Arcade Fire, MEN Arena, Manchester, 27-10-07
27/10/07 19:15 Filed in: Gigs
When my dad heard they were playing Manchester on my birthday he decided we should see them together, as my birthday present. I jumped at the chance. Not even a hideous thrashing at the football on Saturday afternoon could sour my mood - I was home, with friends and family, and about to see a band who have become one of my favourite acts to see over the last few years. I was beamingly happy all day and evening, this being my 3rd AF gig this year after Brixton Academy and Glastonbury.
I was excited and nervous, I hoped beyond hope that it would be a great show and my dad would love them as much as he does on record. Arriving at the venue, we were quite amazed to see the sheer variety of the attendees - from your average couple who wouldn't look out of place at a Simply Red gig to emo teenagers to horn-rimmed glasses wearing students to lads with a permanent pint in their hand. The place was packed. A moment later the lights went out, a brief evangelical-style clip played on the small circular screens and ten shadowed figures walked onstage to huge cheers. It was the first time I had been seated at a concert for quite some time and I won't lie - it was weird. My dad, he says at his age, 57, isn't up for standing at rock concerts anymore after 40-odd years of gig going. Initially I felt somewhat out of it, as I looked longingly at the writhing masses of people packing the centre floor. Starting with four tracks from Neon Bible I was gratified to hear the great reception each song received. When I'd seen them at Brixton, the album had been out for only 2 weeks and the Funeral songs were greeted like old friends, 'hits' even. This time every single person seemed to know the newer songs. In lieu of being able to get up and jump around I found the percussive rhythms of the band irresistible. If you can't move your feet or tap your hands to a band like Arcade Fire you must be completely lacking in the ability to let music wash over you.
And that's what they do - they create a tidal wave of sound, building it up skillfully before pushing each instrument and voice to its limit before the waves crash around you, almost becoming white noise at its highest points. Songs from both albums mingled together with ease and their stagecraft has changed and improved immeasurably. As always, Regine was adorable - bounding around from drums to vocals to accordion, keyboards, always with a joyful step.
I'd read a difficult, somewhat negative interview with them in the Guardian that morning. Clearly struggling to handle the new demands placed on them, as a result of the surprising success of Neon Bible, outside of their natural domain - concerts - Win came across as aloof and uncooperative. They aren't playing the industry game that well and in some ways that's laudable. In others, not so much - who wants to come across in the press as difficult and arrogant? One interesting comment from the interview was that, after a summer of touring, they seemingly don't now consider themselves a band who excels at festivals. The mud stopped them from enjoying Glastonbury, which initially came across as a 'get over yourself' moment as I read it but then I realised that they are absolutely right about their festival performances. Not that they were bad at Glasto, not at all. But the special relationship they try and create between band and audience can seemingly only be formed between them and people who have paid to see them. As in, a festival crowd isn’t going to be of one mind, one reason for attending, and one desire to connect with this band on stage. On Saturday I saw the best of everyone - the band and the audience. They work hard and reach out to the crowd and the crowd push back. The joyful, communal experience I felt at the Astoria three years ago was present and amplified by the 15,000+ crowd in the venue.
Sitting a good half way back I had a unique chance to see the whole show, as a stage piece - the seamless swap of all imaginable kind of instruments in between songs, the power and energy of drums/bass/guitar augmented with their 2 man brass section, 2 violinists and so many stringed and percussive instruments I lost count. An hour into the show, a chatty Win said they were going to play a song never played before. "When I first heard this band they made me want to play music. I was ill for a year and then better for a while and now I'm ill again. This is Still Ill." I leapt out of my seat with joy as they raced through a charming, slightly ramshackle, cover of the Smiths song, from their '83 debut. The coolness of that moment, well, words fail me. It was an exhilarating show, over too quickly. We bounced out of the venue and were home 20 minutes later. Yes, the arena really is that close to home! Dad said he was overwhelmed by the band and their sound, by their songs. The morning after he said the more he'd thought about the show the better it was getting in his mind. Bear in mind my dad has seen everyone live from Miles Davis to the Doors to Zeppelin, Zappa, Santana, - artists who were backed by, or bands who contained, the most immense musicians. Arcade Fire have the potential to turn into one of the great live bands. Album number three can't come fast enough.
Black Mirror
Keep The Car Running
(Antichrist Television Blues)
No Cars Go
Haiti
I'm Sleeping In A Submarine
In The Backseat
Windowsill
Ocean Of Noise
Tunnels
The Well & The Lighthouse
Still Ill
Power Out
Rebellion
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Intervention
Wake Up