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Arcade Fire announce "The Suburbs"

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I think I'll buy the LP of this album... do LP sales count towards Nielson Soundscan ratings? I assume they do but honestly I've never thought about it. I just want my babies to have the #1 album in the country next week.
 
Zilch said:
I think I'll buy this LP of this album... do LP sales count towards Nielson Soundscan ratings? I assume they do but honestly I've never thought about it. I just want my babies to have the #1 album in the country next week.

Absolutely. I'm pretty sure the free mp3 code doesn't count hough.
 
barnone said:
Amazon mp3s are 320kbps (of course)?

Asking because I bought a Spoon album off Amazon and itunes registers the songs as between 200 for some and 250 for others (and inbetween for the others).
I believe Amazon MP3s are VBR but don't quote me on that.
 
Honestly, I think Ready to start is all kinds of brilliant. I've only listened through the album once so far and I like it, but it definitely feels like one that will grow during further listenings.
 
After listening to the stream 3-4 times I picked up the Full Album on amazon. The stream is good, but the compression really knocks out some of the really important subtle elements.

Hearing the full thing is fucking beautiful, and I think the lyrics are their strongest to date. "Dead shopping malls rise like mountains beyond mountains." Shit is gold.
 
Man their first album was incredible but I thought their second was awful.The third album though damn is so good I honestly wasn't expecting much but this is pure win
 
legend166 said:
Only song I don't like Empty Room.

I love that... guitar? that gets louder and louder. I don't know anything about guitars or what it would be called, but it is sexy as fuck in that song.
... This album is getting even better.
 
Cmagus said:
Man their first album was incredible but I thought their second was awful.The third album though damn is so good I honestly wasn't expecting much but this is pure win
I really never understood the hate for Neon Bible. I think it's a great album. Two bad songs (Ocean of Noise and Windowsill) but everything else is great.

The Suburbs is probably better overall, but hell, it's not hard to say that it's better than Funeral as well. I mean, we're talking Arcade Fire-quality for 15 songs and an album ender. And the worst of The Suburbs is better than the worst of Funeral (and Neon Bible, for that matter).

I just think that all three albums do what they do extremely well. They all do their own things and it just...works.
 
I like the album a lot (lyrically it feels like Rick Moody wrote it, always a good thing). But it never gets better than the opener and I can't stop listening to that. It's probably my favorite song of the year. At least this week anyways. ;D
 
barnone said:
Amazon mp3s are 320kbps (of course)?

Asking because I bought a Spoon album off Amazon and itunes registers the songs as between 200 for some and 250 for others (and inbetween for the others).
It depends. Some of their songs are VBR while others are 256kbps.
 
DanielPlainview said:
Neon Bible also has their best song, Antichrist Television Blues.
Indeed, also i always thought the worst song on that CD that was - black wave / bad vibrations. I really dislike the second half of that song.
 
Lafiel said:
Indeed, also i always thought the worst song on that CD that was - black wave / bad vibrations. I really dislike the second half of that song.

Yep, totally agree. I've grown to really hate that song.
 
Lafiel said:
Indeed, also i always thought the worst song on that CD that was - black wave / bad vibrations. I really dislike the second half of that song.
See, my brother said the same thing, and I don't understand it. If anything, the first half is the worse part.
 
Was never an Arcade Fire fan but Ready to Start and We Used to Wait sounds really really solid, a big departure from some of their older and uh...less interesting material that I've heard.

Kinda don't get Rococo, it just sounds like complaining.
 
The suburbs and Ready to Start together at the start are so amazing man im on my 4th listen already worth it.Also I love the tone to the album unlike their previous ones not so down and slow this has a large variety of music on it
 
Lafiel said:
Indeed, also i always thought the worst song on that CD that was - black wave / bad vibrations. I really dislike the second half of that song.
That's probably my favorite part of the entire album. Definitely one of the top three songs on the record, for me. I actually didn't care for Neon Bible for quite a while, but it eventually clicked, and I can genuinely say that I like every song now. Hopefully that happens with the new album soon, as it's not doing anything for me yet. Long albums with a lot of short-to-average length songs tend to overwhelm me and take a long, long time to catch onto (as opposed to an album just as long with half the number of songs, for example).
 
