Merge Records

Arcade Fire

Arcade Fire
The novelist Thomas Wolfe coined the famous adage "you can't go home again." The members of Arcade Fire know this, because they tried. But when memories of youth stem from suburbs constructed for convenience, not permanence, those childhood memories become that much harder to trace.

Montreal's Arcade Fire explored the theme of neighborhoods on their 2004 breakthrough album Funeral (chosen by Rolling Stone as the #1 album of the '00s). In 2009, during a year off after a world tour for 2007's Neon Bible, frontman Win Butler received an email from an old friend he grew up with in the suburbs of Houston, Texas. "He sent us a picture of him with his daughter on his shoulders at the mall around the corner from where we lived," says Win, "and the combination of seeing this familiar place and seeing my friend with his child brought back a lot of feeling from that time. I found myself trying to remember the town that we grew up in and trying to retrace as much as I could remember."

At the same time, other band members of a similarly suburban origin across Canada had revisited their childhood environs and, in some cases, found there was not much left: buildings were boarded up, if they still existed at all; new roads and rivers had magically appeared, altering the landscape that now only existed in faded photographs. When they reconvened, the first song they wrote was The Suburbs' title track.

"We started working on the song, and once that started to sound like music, it felt like we were making an album," says Win. As the songs of The Suburbs started to take shape, a cohesive group of songs emerged, drawing on themes of loss and renewal, of drawing inspiration from scarcity, of generations past and future, of responsibility and maturity, of hoping that something pure can last.

These aren't unusual themes for the band - some of these songs would fit in easily on their debut 2003 EP, Us Kids Know. But if Funeral was driven by youthful exuberance and Neon Bible absorbed the weight of the world, The Suburbs, like its namesake, revels in open space, reflections on long drives, and contemplating possibilities. There is more breadth and beauty than on any previous Arcade Fire recording, featuring sparse pop ("Modern Man"), icy new wave epics ("No Celebration"), anthemic punk ("Month of May"), and lush balladry ("Suburban War"). Yet, they still sound hungry on hard-driving tracks like "Empty Room" and "Ready to Start," and with lyrics decrying wasted time, arms folded tight, and cities with no children.

The seven-piece band still believes that it takes a village to perform a song, but there is plenty of room to breathe on any given track; tiny details are doled out bit by bit. That attention to detail, that refusal to accept easy answers, embodies much of what the Arcade Fire does. This fiercely independent band has faced pressure from every corner of the music industry but carved out something beyond the grasps of the major-label system with great success, a combination of Internet word-of-mouth and old-fashioned live show impressions.

"We were lucky to be left to our own devices," says Win. "That afforded us a lot of control over our own destiny, which a lot of bands that are my heroes either never got or only got late in their careers. We've felt fortunate because - what else do you want? We're making records the way we want, and it's a great position to be in."

~Michael Barclay, July 2010

www.arcadefire.com
08/30/10
Today, Arcade Fire launched “The Wilderness Downtown,” an interactive film featuring “We Used to Wait” from their new album, The Suburbs.

Taking its name from a lyric from the aforementioned song–“so when the lights cut out, I was lost, standing in the wilderness downtown”–“The Wilderness Downtown” exemplifies the Google “Chrome Experience” and HTML5 technology, cueing the opening of multiple browser windows, visually incorporating viewers’ childhood addresses (if they are available via Google Street View), allowing the viewers to write and share messages to their younger selves and more.

“The Wilderness Downtown,” an interactive film by Chris Milk featuring “We Used To Wait” from Arcade Fire’s new album The Suburbs can be experienced now at http://thewildernessdowntown.com/. Order The Suburbs on CD, dbl-LP, and digital download now in the Merge store.

Back in the physical world, Arcade Fire’s October 7 and 8 shows at Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium have sold out completely, with all of the approximately 12,000 tickets going  within hours of on sale. Popular demand has also necessitated the adding of a second show at the Greek Theater in Berkeley CA, where the band will now perform October 2 and 3.

