The Suburbs

- Indie rock - chill/fun vibes

Bom álbum, me dá vontade de dançar.

This album offered a lot of diversity, each song bringing its own feel. With a name like Arcade Fire, I expected more oomph but felt like only a few songs offered the punch I was hoping for.

The Suburbs offers a relaxed, easygoing indie sound that’s pleasant without demanding much attention.

I'd listened to the opening of this album a number of times over the years, but strangely enough I never continued listening to the rest. "The Suburbs" (title song) is still great in how it captures a certain wistfulness and nostalgic melancholy. It exemplifies something this album does very well, which is to have the instrumentation work in tandem with the lyrics to illustrate them. I do think though, that since this is partly an album about midlife disenchantment, that this CAN manifest as boredom in the production itself. I have to admit that I found it a little too easy to zone out during this album, and there are definitely moments of tedium; weirdly enough, the tedium seems more pronounced during the more ostensibly upbeat songs ("Month of May" being a particular low point, for me, and an introduction to a weaker, more meandering section of the album). The album picks back up, though, with "We Used to Wait" and finishes strong with the two-part suite "Sprawl". Part II is the climax of the album when all the plodding angst suddenly unfurls into something euphoric, like waking up to a beautiful sunset after a night of despair. "Ready to Start" is also particularly great. I really like that moment when the vocals get a half-step out of sync with the backing instruments on the lyric 'if I was pure, you know I would'; to me it adds authenticity as it signals the character's hesitancy, almost as if he's questioning whether he really means what he's saying.

very specific vibe

Spent a lot of time with this album when it came out, and haven’t really since. Wish I’d spent a little more time on this listen.

straight man music from a gay guy. 3/5.

Easy 5/5. My favorite Arcade Fire album

My wife recently made a dinner of spaghetti and meatballs. While everything was cooked well, it had almost absolutely no flavor. If that meal was an album, it would be this. Bland, tasteless, and boring. I wanted to stop eating (listening) after the first few bites (tracks).

8.25/10 - We both liked it and it had a fun vibe. It was also from the year we were born.

Almost 5

Omg, I can’t tell you how much I loved their first album. I didn’t mind this one but it sounded like a lot of the Indi pop of this era.

Ok, but it doesn't light me on (Arcade) Fire.

So trying to be nostalgic it gives millennial vibes, everything sounds the same

I fell off Arcade Fire before this album, and while I liked Neon Bible, it was a shade on Funeral. I don't really know what came after. I did get to know this album in subsequent years, and have grown to like most of it. Ready To Start is a great song. the rest is okay, but I'll give it just a 3.

I was put on. This is a solid album that has certainly influenced modern indie. Definitely heavy on their title song, but creative for the time.

ok this sound exactly as i expected it to sound not bad, just not at all surprising good transitions! kind of giving ost despite loving them in the moment, the songs, for some reason, just don't leave a lasting impression

It’s certainly good!!!!

Absolute Retro-Vibes für mich. Love it.

Not bad, kinda drones together in a way I dont love and is forgetable

4/1001 2/5 This inarguably is music. It just does f* all to me emotionally, except maybe Month of May. The songs are too long, the album is too long ... And that comes form a firm believer in Oasis' Be Here Now Prepare to be bored

1.5/5 Millennial core.

It's a good record, but Funeral is (appropriately) the one album by them you need to hear before you die, if that's how you want to go out. Neon Bible is you need a second.

Exploring suburbia is fertile ground for a concept album, and the band do a good job of mining it while somehow avoiding making things feel trite or one-note. “Suburban War” rides a guitar line that sounds like The Byrds, and it’s nice to hear Regine Chassagne take the lead on the new wavey “Sprawl II.” Also, Win Butler apparently described the sound of this album as “a mix of Depeche Mode and Neil Young,” which I totally don’t hear, but whatever. This is the first time I’ve listened to this album in full, and while it’s strong, I’m trying to decide whether it’s superior to their debut album, which I know much better, and at any rate I’ve got a lawn to mow and tires to rotate.

The music of Arcade Fire (or any of the indie bands in that genus) has never connected with me on any sort of emotional level. Maybe it's because I'm not from the suburbs? I can't deny this its three stars for being well-put-together or whatever, but this'll probably be the last time I play it.

Enough of a concept to hold the record together, but not so restrictive that it plods. I'd heard it before but still like it.

It’s no Funeral. It’s also a little long and self indulgent. But solid overall.

This album is superb. I like Arcade Fire, but this has to be my favourite by them. Thy have such a unique sound and blend of instruments and songwriting. Neon Bible and Reflektor are good albums, but this one is their best.

yeah pretty good!

Good but didn't capture me like the other albums on the list of theirs. Decent But unremarkable

OK, but some of the female vocals weren't my favourite.

Enjoyable but not overly memorable / nothing that made me stop what i was doing to really listen to the song. Feels like something that was once really notable for what it was doing but has since been made unremarkable by the extent of what it has inspired (idk) and not enough of my genre for me to really appreciate what makes it stand out.

I spent a lot of this album wondering what made it standout enough for this list, but also thinking about how I would have given it a higher rating in 2010 as I was seeking similar music out, though never an Arcade Fire fan. Which shows list relevance I suppose but unfortunately it has not aged well

Despite growing up on Tumblr, I’m pretty sure this was my first time listening to Arcade Fire. This album was very 2010… mostly inoffensive to my sensibilities but not one I would return to anytime soon. I think I preferred the back half (“Month of May” onwards)

This was such a huge album in my house throughout the 2010s and if I had to guess probably one of the most played too (Half Light II especially). The Suburbs epitomised my music taste arouns this time and I can remember the day I went to buy the CD while doing photography for a VA project in the city, and I think I subsequently incorporated lyrics or images from it into various art projects. The album as a whole maybe does not hold up quite as well as it once did and I found a few songs in the middle that dragged a bit, but hearing Sprawl II, Suburban War, City With No Children, Ready To Start again really unlocked something in me so I’m still going 5 stars. The suburban dystopia themes really spoke to me and I watched the interactive music video for We Used To Wait (it pulls in all these Google Streetview images of your childhood home ans shows them all overgrown and inhabited by humans) so much because it made such an impression on me. Not from this album but Afterlife was my all time fave Arcade Fire song

Arcade Fire suffer because they inspired a truly insufferable wave of bands that followed them and were worth less than nothing. This style of indie late 00s, early 10s folkish rock once sounded great and groundbreaking but has been left woefully behind and sounding, frankly, naff. Arcade Fire were the best of these types of bands and this was their last worthwhile output but half the songs sound like they’d go well beyond a mobile phone ad and the other half sound whiny. Sprawl II is great though. Great enough to bump up the album to a 3/5.

2.1/5 I've never understood the fascination with the Arcade Fire. It's the type of music that is playing when you walk into a coffee shop. Feels more like background music than one of the greatest albums ever released.

According to google my top genre for the last couple years has been 'Indy'. I don't care for this bland, I mean band.

