Fire!! The platonic ideal of folk rock. Timeless sound. Vocals sound like Joni Mitchell at times and with a gorgeous gospel fullness. Incredible instrumental arrangements of traditional folk songs that incorporate psychedelia and the rock conventions of the time. 1969 what a time to be alive! Reminds me a lot of Let England Shake in its concept

I love a good concept album but sometimes the concept hits harder than the execution. Great songwriting and themes but the musical style was just not working for me except for on a few songs like Wicked Annabella. Found the circus-y Sgt. Pepper-y sound pretty samey

I was younger when Arcade Fire hit the scene so this album is not super nostalgic to me like it is for so many people. This is the first of Arcade Fire album I’ve ever played all the way through. It grew on me more in the final third, but Sprawl II was the only song that really struck me. I like the baroque influence and see how they were influential themselves to bands that came more around my childhood. But like, that includes Imagine Dragons lol. The Suburbs evokes dread, darkness, and nostalgia but without the synthy brightness of Sprawl II carried through the whole album it feels compressed and kinda unoriginal to me. Just not my thing. Sprawl II earns the entire second star

The hits are hits for a reason. The rest are, well, Liberian Girl Man in the Mirror is better than I remember, and Smooth Criminal and Dirty Diana are standouts for me. It’s not a no-skips record but I’m here for the drama of it all

Flawless album. Starts at 100 and stays there. Debbie Harry is one of the best to ever do it!!