ARCADE FIRE ON TOUR FALL 2010:
9/22  St. Paul, MN   Roy Wilkins Arena
9/23  Winnipeg, MB   MTS Centre
9/25  Saskatoon, SK   Credit Union Centre
9/26  Calgary, AB   Stampede Corral * SOLD OUT
9/28  Vancouver, BC   Pacific Coliseum  * SOLD OUT
9/29  Seattle, WA   Key Arena
9/30  Portland, OR   Memorial Coliseum
10/2  Berkeley, CA   Greek Theatre * SOLD OUT
10/3  Berkeley, CA   Greek Theatre
10/5  Big Sur, CA   Henry Miller Library * SOLD OUT
10/7  Los Angeles, CA   Shrine Auditorium   * SOLD OUT
10/8 Los Angeles, CA   Shrine Auditorium   * SOLD OUT
10/10  Mexico City (MX)   Palacio de los Deportes
10/12  Monterrey (MX)   Banamex Theater

08/13/10
In the wake of The Suburbs’ #1 chart debut, Arcade Fire has confirmed another leg of dates stretching from Minnesota to Mexico.

The next installation of North American dates will begin September 22 at the Roy Wilkins Arena in St. Paul MN, swinging through western Canada, the pacific northwestern U.S., and California before concluding October 12 at Monterrey, Mexico’s Banamex Theater.

The September-October shows will follow a current run of dates including a recent two-night stand at New York’s Madison Square Garden, a headline set at Lollapalooza and an upcoming August 14 headline at Toronto’s Olympic Island. Following that and prior to the band’s return to North America, Arcade Fire will make a select number of UK and European appearances, including headline stands at the Reading and Leeds festivals in the UK.

Arcade Fire on tour:
8/14 Toronto, ON – Olympic Island
8/27 Leeds, UK – Leeds Festival
8/28 Reading, UK – Reading Festival
8/29 Saint Cloud, France – Rock En Seine
9/2 Bologna, Italy – I-Day Festival
9/22   St. Paul, MN   Roy Wilkins Arena
9/23   Winnipeg, MB   MTS Centre
9/25   Saskatoon, SK   Credit Union Centre
9/26   Calgary, AB   Stampede Corral
9/28   Vancouver, BC   Pacific Coliseum
9/29   Seattle, WA   Key Arena
9/30   Portland, OR   Memorial Coliseum
10/2   Berkeley, CA   Greek Theatre
10/5   Big Sur, CA   Henry Miller Library
10/7   Los Angeles, CA   Shrine Auditorium
10/8  Los Angeles, CA   Shrine Auditorium
10/10   Mexico City (MX)   Palacio de los Deportes
10/12   Monterrey (MX)   Banamex Theater

08/12/10
Arcade Fire will appear on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart tonight. They’ll perform “Ready to Start” from their new album The Suburbs which is currently the # 1 record in the country!

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart airs on Comedy Central at 11 PM EDT / 10 PM CST. Check your local listings for channel information and set your DVRs.

The Suburbs is available on CD, dbl-LP and digital download (with special digital artwork) in the Merge store. And you should also check out this one-day special happening through twitter @earlybird!

08/02/10
Beginning tonight, some of our favorite independent record stores are celebrating the release of Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs with midnight sales, listening parties & special giveaways. Visit the stores listed below to learn more about their individual plans to celebrate the release of The Suburbs & how you can win special prizes from Arcade Fire and Merge Records.

Check out the list below to find the participating store closest to you:
Amoeba – LA & SF, CA
Bull Moose – Maine
Cactus Music – Houston, TX
Criminal Records – Atlanta, GA
Dearborn Music – Dearborn, MI
Disc Exchange – Knoxville, TN
Ear X-Tacy – Louisville, KY
Earshot – Greenville, SC
Easy Street – Seattle, WA
The Electric Fetus – Minneapolis, MN
Fingerprints – Long Beach CA
Galaxy – Hamilton, OH
Good Records – Dallas, TX
Graywhale – Salt Lake City, Utah
Grimey’s – Nashville TN
Love Garden – Lawrence, KS
Magnolia Thunderpussy – Columbus, OH
Main Street Music – Manayunk, PA
Monster – Charleston, SC
Music Millennium – Portland, OR
Music Saves – Cleveland, OH
Newbury Comics – Boston, MA
Other Music – New York, NY
Park Ave – Orlando, GA
The Record Exchange – Boise, ID
Repo – Philadelphia, PA
Rhino/Mad Platter – Claremont CA
Schoolkids – Raleigh, NC
Sonic Boom – Seattle, WA
Sound Fix – Brooklyn, NY
Sound Garden – Baltimore MD
Strictly Discs – Madison, WI
Twist & Shout – Denver, CO
Vintage Vinyl – St. Louis
Waterloo – Austin TX
Zia Records – Arizona & Las Vegas

