The band’s trademark fashion consists in wearing rather formal attire during live events and a use of orchestral instruments. When asked about the rumour that the band's name refers to a fire in an arcade, Win Butler replied: "It's not a rumour, it's based on a story that someone told me. It's not an actual event, but one that I took to be real. I would say that it's probably something that the kid made up, but at the time I believed him." Win Butler and his brother Will grew up in Texas.
Band formation
Arcade Fire formed around the husband and wife duo of Win Butler and Régine Chassagne. Joining together as recently as mid-2003, the current line-up solidified in late 2003/early 2004, when their first full-length album Funeral was recorded. Before this an eponymous EP (often referred to by fans as the Us Kids Know EP) had been sold at early shows. The EP was subsequently remastered and given a full release once the band started becoming more prominent. Arcade Fire are known for their enthralling live performances, as well as its use of a large number of musical instruments. In addition to mainstays guitar, drums, and bass guitar, members play piano, violin, viola, cello, double bass, xylophone, keyboard, French horn, accordion, and harp. With several able musicians, the band take most of their instrumental diversity on tour and members switch instrumental duties throughout their shows. The number of instruments, along with a wide set of musical influences has provided a substantial number of resources on which to draw from during the recording process. The promise showed by the band in its live shows allowed it to land a record contract with Chapel Hill-based independent record label Merge Records.
Funeral
Without a major label backing, the success of the band and the album Funeral has been acclaimed as an Internet phenomenon. After a 9.7 rating from Pitchfork, Merge Records sold out their inventory of Funeral and it became the label's first album in the Billboard 200 chart. An early tip from David Bowie was also influential. The band booked small clubs for their 2004 tour but growing interest forced many venue changes, far beyond the band's expectations, and continued internationally into mid-2005. The MTV2 2005 Review hosted by Zane Lowe named Funeral Album of the Year, and NME named Funeral Number 2 in their list of 2005's best albums and "Rebellion (Lies)" the best track. By November 2005, Funeral had gone gold in both Canada and the UK and sold in excess of half a million copies worldwide, a phenomenal number for an independent release with minimal television or radio exposure. It has also surpassed Neutral Milk Hotel's In The Aeroplane Over The Sea as the biggest selling Merge Records album to date.
Arcade Fire were featured on the April 4, 2005 cover of Time Magazine's Canadian edition, and hailed as a band who "helped put Canadian music on the world map". On April 2, 2006, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, they received the Juno Award for Songwriters Of The Year for three songs from Funeral: "Wake Up", "Rebellion (Lies)" and "Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)". Arcade Fire then planned to begin recording a follow up to Funeral in the winter of 2005-2006, having bought an old church forty minutes from central Montreal which they converted into a studio.
Neon Bible
In mid-December 2006 www.neonbible.com went live containing nothing more than a phone number, 1-866-NEONBIBLE where people can listen to a new track called Intervention. Built in the style of customer support lines, the number has other features including a contest and a chance to talk to a live person at a specific time each week.
Then in January 2007, they finally announced that the new album Neon Bible would be released March 5th in UK, March 6th in US. The announcement was made with a video in the album's website, with guitarist Richard Reed Parry using a gramophone and a paper mask of Parry's own face, and sitting on Win Butler´s chair. After the announcement of the album´s release, the website was updated with a streaming version of "Black Mirror", new art and a few phone messages sounding like the band´s members.
The Suburbs
The band released their third album "The Suburbs" on August 2, 2010 in the UK and August 3, 2010 in the United States. It debuted at #1 in both countries. On February 13, 2011, the album won Album of the Year at the 53rd Grammy Awards.
Arcade Fire recorded a song for The Hunger Games soundtrack (The Hunger Games: Songs from District 12 and Beyond), called "Abraham's Daughter". The song is featured in the movie's end credits. The soundtrack was released on March 20, 2012, debuting at number one on the Billboard 200. It sold more than 175,000 copies in its first week according to Nielsen SoundScan. It's the first theatrical film soundtrack to top the chart since Michael Jackson's "This Is It" debuted at No. 1 on the list. It is also only the 16th soundtrack to debut at No. 1 in the history of the Billboard 200 chart (those soundtracks include film, television, and straight-to-video efforts).
