Pretty generic 60s psych, the singles hard carry but I enjoy the folky stuff too
Favourites: Somebody to Love, Today, Embryonic Journey, White Rabbit
Amazing vocals, super interesting songwriting, but some of the slower tracks bog it down just a little.
Favourites: You and I, Superstition, Blame It on the Sun, I Believe (When I Fall in Love It Will Be Forever)
Impressive that they managed an album this long while keeping the quality fairly consistent throughout. Big fan of the songs when the strings come in.
Favourite tracks: Tonight, Tonight, Zero, Galapagos, 1979
Fine background music but not interesting at all as a standalone listen
Favourites: Theme From Shaft, Soulsville
Super happy, laidback reggae. Simple but good.
Favourites: So Much Things To Say, Jamming, Turn Your Lights Down Low, Three Little Birds
I need to listen to more Brazilian music, the instrumentation on this album is so cool and it's super catchy.
Favourites: Ponta de Lança Africano, Taj Mahal, Xica Da Silva
While the songs are musically pretty simple, Johnny Cash's lyrics tell stories in a straight to the point yet powerful way, and the crowd noise from the prison he's performing in gives these songs real character.
Favourites: I Walk the Line, San Quentin, A Boy Named Sue
As a kid, Arcade Fire was an such an essential part of the soundtrack to my life, with my dad blasting songs like Wake Up and Tunnels to the point where I couldn't hate this album if I tried.
So many great things I could say about this album, from the lyrics to the painful vocals, but I think what makes this album so special is the band's profound ability to write seemingly timeless melodies. I mean, the triumphant group vocal melody on Wake Up, the 'Alice Died' section on In The Backseat, these songs feel like they always existed, just waiting for some artist to come along and bring them to fruition, and Arcade Fire do that in a way that gives these ideas such a grandeur; songs that feel larger-than-life, like a bigger movement is contained in each. And the production aids this, balancing the delicate quieter moments like Une Annee Sans Lumiere with the explosive, distorted rawness of tracks like Power Out. The band have other great albums no doubt, but I don't think they were ever able to recapture the magic that was present across these 48 minutes.
Am I being utterly biased and subjective? Absolutely, but even someone coming to this album now for the first time can appreciate the genius that went into its creation. Sucks the main guy's a pred though.
Favourites: Tunnels, Laika, Power Out, Wake Up, Rebellion (Lies), In The Backseat
Great grooves and riffs, but some of these songs are just too long I'm sorry.
Favourites: Love Vigilantes, Sunrise, Elegia
The off-kilter melodies and experimental song structures throughout the album are tied down with some of the best production and sound design I've ever heard. Probably a weird place to start with their discography but I'm very interested now to check out their earlier work.
Favourites: Silence, The Rip, We Carry On, Machine Gun