09.02.2010 Bologna, Italy Arena Parco Nord
09.10.2010 Mexico City, Mexico Palacio de los Deportes
09.22.2010 St. Paul, MN Roy Wilkins Auditorium
09.23.2010 Winnipeg, MB MTS Centre
09.25.2010 Saskatoon, Credit Union Centre
09.26.2010 Calgary, AB Stampede Corral
09.28.2010 Vancouver, BC Pacific Coliseum
09.29.2010 Seattle, WA Seattle Center - Key Arena
09.30.2010 Portland, OR Portland Memorial Coliseum
10.02.2010 Berkeley, CA Greek Theatre Berkeley
10.03.2010 Berkeley, CA Greek Theatre Berkeley
10.05.2010 Big Sur, CA Henry Miller Library
10.07.2010 Los Angeles, CA Shrine Auditorium
10.08.2010 Los Angeles, CA Shrine Auditorium
10.12.2010 Monterrey, Mexico Banamex Theater
11.18.2010 Lisbon, Portugal Atlantica Pavilion
11.20.2010 Madrid, Spain Palacio de Deportes
11.21.2010 Barcelona, Spain Palau Sant Jordi
11.24.2010 Marseille, France Le Dome
11.26.2010 Lyon, France Halle Tony Garnier
11.28.2010 Munich, Germany Zenith
11.29.2010 Dusseldorf, Germany Philipshalle
12.01.2010 London, United Kingdom 02 Arena
12.08.2010 Birmingham, United Kingdom Birmingham LG Arena
12.09.2010 Cardiff, United Kingdom Cardiff International Arena
12.11.2010 Manchester, United Kingdom Manchester Central
12.12.2010 Glasgow, United Kingdom SECC
Arcade Fire [cd/ep] [self released; reissued July 12, 2005 by Merge]

"Neighborhood" (the Arcade Fire) b/w "My Buddy" (the Alvino Rey Orchestra) [7"] June 20, 2004 [Merge]

Funeral [cd/lp] October 5, 2004 [Merge]

"Cold Wind" b/w "Brazil" [7"] - August 9, 2005 [Merge]

Neon Bible March 6, 2007 [Merge]

The Suburbs August 3, 2010 [Merge]

Rebellion (Lies)


from Funeral
DOWNLOAD 

Neighborhood #2 (Laika) (video)


Quick Time moviefrom Funeral
STREAM

Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) (live video)


Live at Local 506 - Mergefest, July 28, 2004from Funeral
STREAM

Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) (video)


Windows Media videofrom Funeral
STREAM

Rebellion (Lies) (video)


Quick Time videofrom Funeral
STREAM

Rebellion (Lies) (video)


Windows Media videofrom Funeral
STREAM

Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) (video)


Quick Time videofrom Funeral
STREAM

Rebellion (Lies) (video)


Quick Time moviefrom Funeral
STREAM

Neighborhood #2 (Laika) (video)


Windows Media videofrom Funeral
STREAM

Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) (video)


Quick Time videofrom Funeral
STREAM

Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) (video)


Windows Media videofrom Funeral
STREAM

Keep The Car Running


from Neon Bible
DOWNLOAD 
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On Tour

Arcade Fire [+]

September
02 Bologna Arena Parco Nord
10 Mexico City Palacio de los Deportes
22 St. Paul, MN Roy Wilkins Auditorium
23 Winnipeg, MB MTS Centre
25 Saskatoon Credit Union Centre
[see all]

Lou Barlow [+]

September
02 Cambridge, MA Middle East
03 Philadelphia, PA Johnny Brenda's
04 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell's

Richard Buckner [+]