Reflektor
Arcade Fire and Mercury Records confirmed that they would release a fourth album in late 2013. In December 2012, the band's manager Scott Rodger confirmed that Arcade Fire was in the studio working with James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem. The official Arcade Fire pre-order website sets the release date on October 28, 2013. The band announced on January 18, 2013 that they were selling the church they had been using as a studio due to a collapsed roof. Throughout 2013, the band worked on the album in several different recording studios - including Murphy's DFA Records studio in New York. On June 22, 2013, Rolling Stone reported that new material from the album would be released on September 9, 2013.
Everything Now
Arcade Fire's first announced its fifth record, "Everything Now," on May 31, 2017 when it released the record's title track and lead single. The album's release came July 27, 2017. In the weeks leading up to the album's release, the band released three additional lead singles, "Creature Comfort," "Signs of Life," and "Electric Blue." Upon the week of its release, "Everything Now" reached #1 on the Billboard 200 chart, becoming the band's third-straight and third overall #1 record.
WE
On October 21, 2020, Butler was interviewed for the Broken Record podcast, where he commented about Arcade Fire's sixth album. The band had been writing for a year before the COVID-19 lockdown. In March 2022, fans received postcards marked with the band's logo; the postcards included the note "We missed you", musical notations, as well as an image of an eye with the word "Unsubscribe" written below. Those same images began to appear in signage around London as well as on the band's social media pages, indicating the earliest signs of a new album. On March 14, the band announced a new song titled "The Lightning I, II" would be released on March 17.
On March 17, 2022, Arcade Fire announced that the album would be titled WE and be released on May 6, 2022. Later that week, Will Butler announced he had amicably left the band in 2021 shortly after the completion of WE.
Following the release of WE on May 6, 2022, Arcade Fire announced the group’s first world tour since 2018, starting in August 2022. They again appeared on Saturday Night Live on May 7, 2022, playing "Unconditional I (Lookout Kid)", "The Lightning I, II", and "End of The Empire II" over the closing credits.
Afterlife
Arcade Fire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
After all the breath and the dirt
And the fires that burn
And after all this time
And after all the ambulances go
And after all the hangers-on are done
Hanging on to the dead lights
Of the afterglow
I've gotta know
Can we work it out?
We scream and shout 'till we work it out
Can we just work it out?
Scream and shout 'till we work it out?
'Till we work it out, 'till we work it out
'Till we work it out, 'till we work it out
Afterlife, I think I saw what happens next
It was just a glimpse of you
Like looking through a window
Or a shallow sea
Could you see me?
And after all this time
It's like nothing else we used to know
After all the hangers-on are done
Hanging on to the dead lights
Of the afterglow
I've gotta know
Can we work it out?
Let's scream and shout 'till we work it out
Can we just work it out?
If you scream and shout 'till we work it out?
But you say
Oh, when love is gone
Where does it go?
And you say
Oh, when love is gone
Where does it go?
And where do we go?
Where do we go?
Where do we go?
Where do we go?
Where do we go?
Where do we go?
Where do we go?
Where do we go?
And after this
Can it last another night?
After all the bad advice
Had nothing at all to do with life
I've gotta know
Can we work it out?
Scream and shout 'till we work it out?
Can we just work it out?
Scream and shout 'till we work it out?
But you say
Oh, when love is gone
Where does it go?
And you say
Oh, when love is gone
Where does it go?
Oh, we know it's gone
Where did it go?
Oh, we know it's gone
Where did it go?
And where do we go?
Is this the afterlife?
It's just an afterlife, with you
It's just an afterlife
It's just an afterlife, with you
It's just an afterlife
The lyrics of "Afterlife" by Arcade Fire touch on the concept of the afterlife and how we search for meaning and purpose in our lives, even as we acknowledge the inevitability of death. The first verse alludes to the finality of death and the various physical and emotional experiences that precede it. However, the chorus is a plea to work through our differences and find a way to connect with one another, despite the fear and uncertainty that comes with mortality.
