Neon Bible

Was looking forward to this but I was pretty disappointed. Nowhere near as good as funeral

I completely forgot this album was between 'Funeral' and 'Suburbs' messing up my Mega Album idea (that 5 from each is the best mega album possible). This one has never done it for me. Reminds me of Flat Bruce Springsteen... "No Car Go" and "Keep the Car Running" were the best but not in my top 10 Arcade Fire songs. Loved seeing them live though!

Not a fan

Boring indie slop, lyrics are awful, just uninspired and super forgettable. Like its fine?

The Netflix series Dark has a feature towards the end of each episode where there is a montage of what is happening with various characters running while an appropriately-chosen song is playing. There was one song I liked, and when I looked it up I was doubly surprised because not only was it sung by Peter Gabriel (who I assumed I didn’t like) but also because it was him covering an Arcade Fire song (who I know I didn’t like). The song was “My Body Is A Cage”, the closer from Neon Bible. Listening to it here in the original version for the first time, I was perhaps wrong about Peter Gabriel; less so about Arcade Fire. Admittedly I have a bias against the band. I saw them in a loft on St Laurent before they got big; I lived literally next door to them after they did. I didn’t think highly of them either musically or as people even before it came out that Win Butler was a sex pest. Musically, there was a point where indie rock as a loosely defined genre got big enough that bands could hope to play venues much larger than bars or clubs, and those bands just ended up being bland as fuck. I’m thinking The Arcade Fire here, The National, probably some other things that are escaping my mind at the moment.

Take me back to jr. high emo fr

Mid. Meh. Angsty.

This is like alt rock for drama kids. I'm not sure about it. I like how the songs build I guess.

I remember being disappointed with this after their debut, which IMHO was quite a bit better. On this fly by, I'm still not going with it but 'Windowsill' and 'My Body is a Cage' did stand out so maybe a few more visits are required. For now still a 2 though.

Man, I just cannot get into this band. They are so blase'.

Glad I listened to it although it isn't my cup of tea. The only track I truly enjoyed was the final track, "My Body Is A Cage".

Booring!!! ⭐️⭐️

esta bueno pero ni. osea no me parece nada de otro mundo, ni me genero mucho.

So many Arcade Fire albums on this list. 🤔

En litt sterk 2'er. Stadionrock.

This is ok - I loved the first AF album and then felt like they swung so hard into indie schlocky campiness.

Is it Bowie? The Boss? Broadway? Nah. Is it bad? Mostly.

Uh, jeg er simpelthen ikke glad for Arcade Fire, og det her album ændrer ikke rigtig på det. Jeg synes forsangeren er sådan lidt skabet, og numrene er lidt for kedelige og lidt for lange. 2.1

This record is kinda meh. Annoying bell sounds and whiny sounding vocals kinda derail the experience. Favourite Track(s): My Body Is a Cage Least Favourite Track(s): Intervention, (Antichrist Television Blues)

2000s indie rock band with a lot member. This quote sums it up..."at its overblown worst Neon Bible is one of those records that takes itself too seriously to be taken seriously." Win Butler thinks he's Roger Waters on The Wall. The songs are over-produced yet the instruments and background vocals sound muffled and distant. I just don't find anything unique about this band. As I listen I keep thinking it sounds like other artists. Why there is more than one album from this band on this list is beyond me.

Arcade Fire's second record has a lot of bluster and attempted Big Dramatic Moments but the freshman philosphy student-lyrics poke a pin in the whole affair. This disc also lacks the weirdness that gave their first record its personality.

Favourite Songs: Black Mirror

Run of the mill mid 2000s fedora-donning, red and black flannel hipster nonsense. Some passable lyricism, strong instrumental on the organ. But its mediocrity left me unbothered.

Absolutely nothing of substance here. What a letdown

I have always felt i should like Arcade Fire. While I do enjoy a song or two, Neon Bible was a decent tune, I just don't. I find them pretentious. I can't figure out how this album made this list.

Boring and mildly annoying. Tinny

Arcade Fire is clearly aiming for a Springsteen-esque arena rock sound here, but something about it feels weirdly underpowered. The production feels like it doesn't have any bite to it, and as a consequence all the grandiosity falls flat. There are some decent instrumental ideas but none of them really clicked for me. All the songs feel like they're pulling off a very similar trick where they culminate in grand instrumental swells, and it makes what's supposed to be a varied instrumental pallette feel very repetitive. Win Butler admittedly brings some sharp commentary about the alienation of late-stage capitalism to the table, but it didn't make up for how boring this album was. There were some strong tracks near the end, particularly My Body Is a Cage and (Antichrist Television Blues), but it wasn't enough to save this album for me. As someone who's a sucker for overblown sentimental indie rock, this was a big letdown.

Mwoa beetje saai

Two tracks in and I'm just a bit bored. At the end of the album and I'm indeed bored.

Honestly a 2.5

Not for me

Very much not my vibe.

It’s okay, not very interesting. The album has a couple good songs, but it feels like it’s missing something

eufórico

I feel it to be significantly inferior to the two major Arcade Fire album, not because it isn't a very consistent album, which it is, but because it lacks all the highlights that make an album memorable. 7/10 [DROP]

It makes me thankful I'm not American and surrounded by religion. I kept wondering "are these guys critiquing their upbringing or lamenting what they lost when they broke out of it?". Maybe it answers that with extended listening but the revivalist tone never connected for me. So stars for this are hard - is it good? Well, I think so. On an initial listening at least I think I got what they were aiming at which is a positive. Did I enjoy it musically? No. Did I hate it? No. Would I listen again? No.