Still can't figure out if I like this band or not. There are some really cool sounds and moments, but they need to edit their albums down more. There are a lot of boring runs leading up to the good parts. The issue I have with Arcade Fire I think is that they try to be really deep and conceptual with their lyrics but all my favorite parts are when I'm ignoring the lyrics and just listening to the melodies and rest of the band. If it was an album full of nonsense vocalizations and harmonies along with the music I think I'd like it better than trying to focus on whatever is being presented for an hour +. The lyrics are never quite clear and kind of mumbly. Sometimes I don't want to sit and focus on what's being said for that long. Standouts are "Modern Man" - I really liked that weird extra beat they'd throw in a lot of lines - "Empty Room" "Month of May" and "Sprawl II." It's an average 3 for me. Good but nothing lasting in my memory really

Paar goede nummers op dit album, over het algemeen langdradige nummers welke diep proberen te zijn.

Kinda nice background music for sure but didn’t super stand out to me

dull and evocative of suburban ennui in the worst possible way. i really don't like to summarize my opinion on any album, much less one as influential as this one, as "boring!" but it fits here. feels like growing up in a neighborhood with a home owners association. deserves to be one of the 1001? probably yes. sigh.

Very nostalgic ig, but it was a good listen. Although it is quite long.

Довольно легкий альбом по звучанию Очень понравился стиль песен, напоминает немного the beetles, а инструментал саундтреки из игры life is strange

January 10, 2026 (Saturday) Album of the Day: The Suburbs (2010) - Arcade Fire (1/12/2026) Didn't listen until Monday XD. It sounds well-produced, but the album doesn't do anything special for me. I feel like (if they were used correctly) the songs from this album could go really hard in a coming-of-age movie/TV-show. Favorite Song: The Suburbs (really interesting music video)

Removed Album #24 (List: https://pastebin.com/cSThNiK9) Here we are with yet another removed album, and my final Arcade Fire at that. It hasn't been too long since I gave Funeral the ol' relisten. I don't remember disliking it as much as I did when I first heard it a year or so ago, but I still found the irreverent sound to be profoundly fake, underwhelming and disingenuous. I'm not sure if Arcade Fire are a band that have evolved and refined their sound since, but I'm nonetheless curious to hear what this later entry in their discography sounds like. This is, once again, boring as shit. One of those albums which kills my interest in this list for a couple of days and sinks me into a perpetual album debt. I don't know what it is about Arcade Fire which ignites this antipathy within me, but I'm always immediately alerted to how fake and superficial their music is. I can't even articulate why, really. The performances are competent and this style of music is vaguely within my sphere of interest. It's just so fake and flaccid. Maybe it stems from my dislike of milennials. Everything they idealise and think is cool is just the lamest shit in the world. All this doom and gloom woe is me anxiety shit without saying a word of substance. So, why was this album removed? To the book entry we go. This is the last album that was added to the 2011 edition, which has always been the most ominous and mysterious edition of the book. It was released only a year and a half after the 2010 edition, which is nuts. Given that there are seven revisions of the book and 88 albums which were snubbed from the list, they've averaged thirteen new albums per book. Yet, how could you possibly draw that number from this edition when the previous revision released only a year ago? Stranger yet is that, like I said, this is the last album which was added to the book. Then 2010 revision released in March, The Suburbs released in August of the same year and the 2011 edition released in September of the following year, meaning that there isn't a single 2011 album in the book and they only extended the music timeline by three months. I can't think of any reason to release this edition aside from it being a money laundering scheme. There are some corpses buried underneath the Universe Publishing offices and I can say that with certainty. Oh, yeah. Actual book time. This was added to the 2011 edition and was removed from the 2013 edition (what was the actual point of that shitty 2011 revision??????). A thoughtful pivot which sidestepped the expectations built up around their previous albums and led to a maturation in their sound. Not sold yet. Wikipedia says that this album debuted at number one in every Western country aside from Stroya. Won four music awards including the 2011 Grammy and was, obviously, well-received by critics. I mean, I think I've already adequately explained why this album was added and removed from the book an edition later. The Dimery family had whacked a rival music list maker in the basement of Universe Publishing and needed to churn out a new revision of the book to get the spooks off their case. If I am to look at this removal through a delusional, meritocratic lens, then I can also see why it was snubbed. It's achieved great success, but I think three list albums is just way too many for an artist of this standing. One album (Neon Bible was also removed from later editions of the book) seems like too few, however. The book implies that Neon Bible is the more acclaimed release, but that wasn't the impression I got from comparing the Wikipedia pages of both albums. I'll save this album and snub Neon Bible since it is the more musically distinct album. I cosign this inclusion.

I first heard about Arcade Fire from a now defunct magazine in the early 2000s around the release of Funeral. It was an incredible album that hooked me. It hit at the right time and helped herald in a new genre of rock music. Unfortunately, within 5 years, they gained worldwide fame, started playing arenas, and turned out this generic bastardization of their once original sound. It is a testament to the ridiculousness of the Grammys that this won for Album of the Year. Funeral and, to a lesser extent, Neon Bible deserved far more acclaim than this. Fame got to them, and they lived long enough to become the villain. Win Butler has been accused of sexual assault, his brother quit the band, and nothing they’ve ever put out comes close to their first album.

I remember when this record came out. And I feel like I slept on it…. This record is fantastic. I think it might be a bit too long. There are a lot of awesome songs on here and a few mediocre ones. If the trimmed the fat it would be a perfect album. The mediocre songs aren’t bad by any means, but they pale in comparison to the other songs. I’m interested in checking into this band more.

was expecting it to be mid but actually the songs are so different and sometimes even weird-ish and I like it

Ta weno 👍🏻es un álbum que pondría de fondo mientras trabajo en algo. El tema que mas me gustó fué The suburbs ( es el primero xD). No estoy acostumbrada a este estilo musical pero la verdad si me gustó el álbum.

J’ai adoré !

I didn’t enjoy it as much as the first time I listened to it, and honestly, I’ve soured on arcade fire quite a bit recently, but to give it less than a four would be to neglect how influential this album has been on my own music taste.

Kind of forgot about this band tbh, some absolutely great songs on this album. Very unique sound too

My 3rd Arcade Fire album…I pulled them in order. This one starts and ends very strong, but with such a lull in the middle, it makes it kind of a drag to get through, especially given the length. I was a huge fan of their debut, and own these first three albums, but the trend for me was 5, 4, 3. This project had me dust all 3 off and nothing has changed. I haven’t even followed the band after this release, but now mildly curious to check out their more recent output. So, at least there’s that.

A decent album, highlighted by some absolutely ripping tracks, suffers from being a bit bloated. Cute concept to tie an album together with a recurring cities and towns motif.

I remember thinking this was the worst of their albums when this came out. It seemed too polished, all the edges knocked off for easier swallowing by the masses. It’s still not a terrible album by any means, but I stand by that initial assessment.

I feel like I’ll have to listen to it again to fully know my feelings about it

Enjoyed songs: Sprawl II (Mountains beyond Mountains). Its monotone, every songs sounds alike. Filled with skippable songs. Its just not the sounds I appreciate.

Great album. Lots of great songs, by a great band. 4,4/5.

Arcade Fire is so uninteresting. I don’t know why they merit more than one spot on this list.