The second verse explores the idea that death can provide a moment of clarity, a brief insight into what happens next, but ultimately we are left with more questions than answers. The repetition of the phrase "where do we go?" emphasizes the struggle we all face when contemplating the unknown. The final verse references the pitfalls of taking advice from others and looking for answers outside ourselves. The song ends by repeating the refrain "it's just an afterlife, with you," suggesting that finding connection with others is what gives our lives meaning and purpose.
Overall, "Afterlife" is a beautifully crafted song that reflects on the big questions of life and death, and the importance of human connection in the face of uncertainty.
Line by Line Meaning
Afterlife, oh my God, what an awful word
The word 'afterlife' is a hard truth to accept and a difficult concept to understand.
After all the breath and the dirt
Even after life's most basic elements, like breath and dirt, the afterlife remains a mystery.
And the fires that burn
Life's passions and desires, represented by fires, do not extend to the afterlife.
And after all this time
Even with the passage of time, the afterlife remains just as unknown.
And after all the ambulances go
When death comes, the afterlife awaits no matter what happens after death.
And after all the hangers-on are done
Even after people finish mourning, the concept of the afterlife remains.
Hanging on to the dead lights
Clutching on to the idea of what was once vibrant and alive, but is now just a memory.
Of the afterglow
A fading reminder of what once was in the past – like stars after a sunset.
I've gotta know
I need to be sure, I need to understand.
Can we work it out?
Is there a way to reconcile this difficult truth?
We scream and shout 'till we work it out
Possibly through intense emotion and communication, we may find a way to make sense of the afterlife.
Afterlife, I think I saw what happens next
The afterlife came into focus briefly, but then disappeared like a quick glance through a window.
It was just a glimpse of you
The afterlife was so fleeting as to be hardly recognizable.
Like looking through a window
The afterlife is like peering into another world that we can only see briefly and from afar.
Or a shallow sea
The afterlife is like a vast and unexplored expanse, just out of reach.
Could you see me?
Am I visible to the afterlife, or am I invisible to its inhabitants?
It's like nothing else we used to know
The afterlife is unlike anything we have experienced in life, and we cannot comprehend it fully.
But you say
However, (contrary to my beliefs) you contend…
Oh, when love is gone
Once love is lost or dies…
Where does it go?
Where does that love end up, where does it exist, where does it disappear to?
And where do we go?
If we do not go to the same place love goes, where will we ultimately reside?
Can it last another night?
Can life's fleeting pleasures be sustained?
After all the bad advice
In the grand scheme of the afterlife, life's poor guidance is irrelevant.
Had nothing at all to do with life
Life's ill-conceived ideas are not related to whatever happe3ns during afterlife.
Is this the afterlife?
Is this empty, lacklustre existence what comes after life?
It's just an afterlife
The realisation that afterlife might consist of nothing more than aimless wandering, with no respite.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Jeremy Gara, Regine Chassagne, Richard R Parry, Tim Kingsbury, William Butler, Win Butler
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@spencerbunting4974
The first time I heard this song I was living in a foreign country and walking home from work in the rain.
This song hit me like a brick wall. I started crying from the sheer joy of being alive in a time when I could be anywhere in the world, listening to something as beautiful as this.
Caught up in the song's embrace and awestruck by my surroundings, I lost my footing and fell on the wet pavement. From there, I started laughing to myself as I realized how perfect that moment was and how many more moments of pure, unyielding joy I have to look forward to.
That was 5 minutes ago.
Thank you for that memory and for this gift, Arcade Fire.
@jelenanovosel
wow
@ryurudaraoni6950
I wanna marry a man like you sound in this comment
@jessataide8788
Spencer Bunting i know the feeling and its amazing. Your comment brought me to years ago
@NGNGmusic
be careful-watch your steps
@spawn9009
I was high on cocaine making a smoothie
@Staravora
The energy of this song and combined with the video is unreal. Such a masterpiece
@jubilee.x6440
I’ve been numb for months. I feel like I lost a big part of my soul & ive had a hard time coming back. I’ve isolated myself in my room. I’ve pushed everyone away. I heard this song for the first time today and actually felt something. Cheesy as it sounds. I can’t help but feel a bit hopeful.
@cyberspacehomie5555
It's that good of a song. If you don't feel something you have a problem 😔✊
@fockingreat1125
I hope you're doing better, however things are