Photo By: Ashley Fraser (National Post)
I could easily tell you to read my Tweets in order to get a recap of the Arcade Fire’s explosive set closing off Day 1’s festivities but in all honesty, that just wouldn’t suffice and that’s just not fair to you. No amount of excited tweets can truly summarize the powerful performance we witnessed on Saturday night.
On the eve of the release of their third full-length The Suburbs, the hometown heroes stormed through a set of old and new crowd favourites, bringing jaws to the ground and wide-eyed grins painted across the endless sea of fans gathered in front of the main stage. It is one thing to see The Arcade Fire in a regular enclosed venue but in a festival atmosphere, it’s an entirely different experience.
The sheer electricity that the band rallies up on powerhouse songs like “Neighbourhood #3 (Power Out)” and “No Cars Go” builds and builds onstage like a tower of energy while it simultaneously hits you like a ton of bricks. Win Butler’s determination is one thing you will never find him lacking. The band’s vigorous delivery highlights the very core of their music – they’re always putting 150% into every minute, hoping for the best while planning for the worse. The duality of fear and hope is in their eyes at all times, and the end result is a glorious, moving performance that will shake you up and leave you paralyzed and speechless with an amalgamation of overwhelming emotions. Am I being a tad dramatic? Sure. Is that the point? Of course.
New songs proved successful live, including anthems “Rococo” and “Ready To Start”, the former almost living up as this record’s “Wake Up”, which was the sing-along grand finale of the night. The frantic rocker “Month of May” played well alongside the band’s catalogue of bouncy, energetic hits whereas “The Suburbs” revealed a country-tinged turn for the band, a nice welcome that still evoked the Arcade Fire sound but on a more toned-down note.
Violinist Owen Pallett joined the band onstage to complete a strong trio of orchestral balance to songs like “Neighbourhood #1 (Tunnels)”. Regine Chassagne shined on “Haiti” with her childlike voice soaring above the sweet rhythms and optimism. Will Butler and Richard Reed Parry provided the fiery spirit of the band best with their frenetic pace, running back and forth onstage constantly switching instruments. There is so much happening in front of you that it’s hard to ever fix your sight on just one person and that’s what makes this band so amazing; the spectacle.
You come for a show and a show is what you get with the Arcade Fire. Oh, and a few dozen buckets of confetti and even a few unplanned fireworks. And as I rode the bus home the next morning to my suburban reality, The Suburbs was the only thing playing in my mind the entire time. If that memorable performance didn’t do its job on you, I don’t know what will.
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