I don't really get why this album is on the list. Tracks to Track: Ocean of Noise

Way lamer than I remembered.

i normally like indie music but this is very monotonous and mid and lame

This turned out like every other Arcade Fire album for me, where a couple songs hit hard and the rest feels like filler. I'm not very convinced of the gloomy sound. Highlights: "Keep the Car Running", "Black Wave / Bad Vibrations", "(Antichrist Television Blues)"

Rescato algún que otro tema que me gustó, pero no más que eso.

I know taste is subjective, but Jesus Christ

Good start, but a boring second thirds. 2/5

forgettable

This was in rotation when it was released because I enjoyed Funeral so much. Listening to it almost 20 years later, it was surprising how I just couldn't get into whatever headspace I was in when I enjoyed it. I think it was just a product of it's time, it spawned endless 'Stomp Clap Hey' imitators that would take some of the surficial sonic trappings and apply it to whatever pabulum. And yeah also just knowing that Win Butler is a POS taints the listening experience. Whatever delusion allowed me to get past his vocals is gone now. Just a tiresome listen in 2026

It started off okay, and had potential, but it got boring quite quickly

I should like this more than I do

I’ve always had a negative opinion on Arcade Fire but I couldn’t tell you why. This album didn’t change this.

Not bad

Some good songs, just not for me personally

Didn't listen, but I have an irrational dislike of Arcade Fire and I want it off my backlog so it is what it is

This was close to a 3 for me, but it really didn't quite make it. Indie band plays The Cure.

Not for me, it seemed self indulgent and faded to background noise quickly

La segunda mitad remonta el álbum, pero la verdad que bastante injunable igualmente

well, I have to admit I didn't like it. So... boring? idk, I was expecting something better. I only saved "Intervention". I wouldn't listen to it again

A few songs still hit, but truly a teenage album

Way over the top earnest. Also, fuck Win Butler.

eh

Win Butler... shut up! The schmaltz _was_ tolerable But now you're cancelled

Fine, not super interested in this one

last song was pretty dope

Not bad, but I didn't really enjoy this album It actually seemed a weaker effort than some of their others that I heard a while back

Nothing good here

Kind of like soft rock. Kind of interesting in the moment, but ultimately vapid and forgettable.

Arcade Fire is one of those bands I knew of and felt perhaps I ‘should’ like. But the snippets I’d heard and seen of them didn’t motivate me to engage. So I was glad to see one of their albums pop up in here. That’s as far as it goes, though. I listened dutifully but I found their whole vibe way too earnest; and the music was unobjectionable but not especially interesting.

Only a couple of these songs work for me, because most of these are just re-works of better songs from their first album. Also - I hate that stomp-clap, Mumford-and-sons style of music, and a lot of this record is drifting that direction. "Ocean of Noise" and "My Body is a Cage" are both pretty great, but that's most of what I can carry with me here. "Black Mirror" is funny to me because it really highlights the self-seriousness and pretense of this band. This record came out a few years before the TV show "Black Mirror," so when I first saw the title of the first song my mind instantly went to Nigel Tufnel looking at his all-black copy of "Smell the Glove" and saying "It's like a black mirror...." All that to say - Arcade Fire need to lighten. TWO STARS

Couple good songs mostly not my style skills a few

Kinda boring, not my style. I can appreaciate the sounds thay hace a great, just not my vibe. Probably slapped in 2007

Probably the weakest of the 3 arcade fire album, really doesn’t need to be on here

More like Beige as fuck Bible

Just ok...lost interest halfway through.

eh

Black mirror - really not for me, too much reverb and anxious rhythm guitar Keep the car running - absolutely not a fan of the clap-along type beat, to me this type of song feels simplistic Neon bible - mumbling vocals not my favorite but it's a more interesting song than the first two. For me mainly due to the drums, with that intermittently returning snare Intervention - the organ is an interesting choice, it feels like the song resolves slowly but the payoff when the drums start is okay. This song seems a bit more interesting. Overall I still don't really like it. Black wave - female vocals are more appealing than the male lead singer. Underwhelming song. I really dislike the reverb they use on the vocals later in the song, it feels disjointed. Ocean of noise - first song I actually like, the laid back drums feel coherent to me. Still don't really like the lead singers voice, but it does feel like it shows itself well in this song. The well and the lighthouse - anxiety inducing song, skipped Antichrist television blues - sappy, predictable song, nonsensible lyrics Windowsill - this guy sings a lot about things he doesn't want to do anymore. Then don't do them. No cars go - and then there's this banger, out of nowhere, of course I heard it before but I had no idea it was from this band. I mean, how can the rest of the album be so unattractive to me but this one song sounds so great. Who's to say. My body is a cage - pretty good, slow pace is a nice change from no cars go. I like the vocals, choir and organ in this one.

NO!!!!!! their first album is much better

I find it really hard to connect with the big production, heartland-tinged sound of this. It all feels overblown, like they're cosplaying, the emotion being staged rather than felt. I suspect some of this is tied to the hang-ups I have about indie-rock bands in the mid-late noughties and beyond but if it is that then listening to this hasn't shaken my feelings up.

Some nice string arrangements and harmonies. Will I listen to this album again? Maybe, possibly, probably!

Not a bad album - I just really don't like Arcade Fire, no matter how hard I try.

0 but bc i dont conect with this type of pop/rock?

Kind of corny. laughed a little when the church organ song started, very subtle theming there.

Well it sure was 2007 huh. To me, there are a lot of bands that sound like this and frankly sound better. I didn’t know any of these songs going in and I do not feel the need to hear them again. It was fine. Season: True Autumn Favorite Song: Windowsill

I want to like arcade fire but there's not enough here for me

nothing notable honestly, did not hate the listen but probably will not return to it

I really wanted to like this album now and when it came out, but upon relistening to it, I found that Neon Bible was just passable.