At over a hour long, the placement of the two familiar, radio friendly singles at position one and two on the track listing seems misguided. The remainder of the album is incredibly dull, and typical of this period. Heard before ❌️ Listened this time ✅️ Revisit ❌️ Bored ★★★☆☆ (5/10) Total reviewed : 191 Already owned : 44 Purchased : 8 To buy list : 4 Nope : 135

A great album from a band I really like. Happy to have discovered them through this list.

no lo quieroe scuchar

Hmm, all albums from Supertramp, Toto, Abba, America.... This list heading to be a joke!

Probably the first album in this project where I remember it coming out and I listened to it. I was a big fan of Arcade Fire at the time and that’s waned a bit. But this album still holds up. A good theme and narrative. Probably a bit too long, but I think that about a lot of albums.

Loved it ! Amazing discovery ^~^ Fav track : Half Light II (No Celebration) and Culture War

It’s certainly not a sound I hear frequently. That said, it was pleasing listening to the whole album. The melody, instrumentals, and storytelling were well done.

Genuinely up there as a modern masterpiece for. Absolutely incredible album

Best Arcade Fire album, probably beats out Reflektor personally but it’s pretty close. Does a good job of painting the picture of the suburbs as somewhere that feels safe but never lets you leave and slowly encompasses your world.

Kind of underwhelming. Not my style. I liked some of the flow but it just sounded like church rock to me. The lyrics were nice but the delivery isn’t my taste.

Ok. Fell asleep to it.

i know some songsss it was perfect to study, very jumpy...

Life changing

This was so meh. Like the songs were good but I genuinely didn’t feel anything at all, no hate no love. It’s just so stagnant there was nothing disappointing or special it’s so weird. Idk anymore I think I need an album I’ve listened to before.

This has been a favorite for a long time. It transports me back to high school photography class when I listen to it. I haven’t heard the whole thing in full recently so some songs that would have dragged were nice to hear again. A classic and getting a higher rating for the nostalgia factor.

Surprised to find some songs on here that I already knew. An album centered around the idea of boring suburbia is pretty interesting as the disdain towards American suburbia wasn't as big in 2010. There's some nice songs but I'm just not that big of a fan of Arcade Fire. Maybe it'll grow on me someday. The Mercedes on the front cover is cool at least.

Good background music for chill vibes but not meant to be listened to too intently imo. Nothing really jumped a ton. Favorite track: City With no Children

Easy listening music - I feel like I would hear one of these songs on Dad’s radio in the morning. That being said it’s an hour 3 minutes of a little too similar sounding music. There’s some that are better than others

I do consider myself an Arcade Fire Fan

in 2010 I didn't bother listening to this, thinking it marked a turn towards bland in Canadian indie pop. more bland than Neon Bible, that I gave 1 star. music: hated. (⌐■_■)

Marginally better than Neon Bible, but still stinky. It’s funny that so many of these grody indie bands decided to Do A Springsteen all around the same time. That’s what they’re doing on a lot of these ones right? I’m not imagining that? Doesn’t really work ever.

Some good sounds here and there but mostly all the same, monotonous and melancholy but not necessarily in the best ways. Not something I would listen to if I was in a good mood.

Wasted Hours probably best song. So so album 3/5

It's kinda good and I enjoy listening to it even though it's not really my genre

very interesting and 2010’s. If anything it captured the 2010s really well. I liked the vibes but it wasn’t too stand out.

Not bad, not my taste

Reminds me of growing up

I liked this album. I thought it started off well but I thought it got slightly stale in the middle. But the end of the album made up for it and rounded the album out. I will definitely be replaying some songs from this album.

Pretty good album but not their best.

Fun and upbeat, but all the fun comes from repeated music with vocals directing the fun. 3/5

This album makes me feel nostalgic and sad, even though I did not grow up in suburban sprawl. Of the trilogy, this one is my favorite. I love this album. City with No Children, Half Light II (No Celebration) and the title track are easily my favorites.

like the transitions between first two songs, Rococo was defo the fav!

Solid but not my taste

Very long album but some really good songs

Nostalgic

And with this, I have gotten all 3 Arcade Fire albums on the list. Why do they have 3 on this list anyway? If I had to guess, Neon Bible was included soon after release to be with the masterpiece that is Funeral, but was then replaced by The Suburbs after its release because the people making the list thought it was better than Neon Bible. Now, both Neon Bible and The Suburbs have since been removed from the list after their initial inclusions, but because this website takes from all versions of the book, I get to listen to all three albums! And I got them in order! Yeah, I really liked this one too. What can I say? I really like early Arcade Fire. Obviously, I can't call this better than Funeral, but can I call it better than Neon Bible? Yeah! I'd say so. The Suburbs is just a nice album. It's got a good concept, though I find its execution to be a little in-your-face. Take a shot every time they say "suburbs" on this thing. You wouldn't die like you would if you drank for every mention of girls on Licensed To Ill, but you'd get pretty intoxicated so maybe don't do it actually. Still, respectable concept that fits perfectly for this band. Production-wise, this thing definitely takes more cues from Funeral than it does Neon Bible, but it also progresses the band's style in a way that makes the album feel fresh and not like a re-hashing of past ideas. Songs like the title track and "We Used To Wait" put a more energetic spin on the Arcade Fire style, while the Régine Chassagne-led "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)" adds more synths to the mix. I like that. It makes the album stand out while still building on the strengths of the prior records. The writing is just as good as ever. I will say that the album's a little long for my liking, but it could be way worse. Overall, The Suburbs is a great addition to the Arcade Fire discography. It sure would suck if each of this band's albums proceeded to get worse and worse from here on out and for the band's reputation to tank due to that and serious allegations directed at Win Butler, wouldn't it? Hahahahahaha. High 4/5.

Das erste Album. Ich weiss noch nicht. Jetzt ist Zeit zum Schlafen gehen.

Arcade Fire has always been kind of at the periphery of my musical interest. A band I've always thought about listening to, but never quite got around to it. I liked this though. I'll have to give it a deeper listen.

the suburbs ready to start 2010 canada indie rock

Not something I would listen to often, but this album is really quite good. 4 stars or B+.

really good

Back when they knew how to make music

This is the second Arcade Fire album we’ve heard (so far). Both of them were pretty decent, with a few good tracks and others that were forgettable. If you took the best tracks from the two albums and made that an album, it would rate four stars.

Good golly, is every single Arcade Fire album on this thing? Surely no song on here will surpass 'No Cars Go', though. Overall this did feel like a better album than their earlier ones; pretty solid throughout. More poppy and less sprawly. I think they performed some of these songs on shows I've seen. But indeed, no No Cars Gos. Another 3.5, maybe. Highlight: 'Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)'

6 - AVERAGE

If you want huge orchestral indie-pop, you don't need to look any further than Arcade Fire. That being said, it was a bit same-y. Really good, but..

I liked Month of May. Otherwise album was fine. Easy listening, had it on in the background while doing house chores. 3/5.

Just doesn’t resonate with me.

This is one of my favorite albums, however not my favorite AF album.

Great album!

I discovered this album after listening to my first Arcade Fire album as part of this challenge. I immediately loved it and it gets better with each successive listen. The fact that the lyrics are recycled between songs that sound very different is amazing and demonstrates high creativity, thoughtfulness, and craftsmanship. Several great tunes here, but how it comes together as an album is the most impressive part. Very happy to have found this 5 this year.

