Arcade Fire, London Hackney Empire
Arcade Fire
July 7, 2010
Ladies and Gents, the Arcade Fire are back. Returning to London for a ‘secret’ show at the Hackney Empire, the anticipation is huge. The band is using this gig to road test songs from their upcoming LP, The Suburbs, and boy oh boy, it sounds like a fantastic record.
Kicking off with ‘Ready To Start’ and ‘Modern Man’ the new tracks retain the anthemic style of past efforts with a few subtleties thrown in, like the jaunty piano on title track ‘The Suburbs’. The fresh material seems to go down well with an enamored audience who, in all honesty, would lap up anything thrown at them. These guys know how to work a crowd.
Frontman Win Butler stands tall and channels confidence as his comrades run wildly around him, employing drum sticks to bash anything in sight. From pianos to chairs to fellow band members, everything on stage takes a beating.
‘We Used To Wait’ is the pick of the new songs, with thumping verses, a soaring chorus and lyrics that echo the crowd’s sentiments. “We used to wait for it/Now we’re screaming/Sing the chorus again”. It ends in Butler offering himself up to the seething mass of bodies before him. He is devoured graciously, mic stand and all.
With a capacity in the region of 2 000, the Empire is as about as intimate a show as these guys are likely to play. Their upcoming tour features consecutive nights at New York City’s famous Madison Square Garden, a venue with a capacity of 20 000 punters. Not to mention a return trip to the UK to headline Reading and Leeds Festivals in August.
Understandably, it’s when the band delves into their back catalogue that the place really goes crazy. From their debut album, Funeral, ‘Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)’ is even more immense live than it is on record with its grizzly guitar exploding through Butler’s vocals. Unrelenting distortion follows the track and leads straight into ‘Rebellion (Lies)’ to give the set its climax.
The evening is capped with a four track encore that includes the bands staple closer ‘Wake Up’. The amount of energy poured into this song has the pit heaving, the gallery shaking and the building’s foundations considering defeat. As the cameraman turns his lens to the crowd, images of ecstatic fans, throughout the Empire, are projected onto a large screen. You’d be hard pressed to find a happier crowd.
What stands out, however, is the limited amount of material played from the outfits sophomore album, Neon Bible. The decision seems justified given the hysteria that tracks from Funeral generate but it will be interesting to see what songs are being played in a few years time. The success of Funeral shackles Butler and co, who no doubt hope The Suburbs will break them free from the irony that a debut album about death and commiseration continues to define them. Tonight, though, is a celebration of past accomplishments and an upcoming album that may just change all of that.
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