I found this very boring, didn't want to listen to songs all the way through. Got to "(Antichrist Television Blues)" which sounded like a Springsteen ripoff (even though the rest of the album is very different), and gave it up as a lost cause. I know...in other albums, I have persevered to the last song and sometimes found a gem, but it really didn't seem to be in the cards for this one. 2 stars because still nothing will ever be worse than that fucking Brian Wilson album.

Уфф, это очень... "Millennial coded" музыка. Вот эти вот тихие начала, а потом громкая кульминация. Теперь я понимаю почему меня никогда не интересовали ни Arcade Fire ни аналогичные им indie исполнители. Совершенно неинтересный для меня, приевшийся стиль. хипстерская скучнина. Аранжировки не особо интересные, гитары, клавишные. В общем, такое себе. Еле дослушал.

This style of music isn't really my thing, and the lyrics got a bit depressing

Not horrible. Not memorable. Similar to Muse or Coldplay

This is my third Arcade Fire album on here, and my opinion hasn't changed that much. They're not bad - but there’s just something missing for me and I can't really place it. Not a huge fan of the guys voice, and a lot of the tracks I don't find that interesting. The Suburbs is my favourite AF album out of the 3. This has a couple of songs I didn't mind like Ocean of Noise, and The Well and the Lighthouse.

Removed

Besser als in meiner erinnerung Aber immernoch hipster kram

Sempre gosto de algumas músicas deles, mas acho o álbum como um todo cansativo... Esse é novo pra mim, gostei de Windowsill e a última...

I was surprised by how much i didn't really like this one because i do like arcade fire that ive heard previously. started off well then got a bit wishy washy and anthemic for my taste

Heard a radio interview with them years ago and it was so pretentious it gave me a permanent ick and has ruined any potential enjoyment of their music.

Meh

I am so fucking glad this is the last arcade fire album in the project, I can't make myself listen to one more after this.

Helt ordinært og forglemmelig.

I usually don't like this type of music. While this album did not completely changed my mind, I surprisingly found some of the tracks enjoyable. Fav Track : Keep the car running, Black Wave/Bad Vibrations.

This was a solid album with decent lyricism and instrumentals and I throughly enjoyed a good chunk of it. But it kinda faded into the background for me a couple times. It honestly might just be cause I was distracted or that indie music sometimes has the effect for me. Top Songs: 1) Neon Bible 2)Windowsill 3)Keep the Car Running

very hipster misunderstood album cover 15 year old me wouldve loved my body is a cage favorite song: keep the car running

Nothing I haven't heard before. Pleasant enough.

In general, indie rock isn’t for me. This album is better than many of the genre, but it’s still dull. The songs aren’t catchy enough to be memorable and the music doesn’t do enough to be interesting. It feels in between pop and rock without taking the best bits of either.

que pollas es esto es super aburridp como metenn estas cosas al libro este de albums que deberias escuchar antes de morrir

Not usually my cup of tea, but found it quite a chill album. Got a bit repetitive after a while.

Fine, but wouldn't choose to put on again. Highlight: (Antichrist television blues) because it reminded me of Kate Nash.

Me gustó pero a la vez no me gustó

ça va mais sans plus

Pretentious vocalist, smug album.

A totally irrelevant album that just splits a baby down the middle. The worst of everything country and rock. Much like Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, in all of their configurations, it doesn't speak to me. And I have never enjoyed trust fund kid Gram Parsons’ take on country and country rock. I respect that The Byrds took risks, but I cannot imagine a time in my life where I would want to reach for an album like this. Felt like I was in an endless auditory blur of country shuffle and pedal steel guitar for 40 minutes (I skipped all the tracks that were not on the original release). Having said all that, the best thing about this album is the album cover which is pretty cool. I can see why it ended up in a museum. Competently produced, engineered, and recorded, but not for me.

eh

it's OK you know, it doesn't wow me really in any way but it's good music.

I remember feeling confused and annoyed when Arcade Fire headlined Reading. I still feel vaguely confused and annoyed

It sounds like a television preacher turned alt rock star, and maybe it was the band's plan. It start ok, but after a while I become tired of the overly expressive/theatrical vocals. 2.75 / 5

Great lyrics, and a meaningful message, but the music lacks in several departments. The David Bowie vocals are not my favorite musical fad but it's a good cover if you aren't a classically trained singer. I remember seeing one or some of the members of this band in the news for SA charges so that's a bummer, but tis the life of a rock and roller. I guess when you get good at music you feel entitled to force your body on someone else's. I wouldn't know because that seems like the wrong thing to do but I'm also not a rock and roll musician. 4/10

Percebo porque muita gente gosta porque tem um som original até, mas não é para mim. Se desse dava 2.5 acho eu que é uma review “mixed”

Why is there three albums from Arcade Fire on this list? I've always felt like they made music that was supposed to sound independent and unfettered by corporate interests, but at the end of the day they are just another commercially bloated faux rock band from the '00's. None of it is bad, but it's just forgettable. Also, compared to the other albums by them on this list, this one is by far and away their weakest.

Not bad.

listened to it. cant remember anything about it.

Losse nummers zijn chill, hele album is wat vaag.

One good song

This alternated between Temu Bruce Springsteen and yawn-inducing pretention.

I suppose they are good musicians, but this never moved me. If you live in Canada, you end up hearing Canadian artists a lot if they happen to become internationally famous. That applies to Arcade Fire, and there just isn’t enough to keep me all that interested over repeated exposure.

Not my favourite, sounds like what a guy who dries his hair with an old tshirt and wears a couple to mny rings would recommend me to listen to before flirting with my bestfriend....

The vocals were better than the previous album, but it's still just Arcade Fire...