I love this album. Always have, always will. It is very evocative of the feeling of living in the suburbs. It came out when I was in late high school and it brings me right back listening again as an adult. Sprawl II is my favorite Arcade Fire song

Sounds like the music coming out of my daughter’s room in high school - oh wait it WAS the music that coming out of her room! She has good tastes!

idk

Loved this record when I was a teenager, still great but god they let themselves go after this

nmg da verujem da mi izadje 2 albuma ovog benda ovako brzo, realno nisam imao motivacije da se udubim u slusanje, bilo je ok dacu mu 3/5, al realno treba da se poslusa opet

Good millenial coded indie rock. Not quite as good as Funeral but very solid. 7/10

Скучно, пресно

A chill album, standouts are The Suburbs, Rococo, We Used to Wait. I can see myself driving my car with the album playing, but only on an afternoon. Made me sleepy.

I was only familiar with the title song on the album but I wish I’d discovered it sooner. I’m always in the mood for a bit of nostalgic melancholy. Although I wish one review didn’t point out that you could play “kids” bingo with this album - he does says “kids” a distracting amount of times! It does feel like it gets a bit samey towards the end and the run length could have been cut down. I’m looking forward to listening to it more.

This album was just OK to me. Started out decent enough. The suburbs was a good song and a couple of tracks that followed were alright. But after that, wasn’t a whole lot here to get terribly excited about. I ended up finding a lot of these songs repetitive, and by extension the overall album repetitive. In the end, it was just an average album from a relatively average band.

This way too millenial for my liking. That's not necessarily a bad thing, just not my thing.

Zu lärmig

It was nice, there are some songs here I think i've heard before, its really cool to see Arcade Fire make up stuff that sounds like it could be released in modern day, and the instrumentation is fantastic, I like seeing it bend and stretch in ways I never expected. Idk, maybe a bit too long?, but its fine. 8/10

title track is wonderful, but otherwise I kind of hate their vibe, and this washed-out dreamy un-remarkable indie

1. Nice, enjoyable intro 2. Energy, great song 3. Nice « indie » sound, a bit generic 4. Yep, we understand ROCOCO, long as hell 5. Not necessery teenage like rock 6. After Work ahhh song, bad 7. The more it goes on, the more si fucking boring 8. B O R I N G 9. A bit better but still not it 10. A bit of rocknroll, a bit of teenage indie rock, ok tune 11. Great ballad, nice lyrics 12. ok tune 13. long as hell for a mid song 14. finally a great song again, great atmosphere and lyrics 15. Synthpop 80’s vibes, bit different than the others songs, ok 16. bye bye FINALLY OVER, the album is long as hell for the quality, 2-3 greats tunes but that’s it

I guess they were one of the big signings for merge records, so I hope Mac and Laura made a ton of money off of them. The girl should sing all the songs.

I largely skipped over Arcade Fire early on. It took me two listens to The Suburbs to come to the conclusion that their big production pop synth with simple, but driving guitar, bass, and drums, hits the right notes for me. Reminds a little bit of ELO with Yo La Tengo mixed in.

Hypothetically, you are on your way to a Ayahuasca ceremony. Interested in what you will learn about yourself, but also a little terrified. You want to put yourself in a positive space. This is a good album for this purpose, hypothetically. Early Arcade Fire is fucking great indie rock and I'm a sucker for these vibes. This is music that puts a smile on my face because it is both interesting and fun. Love it!

J'apprends à aimer. Comme je disaisnavec Funeral, je n'ai jamais vraiment su retrouver l'intérêt Arcade Fire après. Hier, Sprawl II m'a marqué assez positivement. L'aspect nostalgique et l'unité des textes sur l'univers de la banlieue, j'ai trouvé ça bien aussi. C'est un thème que j'affectionne beaucoup, que la toune "Banlieue" des Cowboys rend bien aussi, mais en français et 10 ans avant.

L’album d’Arcarde fire que j’ai le plus consommé. Belle nostalgie de ma vie universitaire, la fin de mon premier bac. Rock plus « convenu » que les albums précédents mais incroyablement bien maitrisés. Peut-être souffre-t-il des attendtes démesurées des albums précédents, justement?

I used to think this was great, but I've never once gone back to it. Plus all the creepy shit.

I found this album to be more Arcade Embers than a full on fire. Some tracks were good but not brilliant and others were a damp fizzle. Probably won’t listen again as it just didn’t do anything special

Would give a 0 if I could. What’s to like?

Arcade fire - the suburbs. 5/10. Neil Young and Talking Heads influences are obvious among others. Some hints of Springsteen at times. I'm glad to have heard this album but it's not an instant favourite. Lyrics are a weak point in an album that is very of it's time in the Indie rock era.

Eh

Great album i like so much abaut the transition between the musics

i’ve already listened to this but super fun and awesome

8/10 Best songs: Ready to Start, Empty Room, Half Light II (No Celebration), Month of May, We Used to Wait The album propels the listener forward with forceful bass and drums. The album is largely medium tempo, and feels a little long. The highs are very high.

It's nice I guess

I loved Sprawl I and Sprawl II! Great songs

8/10

Enjoyed this one, sounded cool. 4 stars

This is literally what every song in the late 2000s sounded like.

This was ok but the only thing on it I've listened to it again and again is the title track. Not sure I get the hype with them to be honest.

Maybe good live but the album did very little for me

Feels like a longing for the mundane. The main energy seems to be ennui and a day-in-the-life sort of story about suburban life.

5 ferda vibes. 0 complaints

Yea this is right in my q zone

Few good songs, but just very same same after that

This was decent, something I wouldn't balk at listening to again. I'd place it somewhere between Funeral and Neon Bible. 3.4

Ayy, another Arcade Fire album that I liked. I had written this band off after only hearing Funeral + Reflektor, but learned with Neon Bible that they do, in fact, make music I like. This one, I think, doesn't reach the same level as Neon Bible, but it's not too far away from it either. I was engaged with the album throughout, and gave it 2 listens. 3.5/5

Fun album

ok album not my personal taste I did enjoy sprawl 2 and suburban war

Pretentious and sanctimonious are sins on their own, but the true third strike for whatever this is supposed to be is that is *boring* - for all that many songs about sprawling, they really should have realized that the album itself is too long and going absolutely nowhere. How can you make rock/pop this boring and this aggravating? Why does the singer makes you feel like he is going to cry at any given time, sounding performative and fake instead of giving you a feel of true emotion he is trying (and failing) to convey? Never again, and neither should you.

so far i like all the songs apart from empty room

Forgot how much i liked this

First few songs were great after that it was okay.

Excellent album, continuing their upward trajectory as David Bowie’s favourite band in later life.Grammy winning, tuneful, conceptual.

8.5 / 10

It’s one of the best Arcade Fire albums and it still really holds up. This may be where they really proved they weren’t just a stomp clap band.

Really good album that I have not heard before. It's kind of pop rock but very chilled out. When I was listening to it I was guessing it came out in the 90's so I was way off. The music is a little bit ethereal with slower beats, it's really nice. Nothing ground breaking, nothing that I would really rock out to but just good music that is easy to listen to. I listened to it at work several times, it's perfect for that. I'm going to put this on my favorites because I plan to listen to it many more times.