God damn, once I made it past listening to "The Suburbs" four hundred times ("Modern Man" kept making me go back to it :lol ) this album has so grown on me. It's amazing. I need the rest of their albums STAT!!!
 
The Suburns was my favourite track for ages (and still is, probably), but the rest of the album has a ton of highs too.

When's this streaming YouTube concert? I thought it was today?

*edit* Tomorrow. :(
 
Cmagus said:
Man their first album was incredible but I thought their second was awful.The third album though damn is so good I honestly wasn't expecting much but this is pure win

I fall into the camp that thinks Neon Bible is better than Funeral. Probably because I got into Neon Bible first, but even after many listens of both I like it substantially more.

This album is great though. Glad we can (mostly) all agree on that!
 
BenjaminBirdie said:
God damn, once I made it past listening to "The Suburbs" four hundred times ("Modern Man" kept making me go back to it :lol ) this album has so grown on me. It's amazing. I need the rest of their albums STAT!!!
Yes! Amazing album. Still haven't gotten tired of it after countless listens.
atm my favorite tracks are Suburban War and Sprawl II
Can't wait for the youtube live concert tomorow.
 
vatstep said:
That's probably my favorite part of the entire album. Definitely one of the top three songs on the record, for me. I actually didn't care for Neon Bible for quite a while, but it eventually clicked, and I can genuinely say that I like every song now. Hopefully that happens with the new album soon, as it's not doing anything for me yet. Long albums with a lot of short-to-average length songs tend to overwhelm me and take a long, long time to catch onto (as opposed to an album just as long with half the number of songs, for example).

This entire post is so fucking true. 100% agree, man.
 
Just thought I'd re-affirm my stance on this album.

Best Arcade Fire album
Best Album of the Year
One of the Best Albums of all time

Hyperbole Overload!!!
 
rhino4evr said:
Just thought I'd re-affirm my stance on this album.

Best Arcade Fire album
Best Album of the Year
One of the Best Albums of all time

Hyperbole Overload!!!

I kind of hate hyperbole so soon after release, but with each listen I have to agree with you. There is some quality to it that I feel like I could listen to it forever.
 
Terry Gilliam Is "Trying To Figure Out" What This Arcade Fire Webcast Thing Is
If the news from the other day that Terry Gilliam would be directing a live webcast Thursday night of Arcade Fire’s Madison Square Garden concert struck you as odd, well, it apparently seemed - and still seems! - just as strange to Gilliam himself. Wednesday, a day before the concert, Gilliam shared his confusion about his involvement with EW.com.

“I’m trying to find out what this fucking thing is,” he said. “I keep reading that I’m directing this thing, but I’m not sure that’s what I’m doing. Their manager called my agent less than two weeks ago and said, ‘We’re doing this webcast and the band would love it if you got involved.’... I’m a groupie, basically! If I see somebody doing something stupid I’ll probably mention that to them. But their show’s really good, and they’ve got really good video stuff already. So we’ll stick with what they’re doing and I can sit back and take credit for everything

So it sounds like if you go to the Arcade Fire show Thursday night and film a few songs with your digital camera, even if all you do is call your friend during "Rebellion"… you’ll probably be doing more than Terry Gilliam is.

I fucking love Terry Gilliam. :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol
well, I think his movies are overrated, but as a person
 
Tonight @ MSG: Great show or greatest show?

They came on late and it was a little short, but otherwise, holy shit.

Not-entirely-accurate setlist:

Ready To Start
Laika
No Cars Go
Haiti
Half Light II
Rococo
The Suburbs
Crown Of Love
Intervention
Month Of May
We Used To Wait
Power Out / Rebellion
Tunnels

Encore:
Keep The Car Running
Sprawl II
Wake Up

I have probably cocked up the order pretty bad, but I don't think I missed any songs. They definitely opened with Ready To Start, closed the first set with Tunnels, and closed the whole show with Wake Up. And hey, look who was right in front of us checking out Owen Pallett's act!