Started off ok, but every song ended up sounding the same

Bof bof

Eh. Not my thing, but I could see how it would appeal to others

This was my first encounter with Arcade Fire. Id heard about them for years but never heard their stuff. I was sure what to expect, I just had some vague idea of an early 00s indie, art, or whatever rock. That’s what I found—whatever rock. The songs on this record aren’t bad, but they’re not special either. I have no interest in listening again.

Pretty sure I already listened to this? Oh, wait. Every Arcade Fire song sounds the same.

no entiendo porque están en todos los festivales indie estando tan mid

Do pierwszego albumu na liście nie byłem do końca przekonany i nie mogłem się wkręcić. Ten jednak najzwyczajniej w świecie mi się nie podobał. Jakbym znowu jakiegoś U2 słuchał. Dziwna ściana dźwięku z zawodzącym wokalem i, imo, głodnymi kawałkami z płaskim przesłaniem. Nie dla mnie.

Meh

The longer this one went the more it lost me. Chords dominated the vocals, and the lyrics became inanely repetitious within each song.

This album is extremely 2007. Given I'm not a huge fan of 2000s indie rock this wasn't a good thing. I do like the church organs and the grandiose feel of a lot of the tracks, which gives the album a distinct sound and feel, but the album sometimes collapses under the weight of the hipster rock tropes it unfortunately applies far too often. I also never understood this era's obsession with slathering a shit-ton of reverb over the vocals. It makes it hard to understand the lyrics for no reason and just makes you sound miserable and distant, but beyond that, it deeply annoys me for reasons I can't explain. Speaking of, maybe I would connect more with this album if I grew up in a suffocating religious environment, but since religion was a non-issue in my childhood the lyrics kind of just remind me of all the obnoxious new atheists clogging the internet 15 years ago. More of a me issue than an issue with the album itself though, I imagine this would connect a lot more if you did grow up in that environment. Cool album cover though. 2.5/5

Hipster Bruce Springsteen. 2/5

Oh it’s very bland.

12:46pm Iskreno, nije baš za mene. Lijepa melodija i sve to ali nah. Ni tekst nisam mogla nešto da pratim bog zna, nije mi imao smisla. Ali nisu loši objetivno, samo ja ne mogu ovakvu indie rock muziku da slušam.

2/5. I try my best to enter every album with a fully open mind. That being said Arcade Fire is just one of those bands that I’ve never been able to get into. Which is odd, I typically love indie rock, but something about their music has always just turned me away. That being said I will say I thought the opener “Black Mirror” and the closer “my body is a cage” is solid too, though I actually prefer the Peter Gabriel cover that’s featured in the season 2 finale of the show Dark. Didn’t love it, but I can at least appreciate its place in 2000’s indie rock.

I like some Arcade Fire but not a lot off of this.

Meh

Fuck arcade fire

Net te millenial coded voor mij

Thought this was album was annoying and too experimental. Nothing special for me

album was alright, very unique but kinda boring for me, not really my style

2 - ok at best

I'm not really a fan of Arcade Fire's style of Baroque Rock and I find Win Butler's vocal style annoying. Best track on the album is the single "No Cars Go".

Meh. 2/5

Lite besviken på detta, med The Suburbs som enda tidigare Arcade Fire-referens. Lite lågenergiskt men samtidigt inte så chill att lyssna på?

Even though I liked some of the arrangements, I just don't like this genre, whatever it is. I don't know if Arcade Fire were the first to shout those annoying 'heys' in bridges—the ones that haunt every indie pop song from that decade until recently—but they are insufferable. I dig the organ, though.

Didn’t like it then, don’t like it now. There’s parts that work but it didn’t age well.

Nothing really stood out to me. I feel like a lot of the songs sounded similar.

Not really my vibe

This is a very bland, milquetoast indie rock album. There's not much to say here, it's just an over hyped, boring slog with no real substance whatsoever. All the critics hear the violins and French interjections in the lyrics and wet themselves trying to put this bland hipster drivel on a pedestal as one of the greatest records of the 2000s, but it's just a bunch of boring, vacuous drivel with no real substance to it. Get outta here with this crap!

mmm not for me.

preachy, self-important, and unnecessarily complicated; kind of like if my ex girlfriend was an album.

This really is not for me. Sounds like a band that critics love and expect you to praise, but I am not feeling this.

I was 20 when this one came out and liked it a lot then. Haven’t sat and listened to it since then though, and it’s not very good. It’s too serious for its own good, many of the tracks feel incomplete despite the production shoving in everything it can, and Win is kind of a grating vocalist. Meh.

Sounds tired and largely uninspired after Funeral, going back to the same playbook and coming up with a cheap knockoff

I never really know what to do with bands that have bad people in them. When I already like the band, I tend to be like "aw man :(" and then forget about it in like a month, but when it's a band I've never heard before, I feel like I shouldn't bother listening to them. I kind of have to listen to these guys because I got them on the list, though, so I just went into it with the well horribly poisoned. That being said, the sexual assault stuff could've never happened and I'd still find this album pretty boring. This album sounds very dated, and not in a good way like 80s Pop or 60s Psych Rock. I feel like the singer doesn't know how to convey emotion through music so he makes the music sound massive to get you to feel something. It almost works in some parts, especially in the opener, but I also feel like it only works because it's the opener in that case. For all that, there were a few okay songs. The one with the French women was fun until the singer opened his mouth and I sort of liked the instrumentation on No Cars Go. It's not quite a 1 star album, but it's almost there.

