Funeral
by Arcade Fire

phenomenal masterpiece

Not a bad song at all, just ones that happen to be "weaker" than the rest.

A glance through a list of the albums in my collection, and those that I enjoy most, there has been a singular lack of quantity of material since Pink Floyd issued "The Wall" back in 1979. There has, of course, been much good music, during those forty-five odd years, and I have greatly enjoyed the odd album or two and have even been known to purchase a few.
There have also been many moments when I thought that I had discovered a great group or a truly magnificent album, but then later found it hard to remember the artist or release amongst the earlier, more memorable stuff. As one format has replaced another, I have often failed to replace a vinyl disc, or a cassette that ends up in a much cherished, but ultimately redundant, box in the attic.

In that context, it will be very hard to forget "Arcade Fire" or their album "Funeral". In particular, "Crown of Love" and "Haiti" are very special, and beautiful, songs. "Wake up" remains one of my favourite tracks, possibly of all time. The rest of the album, however, is also of such a high musical standard, that I can only offer it my own very personal top rating. You may not love it, you will almost certainly not hate it. I love it and recommend it to you.

"Funeral" is not, of course, at least for me, up there with "Abbey Road", "Abraxas", "Songs in the Key of Life", Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On", "Led Zepp 2" or "Dark Side of the Moon", for example, but I think it might squeeze into a list of my favourite 100 albums of all time, if not the Top 50. It is clearly my favourite album of the 21st Century, and one that I will buy as soon as I get round to purchasing music again.

A beautiful instrumental album that deals with difficult themes and topics in such a genius way. As most people can probably guess from the title, this record goes into the themes of death and grief but also explores love and life which makes for a challenging listen. When given some patience however, this record will reward you as its complex soundscape will seriously impress you when you dig deeper. The instrumentation on here is rich, detailed and full of layering which results in an experience that is always engaging no matter how many times you hear it. When you pick the release apart song by song as well you start to see just how many outstanding tracks are present on here. The ones that stand out to me are Rebellion (Lies), Wake Up, Tunnels and the phenomenal closer that is In The Backseat. Not only are these the best songs on this release but they are also some of the greatest songs that have ever been released in the history of music. Another great thing about this album is just how consistent they are with their quality and style. They clearly know their sound extremely well and spread this across the whole run time which makes for a true classic album like experience where we are treated to a journey from beginning to end rather than just a collection of songs. In result of this, we receive a cohesion on this project that you only find on a truly special record. Overall, this is a beautiful album that is one of the grandest sounding experiences you will ever find and it deserves all the praise it receives.

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La muerte se entrelaza con la infancia bailando un alegre vals de rock orquestal, mientras la nostalgia se apodera de las guitarras.

La forma en que Arcade Fire trata estos temas es exquisito, las canciones están compuestas a manera orquestal, poniendo énfasis en el apartado instrumental con algunos arreglos vocales.
“Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)”, “wake up” y “rebellion (lies)”, lo más destacado del album.

English review
Death is intertwined with childhood dancing a joyous orchestral rock waltz, while nostalgia takes over the guitars.
The way in which Arcade Fire deals with these issues is exquisite, the songs are composed as an orchestra, emphasizing the instrumental section with some vocal arrangements.
“Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)”, “Wake up” and “rebellion (lies)”, the highlights of the album.

A nice experience. Every track sounds great, giving the whole album a relaxing feeling.

Great album

Brilliant artful alternative music that isn't pretentious about it. It is elegant and understated and leaves a long lasting impression on you.

Pleasantly surprised with this one. Way, way better than I was expecting based on previous albums I'd heard from them. This has a great feel and flow right throughout. Best album from them in my opinion.