The Montreal, Quebec, Canada based band Arcade Fire is set to release their third full length album called The Suburbs. Arcade Fire was one of those bands that came out of Montreal during the middle of the 00s but unlike most of their geographical contemporaries, Arcade Fire managed to tap into a wider fan base. It’s hard to call them an “indie” band any more since they are signed to a record and are known here and abroad. Their sound can only be classified in vulgar generalization like baroque pop, new wave (or my personal favorite alterative rock… what sort of rock music does fall under the alterative category in one way or another?). Arcade Fire style is quite eclectic and in The Suburbs seems to be growing ever more so.
The first two albums of Arcade Fire, Funeral (2004) and Neon Bible (2007) were both met with critical praise and were adored by fans, spawning a whole movement of Deadhead like followers. Though the two albums have very different tones they do have one thing in common which is they are expressed with a level of intensity and emotional energy that other bands only hope to achieve. In fact the energy require to pull off a live performance of the band’s firs two album may have come into play when penning their new album The Suburbs.
The Suburbs has a much more mature tone than the previous two albums, taking on some characteristics more akin to Bruce Springsteen at some points (Modern Man) while at others experiments with synth rhythm backed numbers (Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)) that boarder on nostalgic which cause piercing brightly coloured flashes of The Human League music videos.
The most distinctive aspect of The Suburbs in contrast with Funeral and Neon Bible is the lyrical perspective, it seems to have shifted away from a more youthful ideology to more practical concerns, the road, the growing generational divide, seeing friends begin to take on “adult” role and trying to look the part. The underlined idea that seems to permeate The Suburbs are the worries that come with the post university/pre suburban life realization that you’re going to become just another suite that will live and die splitting time between the city and the suburbs. This idea is driven home with the track Suburban War. Top tracks on The Suburbs are, Ready To Start, Modern Man, Rococo, Suburban War and Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains).
Track List For The Suburbs Due Out August 2nd 2010.
1. The Suburbs
2. Ready to Start
3. Modern Man
4. Rococo
5. Empty Room
6. City with No Children
7. Half Light I
8. Half Light II (No Celebration)
9. Suburban War
10. Month of May
11. Wasted Hours
12. Deep Blue
13. We Used to Wait
14. Sprawl I (Flatland)
15. Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)
16. The Suburbs (Continued)
There is pleasure to be found in the ambient hum generally found in American Shoegazer, not so drab as to bring on depression and not too up beat either. If anything this style of music should elicit a certain level of excitement. The San Francisco based band Film School is one of these bands, with a style which relies very heavily on synth effects and the ability to create an overwhelming sense that movement is inevitable. With their fourth offering of the album Fission, Film School has made a finely tunes piece that has elements reminiscent of Jesus and Mary Chain and The Smiths, but any initial impression that you might get from this album will be painted with nostalgia. Don’t let this matured 60s garage band sound of theirs allow you to think the band is without its own merit, it is one thing to take inspiration from musicians that have come before you and it’s another to make something not new but renewed out of it. And that is what Film School has done with Fission. 
The Chicago based shoegazer band Dreamend has released its fantastically titled album So I Ate Myself, Bite By Bite. In it, Dreamend takes the listener on a banjo laden low-fi joyride that ranges from folksy numbers to more standard alternative rock tracks. So I Ate Myself, Bite By Bite maintains a steady level of energy throughout the album with a tone that is slightly dark while keeping things from falling into an EMO pit of despair. Unlike most other folk inspired albums Dreamend’s new one incorporates a healthy amount
In their sixth studio album The Walkmen have risen to the occasion and produced a very impressive album with Lisbon. Lisbon is a slow paced atmosphere piece which creates a tone and texture that incites a sense of reflective calm.