To me this album is a lesson in overproduction - everything is just too much. Do we really need the Budapest film orchestra and military men's choir for a so-called "indie album"? It's also a lesson in overambition: Does the material justify this ridiculous orchestration? By trying so hard, it only accentuates the limitations of the material. I may have liked this album better if it didn't try to sound so much grander than it actually is. The songs would have worked better as lean, indie-scale compositions instead of masquerading as a sweeping concept opera. This album is lacking in goodness, but not in grandiosity. Wrong ratio. Let the vision emerge through the work: don’t wear it on your sleeve. As if to highlight the point, autoplay moved to Elliott Smith's "Between the Bars" when the album ended. A hushed, bare voice backed with a single guitar, yet it carries more emotional weight than all the orchestras and choirs that preceded it. This is what material-first sounds like.

This album feels like it's almost good. I liked elements of it like the Christian language and metaphors as well as the piano parts but overall didn't love the album. It might grow on me if I listened to it again.

The singer reminded me of David Byrne. I liked a couple of tracks. Ocean of Noise and The Antichrist Television.

Didn't like it

It feels like boring, whiny and dull. It was hard to listen. Better to read the actual Bible. I liked Black Mirror. It was such a cheat code name, that's not fair. 2/5 —————————————— Liked: — Black Mirror

not for me

Boring

I’ve tried listening to them a few times over many years but I just don’t get what the big deal is. I’m Canadian so I feel that I can say that this music kind of sits in a certain Canadian style that has an underwhelming vibe. They’re a competent band playing songs that don’t seem to really go anywhere and the vocals aren’t doing too much either. I get the feeling that this is way too hip for its own good. I’m generally more open-minded than most when it comes to the enjoyment of music so it is a bit disconcerting to not be able to like this so I’m giving this a second spin… …and although I was able to find a couple of things I liked it’s still mostly not doing much for me. Damn I could have spent my time more wisely by listening to some other album I enjoy but oh well, win some, lose some.

I hate this specific subgenre of indie music.

Very bland, all the songs basically sounded the same. Avoided the one-star with ‘No Cars Go’ as the penultimate track

I guess it's fine, I'm just finding more and more that I'm really not into indie rock. It's kind of bland and dreary, wouldn't say it's bad but it's like it's from an uninspired teen drama.l soundtrack.

I find this a tad mono and at times also dull. I can hear a lot of depth here with the overuse of instruments to make a darker and more atmospheric environment.  Again more often overpowered by the lyrical and guitar drone. I cant see me wanting to invest in this.

fiiine

It was ok. A bit whiny

Every song feels so incomplete. They pick one riff or vibe and stick with it for a couple minutes. There are no build-ups or dynamic changes or bridges to speak off here.

Surprised as I quite liked some songs on here, never heard anything that I’m aware of before, fav track - “ keep the car running”

Boring

This album sounded so big... but also so dark. Like it was leaden. There's a differently mixed, maybe arranged version of this album somewhere that I would probably find great.

Ok but not very memorable

Over-dramatic pop rock for theater kids. The dude's whiny singing fits the juvenile lyrics well. Ocean of Noise was a decent song at least.

Never thought I’d agree with Rolling stone.

sorry the only thing I can think of is a harry styles / zayn malik fic titled Keep The Car Running that was huge in 2013. thanks arcade fire for the one direction fanfiction inspiration I guess

++

Bored already after three songs. Not for me.

Am I the only one that finds this album kinda boring? Like it's not terrible but it's just meh. I've been listening to it off and on all day and it's kinda bland.

Man, this album is boring as heck. I tried to like it, especially since I enjoyed the "Suburbs" album. But this just sounded repetitive to me. And what's worse is that it feels like that was the plan. Each song is crafted in such a way that it could be sung as an anthem. Simple slow chord progressions with simple refrains. My mind just sees the lighters (or cell phones) waving in the arena. AND THAT'S NOT A BAD THING AT ALL. It's just that this album felt like a string of that same sort of song. Meh. Favorite song: "My Body Is A Cage." A legitimately excellent song.

Decent music and production but over my head.

Forgettable - glade Ibsaved my notes on Friday;) In some moments, the sound reminds me of great bands like Biffy Clyro, but the musical variety regarding guitar playing and singing feels a little limited. Found the album boring overall. Intervention is a nice track.

I had heard of this band but wouldn't have been able to name a song. Can't see that changing. Recognised a song though ......... I think. Bit dreary and depressing for me, the song about giving money to the church was intriguing. Not sure what the rest of them were about. Was ready for it to finish but it’s not awful so 2 stars.

The girl sitting in the pod across from me asked is this my playlist. i explained the whole process and she said great idea but not feeling this one can i finish it after she goes on her half day. (request denied because I'm on track 4 and its pretty good). 6 tracks in not feeling this one. not upbeat enough for me. back end got a bit more upbeat but still not loved.

Not too bad, but just not for me. The songs at the end were more enjoyable than the others. I know the band name from something else, but I don't remember any songs specifically, and never heard this album before. Wouldn't encourage me to continue listening.

Not for me, but some really nice bits

like the organ / orchestral bits - a bit cheesy? churchy bits go a bit christmassy sometimes , I think overall not for me

Second AF album from this list. I can now add bombastic to descriptors of this band. The production is better but still a lot. It's over loud which I don't understand. I remember older musicians complaining about this issue and its ongoing controversy. Not sure this falls in that pit. Still not my thing.

Decent Arcade Fire album, idk what the people who made this list are smoking putting this in the 1001 albums you should hear before you die though. I remember this even being meh when I was in high school and stomp-clap-esk music was in. I will probably never listen to this again. There are still some great songs on here. I just don't think this has stood the test of time.

Achei chato 4/10

I enjoyed listening to this, but...I don't know man. There's something simultaneously overblown and overly simple about Arcade Fire's music, not to mention pretentious. It's a good listen, but not something I find myself drooling over. Fave tracks: - Keep the Car Running - Windowsill - My Body Is a Cage

You can tell they’re running out of ideas.