Already knew the album quite extensively. Prior fan of Arcade Fire, favorite album is reflektor. Quintessential Arcade Fire, alternative rock. The piano + acoustic guitar, slight upbeat rythmic section, backup vocals on the chorus. Songs feel connected, not only because of the smooth transitions but also in style. Yet it doesn't feel too redundant, pleasant listen all the way. Tracks that stood out: We Used to Wait Rococo Modern Man The Suburbs

Good album. Not for me.

If possible, my normal routine is to start listening to the album of the day while walking back from dropping my sons off at school. Sometimes that backfires, but not today. I remember this album fondly, and even then I was surprised at how great it was to have this sweeping soundtrack for my walk through a suburban neighborhood. It felt like a movie moment, and jumped off a great start to the day.

🥱

Bluegrass revival. Baroque rock. I have so many strong memories of this era in music. Also listening to this album I definitely thought Arcade Fire and The Shins were the same band at one point. I miss when ennui was whimsical. This album became background noise when I’d tune out for a bit. A lot of four on the floor. I honestly think Butler’s voice was the best on Sprawl I when it was more conversational singing and the narrative was the driving element. Personally not a big fan of Chassagne’s voice but I think it has more to do with the filters on the mic than tone.

Best Track - "Ready To Start"

If is there any Arcade Fire album that belongs to this list, I would put the suburbs. You can tell how differently sonically and lyrically the band is, and I love how they capture so well the American suburbs culture and some of the dilemmas of stranded relationships and the fun people would have (always potraited in movies). I belive "Rococo" is basically the band as well- good to see them self conscious of how hispter they are. This is a good album, cant say the same for their discography. 4/5

This is a record from 2010, yet it sounds at least a decade older. I get that you want to include newer albums on this list, but really, include records that actually fit the sound design of that year.

4/10

Walking into an Urban Outfitters. Arcade Fire is piped in. You don’t buy anything, but for a brief moment, you feel really cool.

Very unique sound, only knew them from their singles. Good eye opener.

Superb album!

Indie rock

Vibes: 5/5 Instruments: 3/5 Production: 4/5 Emotional Value: 4/5 Storytelling: 4/5 Album Cover: +0.5 Stand Outs: The Suburbs, Ready to Start Overall Rating: 4.1

The type of plinky plonk hipster crap you hear in adverts featuring rich students riding around on vintage bicycles and buying nespresso pods or whatever. I hate it.

Fuck Win Butler but yeah this one holds up. Didn't have the patience for this album when I was younger but coming back to it I can really appreciate the grandeur and ambition of this project. Hate that all the most annoying people I knew growing up were right about this one 4.25/5

very lovely as expected

I've never been able to get into Arcade Fire. I always felt like the way they were raved about by my musical peers that I should like them, but they always just kinda felt a bit boring to me. Listening to this now, I can absolutely respect the songwriting, some iconic tracks on here, production is very cool. There are some things they do musically that I just don't really vibe with anymore, but I do love a concept record and the more spacious, ambient moments and string arrangements are what keep me invested. It's a fantastic record, for sure. I just think I might have missed the window on this one where it would have hit me hard in the way it did a lot of my friends.

I really enjoyed this, surprised i hadn't heard them before.

it's not BAD per se, but the whole album sounds like the most forgettable songs from the soundtrack of a quite recent (2010's up to now) movie/series i get that there are people that enjoy this type of music, i do as well in some cases, but not this time

Meh

I was expecting this to be another boring, spacey 2010s indie album that thinks itself much deeper than it really is, but this is that spacey indie rock sound done right. I really like the mixture of traditional strings with techno-sounding synthesizers. Towards the end of the album, it does feel a bit long, however. 4/5

Enjoyed this way more than expected! Didn't really follow their albums after their debut (life wasn't much about music at the time!). This was a really enjoyable listen.

Decent, we used to wait has major nostalgia points

i think that the vibe is generally good. It's so damn long though and i think runs its course a little. Some nice songs though like "the suburbs". I think a lot of the musical ideas and grand sequences like in "deep blue" Works. However, i think a lot of the musical moments might be hampered by the lyrics. Especially that one song pontificating whether the singer is as bad as a millionaire, i don't know guess i have a knee jerk reaction of someone actively trying to make me sympathesise for rich people lol. Seems like some of the lyrics veer into self-indulgent and a little fake deep to be honest, but to be fair didn't really listen to the lyrics in depth lol. this feels particuraly acute with like the slower more sprawly songs. Think i prefer more of the punchy songs. The thing that i can definitely say that it is hampered the most is its length. It's an hour long and only like a handful of songs really drew my attention a little. A lot of the songs have similar structure and musical beats as well with the orchestra and pans out better in some songs over other. Maybe might change my mind after a relisten but right now think will give it a 3 stars

very good

Love arcade fire. We used to wait and the suburbs are obvious stand outs. I really appreciate the music but something doesn’t work for me? It might be me? I was I no my most formative high school years throughout this release and maybe the angst i felt then surfaces once again while listening to this music? No low points. Not a perfect 5 because there’s just something I’m not feeling and I can’t put my finger on it.

It’s OK but I’m confused why it is on this very limited list.

Soft. Unimaginative. Boring.

A band I was aware of but never listened to.

A bit uneven. Overall good but falls into melancholy on one end and noisy riffs on the other.

Some really nice instrumentation, the band sounds really cohesive and in tune with one another, great mix too. Not a fan of the vocals tbh, I dont find them that interesting. The songs themselves I'm not the biggest fan of, just not my style I think. Some very nice moments with big crechendos. Reminds me of Saltburn

love love love

Save an hour and listen to Subdivisions from Rush.

Great album .My favourite album by Arcade Fire .

I wish I had been in a better mood when I listened to this album. I think it could be really good but the frustration for other external events did not allow it to break through.

I’d always meant to listen to Arcade Fire. I think I might have seen them at some stage. It was alright

I'd never listened to this Arcade Fire album before but was a bit disappointed. I found it a bit long winded and samey, which has always been Arcade Fire's problem. I'll stick to Neon Bible and Reflektor which are far better. Favourite track: Sprawl II. Probably not one to revisit. 2.5/5

Can we collectively stop pretending that Arcade Fire is good?

How aptly named, this album. Undiscernable, soulless, bland, culturally monotonous, it gives the illusion of success and sophistication while remaining safely gated within its elitist, whitewashed environs. The irony of trying to make an original statement through a simulacrum of 2010s "indie rock" reinforces my conclusion that this album, hell, this band, came to fruition during the worst decade in modern music, and failed to transcend its musical suburbia.

What a great album. Perfect example that you can make a timeless banger without playing any technically difficult music. They already had every eye in indie music on them after 'Funeral' + 'Neon Bible' and dropped a classic. My favorite is a mega-album I made with 5 songs from Funeral & 5 songs from Suburbs, but both are amazing. I finally got to see them a couple years ago after years of listening.

Funeral, Arcade Fire’s debut, burst into the scene with an amazing energy and a feeling of innovation. They took the kind of climactic post rock bands like Explosions In The Sky and Mohawk were making and put it back into rock song form, creating powerful emotional soundscapes. By this album it feels like they kinda went out of steam. The old ideas sound tired and they didn’t get any new ones to replace them and overall the songwriting is meh and kinda boring. Funeral is on the list and you should listen to it, this one can be skipped. Two stars.

