I often connect a particular record or song with a particular time in my life. Mostly because, if I like a new album, I tend to listen to it and little else until something else comes along that I like just as well.

So for me, Funeral, the Arcade Fire's full-length debut, an album about life and death but also the city of Montreal, is inextricably linked in my memory with the city of Amsterdam.

That might require some explanation. I was living in Holland for a year, from 2004 to 2005, and around January of 2005 I received a package from my folks back home which included some essentials, and some DVDs, a few episodes of my favourite shows, and a burnt CD simply marked "Funeral". Needless to say, I was immediately struck by two things: 1) This was a great record, and 2) The sound was quite unlike any rock I had heard before.

~~~

Amsterdam, compared to my current home, is a hub of musical activity. Almost any European tour worth mentioning features a stop in that city, and the bands I'm interested in nearly always played at one of two venues, each about a 30 minute walk from my home at the time.

It was my very good fortune to see the Arcade Fire live, twice, within the span of two months. If you enjoy the intensity, energy and ambition of the songs on Funeral, or their new record, Neon Bible, then you'll be blown away by what they do live. Besides the theatrics of constant instrument swapping, and creative percussion (rhythms pounded out on a motorcycle helmet worn by another band member feature prominently in the live version of Laika), the energy is amazing. Towelling off between songs like boxers between rounds, you can tell they poured their heart and soul into every song.

~~~

But enough about me.

As you might be able to infer from the title, the album centres around themes of death. During the composition and recording of Funeral, several members of the band lost a number of family members. For a band that resembles a family itself (frontman Win Butler is married to vocalist/keyboardist/accordionist Regine Chassagne, and his little brother Will Butler is also part of the band), this cannot help but influence the tone and content of songs. But this isn't a dark album exactly, not an emo outburst of angst and self-pity. Death just gives urgency to life, and this life bursts forth from nearly every song.

The first half of the album features the "Neighborhood" suite, sandwiched around Une Annee Sans Lumiere. The songs reference Montreal, and winter especially, to address larger themes. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels), the guitar-driven opener, dreams about tunnels through snow, parents' bedrooms, and other childhood imaginings. A pounding bass and piano melody contribute to the intensity of this number.

Neighborhood #2 (Laika) (yes, the dog that got sent to space) features so many unique Arcade Fire elements I can't possibly list them all. But its intensity equals that of "Tunnels". Featured is the quavering vocals of Butler, which at any time seem ready to crack; the almost Bjork-esque voice of Regine Chassagne; an accordion solo; and a prominent string section featuring violonists Sara Neufeld and Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy) who is responsible for most of the string arrangements on the record.

Une Annee Sans Lumiere ("A year without light") interrupts the quarter of "Neighborhood" tracks, but doesn't disrupt the theme. "Une Annee Sans Lumiere" and Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) reference, in their titles, the ice storm which knocked out power to the city of Montreal for several days in the late 1990s, but in other ways are quite different. The former almost seems like a requisite breather between the all-out explosions of the two preceding tracks and the floor-stomping "Power Out". In Power Out, Butler screams "Is it a dream, is it a lie? / I think I'll let you decide" with great believability.

Standout tracks on the second half of the album abound as well. Crown of Love is a song with two faces: the first half as near to a ballad as you'll get from this bunch, which then gives way to a disco-infused finish. Wake Up, a guitar-heavy anthem, is sung with enthusiasm from start to finish. Rebellion (Lies), which follows Haiti Chassagne's showpiece and a lament for her family's homeland, picks up where "Wake Up" left off, with the urgent shout "Sleeping in is giving in / No matter what the time is", a call to live life to the fullest if there ever was one. The sweet melody of In the Backseat, another Chassagne song, closes the record.

~~~

If you haven't already figured it out from my surplus of superlatives, I really like this record. When I listen, I still think of riding my bike through the cobblestoned streets and cloudy skies of Amsterdam, but I am also shocked into awareness to my current surroundings, wherever that is at the time.

Don't be turned off by this band's recent (relative) over-exposure -- it is fully deserved. It has so much to offer: besides its incredible energy, its uniqueness (layers of different sounds, masterful use of a string section, several vocal styles) in every song mustn't be overlooked.

I won't even qualify my recommendation. This is a great record, for anyone.

Tracklist

1. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
2. Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
3. Une Annee Sans Lumiere
4. Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
5. Neighborhood #5 (7 Kettles)
6. Crown of Love
7. Wake Up
8. Haiti
9. Rebellion (Lies)
10. In The Backseat

Related reviews
My review of Arcade Fire's Neon Bible
http://www.epinions.com/content_337646292612

Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Waking up