Meh. I don’t know what it is but I’ve never enjoyed this album all that much. They have better stuff. I liked maybe 1 song here. Maybe not even enough for 3 stars. Hmmmm

oh so this is what the folk revival bands were smoking circa 2011. not as good as I thought it would be

⭐️⭐️.5/5. Never been a huge Arcade Fire fan, and this album helped me define why a bit better. Too rocky and evocative of other bands and eras I don’t enjoy, and none of it new or different. Felt like something I’ve heard a million times, and not in a good way. I did enjoy the lyrical focus on religion and struggling with it.

You know, I wanted to be at least OK with it, but I just didn’t like it.

grand production but left no memorable impression. the entire album sort of passed me by despite its density. 2/5

day 10: this feels like an album a dude with a beanie who drinks oat mochas would rave about. always hurts a band when their debut is far and away their best album. like, where do you go after funeral??? i suppose at least this isn’t pink elephant. anyway it sounds nice, is still an art rock album and has the same lovely intimate vocals and melodies on the lush orchestral backdrops as funeral. the tracks just feel loose to me?? like any of them could fit anywhere on the album? also just a bit boring otherwise. also the only album i’ve had to listen to twice now before reviewing because the first time i played it it finished and i thought alright i suppose it was an album. also sucks that the lead is an abusive cunt since it makes me not want to enjoy this. anyway, first half is dull as a brick, second half has some good songs which do make up for it a bit. the well and the lighthouse stretch until the last song sounds nice. at least the band picked it back up for the suburbs!

Decent but generic hipster music. Not bad listening.

Some really high highs and some pretty bad stuff

As a general rule, indie sucks. Ok, a couple songs get the sandals sliding and over-tatted arms a swaying. Decent. But when it goes all Anthem Indie, it’s just annoying. Arena Indie? Who does that? Pass.

Clean and cool pop album.

Very anthem-ish but without much substance

Lame. 1.5/5

I thought I would love it but it all sounded the same.

Mid

I never liked arcade fire, i always thought they were incredibly bland and incredibly overrated. They got lucky with that one stupid song in 2009 or 10 and they should fade off into the distance and certainly not be mentioned in any lists of important records

I thought this would be way cooler than it was. I only like when he sings in his upper register and when the songs are fast. The only song I liked was The Well and the Lighthouse

Było obiecująco i coś w sobie ma ale finalnie jednak nie da sie tego sluchac

indie rock, man. did Arcade Fire ruin it? no. that's wayy too harsh of an idea to humor. but they do represent a lot of the trends it had in the 2000s that i'm less keen on. but they had their moments and they could put together a decent song. i just don't think there's that much compelling here, really. Funeral at least i can understand the romance of. the lyrics are good but there's not much pathos in their presentation idk deserves to be one of the 1001? maybe i guess. b-b-b-b-but i don’t like arcade fire!! wahhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!

Critical darlings but I can take or leave this tbh.

I tried..

Can't get on with these guys not sure why.

Wow. They are like a modern day Bruce Springsteen. But nearly twenty years old now, I guess. So .... Like Bruce Springsteen. Hmmm. I'm not much of a Bruce Springsteen fan come to think of it.

Bad Christmas songs

A bit confused. Typical Canadians.

Not mine

Yet another album that nobody needed to hear before they died. Utterly derivative music without bringing anything new to the table paired with insipid lyrics. Keep The Car Running and No Cars Go are ok. The rest is anywhere from dull to irritating

Lowkey dreary.

The first half sounds like a low-go attempt taken over by a Bowie acolyte. The rest just sounds like Bowie. I did enjoy one song.

2,4/5

Definitely the least favorite of the first 4 albums. Felt like the B-sides of all the other great stuff.

meh

Jeg likte albumet. Mot slutten ble det veldig majestisk, som jeg synes minnet meg om æraen da den kom ut. Samtidig ga den meg kanskje ikke så mye, noen av låtene var litt meh.

How does Arcade Fire have 3 albums in the 1000 most important albums list? Nothing interesting happens, and nothing innovative is tried. It's not bad, but it's not exactly great either.

meh. not my bag. some groovy kicks.

Millennial music that did not really grab me.

Maybe it might change later, or I might need to listen to other projects from them. But I just couldn't get into this album at all. It doesn't sound bad, but it sounds bleak. I feel like I'm listening to U2, which is not bad by itself. But is U2. 2.5/5 ⭐⭐⭐

Nothing stood out to me.

Indifferent to this type of indie

95/1001. Never knew Arcade Fire too well (never bothered to listen to a full album that is), but it seems I didn't miss too much. A sort of a 1990s U2 of 2000s? And that is not a compliment. If this is Indie, I wonder what mainstream commercial rock / pop music is then, Coldplay?. For me this sounds bland, calculated, uninteresting, uninspired, dishonest… Nothing that would light my fire. Well, I didn't totally hate it, so 2.

I like Arcade Fire, and I like this album okay but the religious allusions in this album fall flat for me. not bad, but there's not a lot that I'll seek out specifically