Never gave them the deep dive before. Safe to say i probably never will. Just not my speed.

It sounds like uhhhhhhhhhh nothing.

This was always my fav Arcade Fire and it still is… spiritually deducting points for being Arcade Fire

there is legit 2 good songs on this sack of shit

Glad I finally listened to this!

A drag, just like living in the suburbs

Feels exactly like living in the suburbs. Everyone seem to like it and you want to like it too, but you just can't feel completely comfortable.

Your average indie rock band trying so hard to be relevant and dramatic and grandiose while only just being a parody of his own self.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘶𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘣𝘴 is a well-crafted album with a clear sense of scale and ambition, but its emotional spark appears only in select moments. The band from Quebec builds a polished sound palette — lush arrangements, strong dynamics and a theme that runs consistently through the record — yet not every track carries the same intensity. Compared to 𝘍𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭, the sense of wonder and urgency feels scattered rather than constant. When the album clicks, it does so beautifully: certain songs capture that sweeping, cathartic Arcade Fire magic, where melody and momentum spill over with feeling. But in between those highlights, the pacing softens and the atmosphere becomes more restrained than gripping, resulting in an uneven listening experience. Good music overall, just not consistently transformative.

Ik vind dit wel aardig. De openingstrack ken ik zowaar. Een beetje vage hipsterachtige zemelmuziek. Indierock met een pop-randje en een soort shoegaze invloeden. CKV leraar approved spul. Als snob kun je jezelf lekker in een hokje plaatsen als je dit noemt in combinatie met The Flaming Lips en Bon Iver. Een beetje wat ik me voorstel wat David Bowie zou maken als 'ie rond 1980 geboren zou zijn. Je ziet me dit zeker niet elke dag aanzetten, want daar vind ik het veel te vermoeiend voor. Er zit zo'n soort zuigende kerkgalm in die teveel erin hakt bij me. Voor een keertje vind ik dit wel prima. Waar ik album 831 nog een zuinige drie sterren gaf, ga ik dit album wat vrijgevig vier sterren toeschuiven. Ik had liever gehad dat dit album 20 minuten korter was, maar dat komt dus omdat ik er een beetje moe van word.

Blech. 2 stars.

A bittersweet listen. An album that meant so much to me for a long time that has a hollow feel to it. I’ll always love the songs but I don’t think it will ever hit like it did

Nothing remarkable.

Boooring

Sounds better to me now than it did then...

I like these guys. This is the kind of music. I usually listen to so it seems kind of unfair reading them this way, but I liked it very much. Simple as that.

Such a nice discovery

A well rounded album

I am an absolute sucker for indie music from this era, and this is such a great concept album from that period. This has some of the best songs from Arcade Fire imo. I absolutely loved this.

The record that took the Arcade Fire to the stratosphere. A solid effort front-to-back, but like a lot of double albums, it does suffer from some bloat. Other than the title track and Sprawl II, there aren’t many tracks that leave me thinking I need to revisit them.

Whatever

# **Arcade Fire – *The Suburbs*** ### *In-Depth Album Review: Lyrics, Music, Production, Themes, Influence, Pros & Cons* --- > *“Sometimes I can’t believe it / I’m moving past the feeling.”* > — *The Suburbs* --- ## **Overview** Released in **August 2010**, *The Suburbs* is the **third studio album** by Canadian indie rock band **Arcade Fire**. It won the **Grammy for Album of the Year** in 2011, cementing the band’s place in mainstream and critical circles. A **conceptual album**, it explores **nostalgia, suburban ennui, memory, and modern alienation**, blending **orchestral rock, synth-pop, and Americana** into a **63-minute narrative**. --- ## **1. Lyrics: Memory, Loss, and Suburban Malaise** Win Butler’s lyrics are **literary, cyclical, and emotionally resonant**, often **blurring childhood memory with adult anxiety**. The album is **obsessively thematic**, with **recurring motifs** like “the suburbs,” “kids,” “wasted time,” and “modern life.” - **“The Suburbs”** opens with a **mundane memory** of learning to drive, then spirals into **existential dread** about time, fatherhood, and societal collapse . - **“Suburban War”** is a **devastating meditation** on how **music, politics, and identity** divide friends over time: > “Now the cities we live in could be distant stars / And I search for you in every passing car” . - **“We Used to Wait”** critiques **digital alienation** and the **loss of patience**, using **piano and percussion** to mimic the **rhythm of nostalgia and anxiety** . The lyrics are **broad yet emotionally specific**, allowing listeners to **project their own suburban ghosts** onto the songs . --- ## **2. Music: A Sonic Sprawl of Nostalgia and Tension** Musically, *The Suburbs* is **eclectic but cohesive**, shifting between **jangly indie rock**, **synth-driven new wave**, and **chamber-pop grandeur**. - **“Ready to Start”** and **“Month of May”** deliver **driving guitar riffs** and **post-punk energy**. - **“Half Light I & II”** and **“Sprawl II”** introduce **synths, strings, and disco beats**, evoking **80s suburban melancholy** . - **“Deep Blue”** and **“Wasted Hours”** use **gentle melodies** and **ambient textures** to evoke **lazy summers and lost innocence**. The **dynamic contrast**—from **quiet ballads** to **anthemic crescendos**—mirrors the **emotional arc** of the album: **from innocence to disillusionment** . --- ## **3. Production: Cinematic and Lush** Produced by **Markus Dravs** (who also worked on *Neon Bible*), the production is **warm, spacious, and cinematic**. - **Mid-tempo pacing** dominates, reinforcing the **suburban haze**—a **deliberate choice** to avoid the **bombast** of *Funeral* or *Neon Bible* . - **Layered instrumentation** includes **strings, saxophones, French horns, harpsichords**, and **field recordings**, creating a **rich, orchestral texture** . - **Electronic elements** are subtly woven in, giving tracks like **“Sprawl II”** a **Depeche Mode-meets-Neil Young** vibe . The **sound design** is **intentionally nostalgic**, evoking **analog warmth** and **VHS-era suburbia**. --- ## **4. Themes: The Suburban Condition** At its core, *The Suburbs* is a **concept album** about **growing up in the sprawl**, and the **psychological toll** of **modernity, memory, and class**. - **Nostalgia vs. Reality**: The album **doesn’t romanticize** the suburbs—it **questions** whether the **past was ever real**, or just **a projection** . - **Time and Wasted Youth**: The **cyclical structure** (opening and closing with “The Suburbs”) suggests **time is not linear**, but **haunted and repetitive** . - **Isolation in Community**: The suburbs are portrayed as **places of quiet alienation**, where **proximity doesn’t equal connection** . - **Class and Culture**: Tracks like **“Rococo”** and **“City With No Children”** critique **consumerism**, **conformity**, and the **hollowing out of culture**. --- ## **5. Influence and Legacy** - **Grammy Win**: Its **Album of the Year** win was a **watershed moment** for indie rock, proving **alternative bands** could **break into the mainstream** without compromise. - **Cultural Impact**: The album **soundtracked a generation** of **millennial disillusionment**, influencing **films, literature**, and **urbanist discourse**. - **Artistic Blueprint**: It **redefined the concept album** for the **digital age**, blending **narrative cohesion** with **genre diversity**. - **Live Legacy**: The **Suburbs Tour** was a **spectacle**, with **fake suburbs**, **bicycle rides on stage**, and **interactive videos**, turning concerts into **immersive experiences**. --- ## **6. Pros and Cons** | **Pros** | **Cons** | |----------|----------| | ✅ **Lyrically rich** and emotionally resonant | ❌ **Overlong**—16 tracks may feel **sprawling** to some | | ✅ **Musically diverse** yet cohesive | ❌ **Mid-tempo pacing** can feel **monotonous** on first listen | | ✅ **Conceptually tight**—a true **album-as-novel** | ❌ **Lacks immediacy** compared to *Funeral*’s anthems | | ✅ **Production is lush, cinematic, and timeless** | ❌ **Thematic repetition** may feel **heavy-handed** | | ✅ **Influential and culturally significant** | ❌ **Not as emotionally raw** as *Funeral* or *Neon Bible* | --- ## **Final Verdict** > *The Suburbs* is **Arcade Fire’s most mature and ambitious album**—a **haunting, beautiful, and cerebral** exploration of **memory, place, and identity**. It’s **not perfect**, but its **flaws are human**, like the **suburbs themselves**. It’s **a mirror**, not a map—and **a masterpiece** for those willing to **waste time inside it**. --- > *“If I could have it back / All the time that we wasted / I’d only waste it again.”* > — *The Suburbs (Continued)*