September
07 Charlottesville, VA The Southern
08 Asheville, NC The Grey Eagle
09 Columbia, SC Columbia Museum of Art
10 Raleigh, NC Hopscotch Music Festival
11 Charlotte, NC Evening Muse
[see all]

Caribou [+]

September
14 Guelph, ON Ebar
15 Ottawa, ON Babylon
16 Montreal, QC Le National
17 Toronto, ON The Drake
17 Toronto, ON Phoenix Theatre
[see all]

The Clean [+]

September
28 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
29 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell's
30 Chicago, IL Bottom Lounge
October
02 Lawrence, KS Granada Theater - SCION Festival
04 San Francisco, CA The Independent
[see all]

The Clientele [+]

September
06 Seattle, WA Bumbershoot
07 Portland, OR Doug Fir
09 Oakland, CA New Parish
10 San Francisco, CA Independent
11 Los Angeles, CA Echoplex
[see all]

Fucked Up [+]

September
05 Monticello, NY All Tomorrow's Parties
09 Washington, DC Rock n' Roll Hotel
10 Raleigh, NC Hopscotch Festival
11 Atlanta, GA The Drunken Unicorn
12 Charlotte, NC Amos Southend
[see all]

Lambchop [+]

November
11 Berlin Admiralspalast - 20 Years of City Slang
22 Katowice Ars Cameralis Festival
24 Zagreb Kino SC
25 Munich Amerikahaus
27 Copenhagen DR Concert House
[see all]

Let's Wrestle [+]

September
04 Los Angeles, CA FYF Fest
05 Santa Barbara, CA Club Mercy Presents
06 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
08 Seattle, WA Neumo's
09 Vancouver, BC Rickshaw Theatre
[see all]

The Love Language [+]

September
03 Atlanta, GA The Earl
03 Atlanta, GA Criminal Records
04 Charlotte, NC Visulite Theatre
09 Winston Salem, NC Earshot Records
09 Winston Salem, NC Krankies
[see all]

Conor Oberst [+]

September
28 Pioneertown, CA Pappy & Harriets
30 Santa Barbara, CA Soho in SB
October
01 Big Sur, CA Fernwood
02 San Francisco, CA Hardly Strictly Bluegrass

Polvo [+]

November
05 Baton Rouge, LA Spanish Moon
06 Houston, TX Fitzgerald's Downstairs
07 Austin, TX Fun Fun Fun Fest at Waterloo

Radar Bros. [+]

September
24 Montreal, QC Le National
25 Boston, MA Royale
27 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
28 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
October
01 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero Theatre
[see all]

The Rosebuds [+]

September
10 Raleigh, NC Hopscotch Festival

Shark Quest [+]

October
09 Carrboro, NC Carrboro ArtsCenter

She & Him [+]

September
05 Los Angeles, CA Paramount Studios
October
17 San Francisco, CA Treasure Island
22 Portland, OR Schnitzer Hall
23 Seattle, WA City Arts Music Festival - 5th Avenue Theatre
24 Vancouver, BC The Orpheum

Spoon [+]

September
11 Harrisburg, PA The Forum
12 Clark, NJ Oak Ridge Park
13 Brooklyn, NY Music Hall of Williamsburg
30 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Palladium
October
01 San Diego, CA Soma
[see all]

Superchunk [+]

September
16 Durham, NC The Nasher Museum of Art
17 Washington 9:30 Club
18 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
19 Brooklyn, NY Music Hall of Williamsburg
21 Boston, MA Royale
[see all]

Teenage Fanclub [+]

September
22 Toronto, ON The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern
23 Toronto, ON The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern
24 Montreal, QC Le National
25 Boston, MA Royale
27 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
[see all]

Telekinesis [+]

September
02 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall
03 Detroit, MI Magic Stick
04 Toronto, ON El Mocambo
06 Montreal, QC Casa Del Popolo
07 Cambridge, MA TT The Bear's
[see all]

Versus [+]

September
21 Boston, MA Royale
22 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero Theatre

Wye Oak [+]

September
02 Cambridge, MA Middle East
03 Philadelphia, PA Johnny Brenda's
04 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell's
October
04 Lawrence, KS Bottleneck
05 Columbia, MO The Blue Note
[see all]
see all tour dates

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