blah

Yeah let’s knock all of these out at once. There has been a tragic fire at Rucker’s. Ruckers? Is “Rucker” a person? Why am I referencing an obscure south Calgary arcade from the early 2000s. Listen. I have that era on the brain after limping through Linkin Park. Emphasis on the “L.” I am hoping this is a stark left turn from the aforementioned nu-metal cringe and I’ll be able to breathe once more. Black Mirror - The song about the show. This may come as a huge shock, but I make it my goal to avoid shows that the general livid clamours over until years later. Then I feel better about myself for enjoying it. Gotta live insufferable contrarians. Actually, you don’t. Anyway, this song is really mid. Keep the Car Running - I’m not hating this, but there isn’t all that much to sink my teeth into. The vocals are slightly annoying and almost reminiscent of Bruce Springsteen, which should be an automatic zero, but I’ll give this a chance to elevate beyond this. Neon Bible - These quirky fellas making the title track the third song?? Wild. This is the kind of craziness you get from mid 2000s hipsters. That term used to mean these people! Intervention - An ode to the sniper rifle from Call of Duty Modern Warfare II. Long may its scope be steady and may the silent shot killcams ever be “dank.” Black Wave/Bad Vibrations - Beach Boys diss track. FUCK surfing. NOBODY is learning how. EVERYBODY hates it. This is an alright track actually. The French is a cool touch as they are a Montreal band. Not bad. Ocean of Noise - This is a sweet song. A little long, but it’s a gentle indie track that appeals to me greatly. Excellent work, problematic band. The Well and the Lighthouse - This is that restaurant that has the 25 dollar brunch. At least the line cook has stick and poke tattoos and it’s in a formerly vibrant neighborhood. I think these days, we’re skipping this step and going right to the chain restaurants. I love real estate investing!!!! Decent song. Nothing crazy. (Antichrist Television Blues) - (don’t tell anyone, but I also don’t want to work in buildings downtown and I really can’t tell if I like or hate this album) Windowsill - Another perplexing journey through independent rock and/or roll. Highly repetitive and one of my least favourite refrains thus far. No Cars Go - See they’re touting the incredible walkability of their gentrified community. Those heys are pretty suspect. I feel the brim on my millennial hat expanding. Oh god, my man bun is getting more quirky by the second. ERRRRRRM NO. Make it stop. My Body is a Cage - Same, brother. Same. My cage is a body. My car is a cage, my motorcycle is uninsured. My insurance is a cage. Cages are my cage. Nicolas Cage is my insurance. The Declaration of Independence is in my motorcycle. Governmental artifacts are my insurance policy. My motorcycle remains uninsured. The louder vocal passages can be too reminiscent of Kings of Leon or some such tripe. The quiet portions oscillate between mildly enjoyable and mildly grating. There is a germ of stomp-clap music that is beginning to percolate in these 11 tracks. I can almost smell the barn weddings that will plague our earth in the late aughts/early 10s. I am spinning my wheels here. I don’t think I enjoyed my time here, but that’s could change as I move forward in this interminable slog. How much can I handle in one day? We shall see. 2 HIGHLIGHTS: Ocean of Noise, My Body is a Cage

Good band. Good music.

meh...

Not my vibe

Wack

This is #day361 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… this week marks a year since I started this project, which is kind of crazy. But I'm hell-bent on continuing the journey, despite stumbling across pebbles like this one. I mean, this is my second Arcade Fire record. As I've said before, I don't get why this band is represented with three albums while other artists aren't on the list at all. This is peak inessential indie-schmindie. "My Body Is a Cage" is the only highlight, and it's far too late in the tracklist. Alright, I can also relate to "Windowsill," I guess. Otherwise, this is a 2 out of 5. Looking forward to #day362.

Pretty standard late 2000's indie fare. I've never understood the appeal behind indie darlings like The National, The Strokes, Wilco, or Arcade Fire, or why music magazines like Pitchfork bow to them for making, for all intents and purposes, mild mid-tempo rock for aging hipsters. While Neon Bible probably doesn't deserve my initial jab (I do have to admit "Keep The Car Running" and "Intervention" caused me to thaw a little bit), the rest of the album kind of matches my original description. I'll admit to enjoying the variety of instrumentation and some of the songwriting, but this to me, Arcade Fire just screams "Please take me seriously. I am an adult with complex thoughts and feelings. I am mature. I am an adult. Please take me seriously"

Not my favorite of theirs, but a very solid album with a couple of excellent songs.

Is k. I realized that this stuff is the precursor to the hoot holler stomp nonsense of the 2010’s and it kinda took me out.

Cool grandiose rock sound with rich orchestral, folksy and twee elements as well as booming dollops of Springsteen and church organ. Absolutely withered husks of songs with wafty microgram melodies that mean to build somewhere but just don’t turn into anything memorable or interesting. Wan Butler’s quivery waily delivery gets pretty annoying as well. The best song is probably No Cars Go which is recycled from their debut EP from 2002. Other than that this is a perfect follow up album to Funeral.

reminds me of the killers if they were a christian rock band with a little folk, a little techno, and a bad recording mic

mid

I’m not sure if I like the vibe nature of this album, like it was alight but not my thing.

A bit like Mountain Goats, I know they have a devoted following but they don’t really do anything for me.

I liked it ... but I shouldn't look at the lyrics.

Arcade fire n’est vraiment pas pour moi.

Another day, another 21st century indie rock band. And .. not a lot to say about this one. If I had been the right age when this was new might have been interesting at the time, but I am not and had already listened to what obviously influenced this. It’s a bit too full of itself and overblown, and in my vacuum, never heard a note by them before, seems a little soulless and an empty sounding recording, surprisingly given their name lacks any real fire, like they are a shoe gazing poetry recital without any actual emotion. Springsteen is one of the keywords, really? That’s a wannabe stretch, if you squint real hard at a thousand yards at twilight on a moon less night. Just meh to these ears, 2 Star

Indie’s worst impulses. Yuck

Doomy-gloomy but ultimately didn't leave much of a mark. Only on the third playthrough did it really start to leave an impression. The lead sounds like the Boss really straining for extra emotion. (probably a 2.5)

Not my style but to each their own.

No me dijo nada. Podria ser una bandita en festival que mire antes del show principal

Pretty boring

kinda disappointing and im an arcade fire fan. this was a step down from their previous work but it makes for good lullaby music also im not even religious get away ..

Oh my god. That is a great disappointment. I never listened to a whole Arcade Fire album and it is horrible. The melodies are too cluttered, most of the lyrics are shallow and simple, and the delivery of Butler on the vocals are tiring after a while trying to mimic Bowie.i dont see the hype, really.