Lotta canceled dudes in the last week or two… I loved this record when it came out and thought it was an over-long on purpose tribute to the dueling suburban feelings of angst and ennui. Now I realize that neither Half Light nor Sprawl needed their first parts and a heavy re-sequencing would have done some good.

i’ve never really have given this band a chance. i’ve heard great things about this record though, so i was pretty open minded going into it. i’m not planning on diving deeper into them or anything though.. isn’t the main dude kind of creepy? i don’t trust a mf named Win. just call yourself Edwin you dick. anyway, 3.5/5.

I’m not an Arcade Fire fan, they are like the U2 of Indie. I tried to many times, though, the last of which, was when this album came out and I bought it. There are some high points, but I don’t think it needed to be a whole album. I preferred the vibe of Neon Bible.

I love concept albums. These songs were like nostalgic dreams of a worry free childhood that never existed except in our minds. KISS’s 1998 melotramatic album “Psycho Circus” tried to invoke the same nostalgia response but fell short of its goal, mostly because the songs suck ass. “The Suburbs” is decidedly less sleepy than their previous work, though still has that ethereal, indie quality. Will listen again.

First time listening to them, they are ok to me, but just ok

Never been a huge fan.

Sublime. Almost perfect.

not the arcade fire i would reach for

This is an album I love and have loved for a long time. A true love letter to the cyclical love hate relationship that the United States seems to be unable to get away from. This album contains what might have been the peak of Arcade Fire's artistic vision and sound that started with Funeral. It encapsulates the band at its best: before their music mutated into hit or miss dabbling with other genres and a too exposed narcissism that was always lurking but was kept in check for the sake of artistry. The album is a bit uneven in tone and pace, but is clearly made for the two vinyl format. That being said, as a whole, it is completely beautiful to experience from one end to the other, and contains some of Arcade Fire's most memorable songs.

Not really my thing. Sounds kind of like an Indie Black Keys, whom I am quite selective about which songs I do and don’t like

Constantly bouncing between being everything I do and don’t like about anthemic stadium indie rock, but Sprawl II was very pretty at least.

I like City with no Children in it but this is a drag

didnt lock in on the lyrics but larve this idk if id listen again in full but it was a great listening experience rating a 4 but would do 4.5

Definitely an album getting added to the rotation of mine. Enjoyed way more than expected and is the perfect for a kind of rainy slow day to fall into the ether.

Really reminds me of uni. Great album

You know, I'm a millennial and I haven't listened to Arcade Fire. This band is currently self-immolating with controversy that I'm not versed with, but it's not good stuff. I associate them with indie pop and that's just not my thing at all, critics love it like they love dramas over comedies. This is a full blind run for me on this album. And well, there's a lot in here about why I don't like indie music or its influence on 21st century music. I can't say Arcade Fire are unimportant or whatever, but it's certainly not for my taste. It's like if Coldplay were French-Canadian and wrote about more American I mean North American topics. The male singer is a total whatever, the female one is better in that she stands out more and doesn't sound like some whiny white boy singing about how his good upbringing has distorted his myopic view of the world crap. I can't hear lyrics in songs too well (unless I hear it 100 times) and so I won't go in depth about it. I guess they are fine. The instrumentation/compositions are fine. I don't have any big complaints on that, except that Sprawl II seems like a worse version of Prince's Mountains. In particular, my favorite songs from this album were: Rococo, Empty Room, and Month of May. Everything else sounded like generic indie pop (insert 'Seinfeld is Unfunny effect here, except I never liked that kind of sound to begin with) or millennial angst about the world not being perfect since you were born. Just because something is well produced doesn't mean that it's good, Raw Power is a total opposite of this album sound-wise but still manages to execute what it was going for. I have nothing against the maximalist sound of the record (it's one of the best strengths going for The Suburbs), but I wish it could lean more into that rather than the vocals which are not good. Not horrible, but above par. This album will work for certain people and their mindsets. It does not do that for me. So many backing strings and other assorted music and there's no distinctive drum beats or riffs that are catchy or engaging to my mind. It's impressively dull in a way this band is stereotyped for millennial coffee shops. It drags on like an unimpressive prog album. I cannot understand the hype because my brain isn't smooth enough.

Great album

i mean i just don't understand what has indie hipster music done to you that makes you dislike them so much. you see, i have an irregular hate toward canadian music because of leonard cohen. i hate him like he murdered my family. but i guess arcade fire is some expectation cause their first three album run is just so increditably good. although we all know what happened later. i remembered me being a boring middle schooler. hauled into the water of society like a fish suddenly released in 9th grade. hurt online but also gradually healed. one thing the suburbs is about is not being able to return back to the past. i looked up and realised that i am now approximately 5900 days old. still a long way to go before i bite the dust. i was writing about how we move on despite death's looming in the past. but now the only thing i can write about is a certain fear of arriving at the end of adolescence under a sudden ephipany of existansial crisis. and the wish to return. leaving one place for another, then another for yet another. going back to that naive summer holiday in england. when me and my friends are still connected. when i had a good summer with the things i love. when i was never being bullied by people because of my fault. when i was not afraid of ceasing to be, biting the dust, kicking the bucket, and shuffling off the mortal coil. before anxiety and fear devours me. i was running toward an unchasable future only to discover that the past always look the better. so hard to be an overachiving teenager trying so hard to be like a grown up. what have i become? trim some songs and it will be better. 4/5

I've loved it since hearing "Deep Blue" in the movie Boyhood.

Throwback to my university days! Yeah it's good. I think I like it more than I did then.

Still a great album

Never got around to this, but it's great.

Good music but overlong.

Gas

Professionally made, boring music.

