling on a striking resurrection, that of "No Cars Go", the standout track from the 2002 EP. A beautiful song back then, a fourth masterpiece today: a mirror of how much its writers and performers have changed and matured. Drum rolls and gusts of accordion, wave-style guitar playing, horns, a volley of "hey"s, synth crescendo: all elements already present and now thoroughly revived (more power and depth; stripped of their amateurish edge).

In short, Arcade Fire have become more mature and self-aware, managing to put out a second album that, element for element, can hold its own against its imposing predecessor. Perhaps it loses the contest by a hair: but only because "Funeral" had a surplus of cohesion, an alchemy that's very hard to repeat, even for an album as tight and solid as "Neon Bible". What's more, the new songs lend themselves to wider reach, without however squandering the goodwill earned so far. For once, we can leave the future alone and enjoy the present.

* This translation is taken from www.indie-rock.it

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21/02/2007