39956_423474104724_828204724_4628524_4737108_n.jpg


(OK, shitty picture. But it's Win.)
 
This album is seriously great. The most immediate songs for me would probably be as follows: The Suburbs, Ready To Start, Half Light II, Suburban War, Deep Blue, We Used to Wait and Sprawl II.
 
I really don't get all the "grower" comments posted earlier.

This album is hitting me and it's hitting me on the first listen. Sounds awesome so far. "City w/ No Children" is AWEsome.

My initial impression is that this record puts out a much more positive and upbeat vibe than their past stuff. I really haven't read the lyrics, but that's what I'm feeling so far musically.
 
Futureman said:
I really don't get all the "grower" comments posted earlier.

This album is hitting me and it's hitting me on the first listen. Sounds awesome so far. "City w/ No Children" is AWEsome.

My initial impression is that this record puts out a much more positive and upbeat vibe than their past stuff. I really haven't read the lyrics, but that's what I'm feeling so far musically.

I gotta agree. and I'm the type that usually has to let albums grow on me, this one seems to hit right away,
 
rhino4evr said:
Just thought I'd re-affirm my stance on this album.

Best Arcade Fire album
Best Album of the Year
One of the Best Albums of all time

Hyperbole Overload!!!

hyperbole, indeed

good album, though
 
Joe Shlabotnik said:
Tonight @ MSG: Great show or greatest show?

They came on late and it was a little short, but otherwise, holy shit.

Not-entirely-accurate setlist:

Ready To Start
Laika
No Cars Go
Haiti
Half Light II
Rococo
The Suburbs
Crown Of Love
Intervention
Month Of May
We Used To Wait
Power Out / Rebellion
Tunnels

Encore:
Keep The Car Running
Sprawl II
Wake Up

I have probably cocked up the order pretty bad, but I don't think I missed any songs. They definitely opened with Ready To Start, closed the first set with Tunnels, and closed the whole show with Wake Up. And hey, look who was right in front of us checking out Owen Pallett's act!

39956_423474104724_828204724_4628524_4737108_n.jpg


(OK, shitty picture. But it's Win.)
Oh... My... Swollen penor... Man, I'm hoping they replicate that setlist for tonight...
 
Dynamite Ringo Matsuri said:
Oh... My... Swollen penor... Man, I'm hoping they replicate that setlist for tonight...

Since it's being broadcast tonight and directed by Terry Gilliam, last night was likely a dress rehearsal so I'd expect a very similar set, or better.

I was already exhausted by the end of "Haiti". That was three songs in a row that could easily have been show finales.

And I will never get tired of the transition from "Power Out" to "Rebellion", ever.
 
Joe Shlabotnik said:
Since it's being broadcast tonight and directed by Terry Gilliam, last night was likely a dress rehearsal so I'd expect a very similar set, or better.

I was already exhausted by the end of "Haiti". That was three songs in a row that could easily have been show finales.

And I will never get tired of the transition from "Power Out" to "Rebellion", ever.
Hell yeah, Rebellion... Love, love, love that song. I can not wait for that concert. Love Gilliam admitting that he has no idea what's going on either, dude's a real joker :lol
 
Futureman said:
I really don't get all the "grower" comments posted earlier.

This album is hitting me and it's hitting me on the first listen. Sounds awesome so far.

Glad someone else feels this way too. I mean, I can definitely see myself further appreciating the depth of the record over subsequent listens, but I was sold almost immediately into the first spin. For me, there aren't any conspicuously weak songs, so I'm glad they didn't try to edit this down any further (touches like the thematic album closer are killer). I was most worried about the subject matter of the album when I first read about it prior to release, as it seems like critiques of suburb culture have been done to death, but for some reason it worked for me here.

I think a lot of people have put Funeral on a pedestal over the years, and went into The Suburbs expecting something of a quality less than that (but probably better than Neon Bible). So far, I'm very impressed and I'm looking forward to see how everyone continues to feel about it after all the release buzz and expectations die down.
 
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