There was so much hype around arcade fire when this album came out. I didn’t like it then, and I still don’t think it’s all that great. Their next album, The Suburbs, is solid, and Funeral was good. Everything else they’ve made, including Neon Bible, is mediocre.

It's going for Springsteen-style catharsis, but it comes off as a little much. (I guess I could call that "trying too hard", but I think trying is a good thing and am loathe to look down on it.) Some of the sonic embellishments are more annoying than effective. There's a baffling 'ding' sound throughout a lot of these songs that irked me, and "Black Wave/Bad Vibrations" has this string motif that was also bothersome (and the female vocals on that song are mixed like she's singing at the end of a padded hallway). "(Antichrist Television Blues)" is a straight-up Springsteen impression in a manner I do not find charming. I feel like if I heard this when I was much younger I'd be into it, but unfortunately is seems like this kind of labored, classic rock-indebted indie rock rarely does it for me these days.

This band was huge in the 2010s they had 3 number 1 albums in a row and a couple top tens before the 2010s then Covid happened... and someone accused the lead singer of some type of sexual abuse (I don't think he was ever charged or even if anything came from those allegations) and their latest album (2025's Pink Elephant) did not even chart in the Billboard 200, and I mean AT ALL whoever the accuser is/was did a lot of damage. Was the damage earned? I have no idea. To me the above is the most interesting thing about Arcade Fire. Neon Bible isn't a bad album but to me it's a very boring one. Inoffensive as warm milk. It plays and then it ends and makes no impact, good or bad on me. Boring indie rock that exists for seemingly no real reason like mildew or Mayim Bialik.

Meh! Boring pretentious indie. Två!

Boring

A band and album I desperately tried to get into to be cool back in the day, but I just can't do it.

Pretentieuze rotzooi David Bowie kloon

2/5 takie nudne

Weak

Second AF album in a fortnight. This was considerably inferior to Suburbs. Liked the organ and church vibes, cool they recorded in a converted church, but this was pretty boring even by 2000s indie standards

Idk man this just bounced right off me

I'm starting to think Arcade Fire is overrated.

Just did not like it, don't enjoy the lead singer's voice, and didn't enjoy many of the songs.

Unfortunately disappointing. I have loved Intervention and My Body is a Cage for many years, but now I get why those are the only two I knew. Not a lot of other gems on this album.

It's ok. Not their best but ok

Yeah it was ok but one to hear before you die? I don’t think so! I’ve never really got into them to be honest, a friend bought me an album of theirs for my birthday 20 years or so ago and I’ve listened to it twice maybe.

Mm ok don’t love

Ok... marginally better than the previous Arcade Fire album (which made me genuinely angry) but certainly not good. Just total millennial indie slop. Some parts made me laugh so that has to count for something.

It wasn't that bad, but it was pretty generic. Nothing special.

From wiki: "released around the same time as other droll shit that sounds the same during a horrible time in popular music."

The title track is 2 minutes, and when it got to the 1 minute mark I wanted to skip it. Pretty much how I felt about the whole album.

I dislike Arcade Fire, both for their music and their attitude towards others. From my memory, they act entitled when on tour and treat others very poorly. Again though, this is from memory and I'm pretty sure it was Arcade Fire that everyone was complaining about. Regardless of that fact, I don't really like their music. I don't hate it, I just don't find it enjoyable either.

Oh wow, I'm sure i couldn't die without listening to *generic album* by *generic band*. It sure sounds different than the rest of the bands doing the exact same thing

I've already heard this album before bruh

- boring -

It's like listening to paint dry

Meh

Why does a song called “Antichrist Television Blues” have a happy upbeat instrumental with claps on 2 and 4. Not as lyrically interesting as it wants to be and mostly incoherent with a handful of interesting moments 4/10

Black mirror was a waste of time. I think I’m already getting something from this experience tho. I think I can safely say that I prefer instrumentally driven tracks. I had a hunch but this song “keep the car running” I think may have confirmed it. I didn’t mind the vocals per se but they didn’t make me feel anything. The instruments were fantastic and creative, and what I would have traded for an instrumental section instead of another sung verse. Would have been amazing. Violins are gorgeous, so why let it play second fiddle in neon Bible? Pun very well intended. “Black waves/bad vibrations” was quite good. Twists and turns that kept me hooked. “The well and the lighthouse” to “the windowsill” were painfully boring. No cars go wasn’t an all-time favorite BUT after a point it gave the spotlight to its various instrument choices which was incredibly gratifying and it had a payoff even I felt. Shoulda ended the album honestly. The final track honestly felt like a less successful attempt at that.

Too indie for me. No thanks.

I know that a lot of people are huge fans of Arcade Fire, but I never really spent any time listening to them. After listening to this, I don't know why the fan base is so fervent. This album is DULL. It's not bad, but it's worse than forgettable. The songs are just... there. Not a single one stood out, and I got two songs in, looked at how long the album was, and was relieved that it was relatively short. But still, even it being a 37ish minute album felt too long. I wouldn't reach to turn it off and I wouldn't be mad if I heard it again, but it would definitely bore me again a second time.

Not my cup of tea

Sem graça, existem depressões melhores.

Wasn’t horrible but I didn’t care for this. 2.5/5

Wasn’t great. 2.5

the umpteenth time I just realize and admit that I do not like arcade fire...

Mediocre hipster bullshit

Carly had the observation that this sounds like arcade fire doing Bruce Springsteen and I concur. Fine enough to listen to but wouldn’t seek out

I can’t remember anything about this album ten minutes after playing it. Ancestor of Imagine Dragons, I suppose. That one song about driving a car or something is okay.