Meticulously paced, the album trades instant anthems for a mature, soul-slamming journey. Spirited tracks like 'Empty Room,' 'We Used to Wait,' and the glorious, Blondie-esque 'Sprawl II' make suburbia feel positively electric. Meanwhile, quieter moments on 'Wasted Hours' and 'Suburban War' reveal a subtler, Neil Young-inspired simplicity. The Suburbs feels like the Y generation's Dazed & Confused—serious but not preachy, cynical yet whimsical. Ultimately, it requires patience but rewards you with Arcade Fire's most triumphant, enduring, and beautifully sentimental album.

“Oh, good, these guys again.” - Me, said sarcastically after rolling my second Arcade Fire album for this project. I really don’t know what it is about this band specifically, none of this is bad and the background aspects are very well done, I just find it all so pretentious, by the books, generic and boring. If someone were to play any of this, I wouldn’t object listening to it, but I would absolutely skip it 100% of the time if it was just me in the car. This is a prime example of the kind of generic indie rock that I can tolerate listening to, but do not prefer or recommend to anyone I know. They for sure aren’t the first band I’ve heard that just sound disingenuous, and they won’t be the last, but they just come off sounding kind of fake and phoned in. Damn, I’m being kind of rude to this album. It’s not as bad as I’m making it out to be, I promise. It’s fine. Passable at best, and more good then bad, but it’s very easy to critique as well for its faults, and hard to praise when every song sounds the exact same as the one before it. Not sure if I liked this or Neon Bible more. Probably the ladder, as it had 1 song I really loved. This one, not so much. I think the opener was probably the best song, “The Suburbs”.

Are: Boring, secluded, car centric, lack community, and are full of golfers.

Aptly named record. Lyrically musically… This is great! Didn’t think I liked Arcade Fire, but guess I’d never really spent enough time listening. I couldn’t stop listening to this one. A “discovery” for me in the sense that I will definitely be returning to this album!

Epic. Suburban War is so powerful.

Does not age well, don't really want to hear social commentary from this douche. Also I like the Regine songs, especially Sprawl 2 but her voice is so thin.

Still good after many years

Arcade is life the French food of alternative music (ok, maybe French Canadian food). All the critics like them, they sound good, they have a good message, and if there are musical food groups, this band would probably have a healthy amount of everything that is good. But like French food, even after eating it, I just never seem to crave it or feel like I need it. The sad part is that I want to like them for all the obvious reasons (and they are good reasons), but I can't get into them. The first album was better to me, and this one started strong, but before the first track was over, I felt the old not caring creeping right in. Help me understand this band.

Really just nice indie rock album. Very much a period piece of where alt was goin at the time. It's fairly reflective. Vocals and instrumental aren't revolutionary but they are pleasant to listen to. Not the most variety Lyrics are simple yet effective. Songs get stuck in your head. Solid and can see myself listening again. Great passive listen but I will definitely need an active one as well. For now, 4 but we'll see if that changes.

Boooooring

I mean it's fine but I does not have ANYTHING special for me. I'd rather play anything else with character

Kept hoping this improved but between the few good songs it's a slog through wimpy folksy simpering that it's just not my bag. A better shorter album could have been made from this with the bloat removed, but as it is it's a 2 out of 5 from me

Boooooorning

Brave and stunning, an indie rock album about suburbia. I suppose the irony is lost on them that the album is as boring and bland as The Suburbs can be so at least that's true to life. Tell me more about your fair trade coffee beans and how you didn't do the touristy things on your vacation, brother.

I think the inoffensive nature of Arcade Fire makes them offensive to me. There are some samples and hints of other instruments and ideas, but they take a backseat to quiet vocals and simple guitar. I tried listening to this album multiple times, and I honestly couldn't really tell one song from another.

Good mix of tunes on this AF album which I think is one of their better ones. Like the energy of Ready To Start.

Arcade Fire are a band who people seem to get quite excited by, but have kind of passed me by. Listening to this for the first time, nothing seemed familiar, nor did it sound quite how I expected them to sound - which was, initially, a reasonably pleasant surprise. By the end I was bored shitless though. There is so little personality or genuine emotion in any of this indie-by-numbers posturing, which is ironic given the concept and themes the album seems to be reacting to. Maybe it was intentionally designed to be a soulless, witless experience for that reason and I'm just missing the point, but to me that's kind of like shitting the bed you have to sleep in because you are not happy with your hotel room. Very bland, and definitely overrated.

Not totally my thing I always liked the suburbs (continued) so I liked the suburbs too. I liked another one as well so pretty good ratio of add to playlist. I think they do some theatre-ish songs that don't appeal to me but otherwise… nice

Not a bad album. However, it doesn't feel like I want to listen to it again. It's a case of their sound is good, but it's forgettable to me. I did find the second half of the album better than the first half.

The title track is a jaunty number, but overall I didn't like this as much as previous albums. My one abiding memory of this at the time was Rosie O'Donnell freaking out that it won the Grammy for Album of the Year because she had never heard of it... Not much of a legacy I suppose.

Good indie stuff

Couple of bangers...but rest are so...so

Always a fan of many songs on this album, but not having given a full listening to in a few years, I went in expecting 4 stars. But it's held up even better than I remember. Ready to Start, Half-Light, Deep Blue, Sprawl - all great songs. No skips, except Modern Man - which has a weird off-beat that I can't not hear.

Not my favorite Arcade Fire album but this is very good on a nice sound system at high volume

Meh

Forgettable

Meh. Not much to say about this album good or bad. Just no aspirations to listen to this again.

Honestly this album didn't really kick into gear for me until the second half. Just like being in the suburbs I was lulled into a strange calm until something strange kicked me awake.

Not for me.

Nothing about it was terrible, but it was just sort of generic modern indie pop.

Funeral was a better album than this one.

Not my cuppa

ugh. 1 hour of this. really not a fan...

It's a really good album. The suburbs is my favorite song. I loved the transition to ready to start. At some point the lead singer changes, that was unexpected.

Melancholia at its finest. If I could rate in half-stars it would be a 3 1/2 star record.

eh

5 star album for me. Takes me to a particular mood everytime. Favorite track: Suburbs other picks: rococo, empty room, sprawl ii, half light

good listening

It was good but didnt move my core but maybe because i hate the suburbs lol

Weird band. Incredible album.

Nice. Not nearly as good as Funeral. 3/5

Solid Album.

Kwintesencja tamtych czasów. Komercyjna, a jednak uchodząca za alternatywną. Chwytliwa, a jednak odbierana za artystyczną. Oryginalna, a przecież było wtedy tyle zespołów, które brzmiały podobnie. Słucha się jej i słyszy się lato, podróże samochodem i nie do końca szaloną młodość. 7/10.

What an emotionally potent and consistent record. I loved almost every minute of it. Definitely plan to keep this in my catalog.

Feels like i want to get a moustache tattoo for my hand and talk about how I met your mother

An interesting band albeit not my usual type of thing. I enjoyed quite a few songs here (Sprawl I and II, Half Light I and II, Suburban War to name some) but some just didn't quite hit the mark for me. They're a talented group (having seen them live I can confirm) but not always up my street.

Great album

Some absolute stompers on here but also experienced my most painful listen in the 3rd track