You may find yourself wondering, “What do Spike Jonze, Greek mythology and Caribbean music all have in common?” According to Rolling Stone magazine, inspiration was derived from each of these in the making of Arcade Fire’s new and highly anticipated fourth album, Reflektor, released Oct. 29.
The Montreal-based band has worked their way up to indie royalty since their debut album Funeral was released in 2004, and they’ve since received many awards including the 2011 Grammy for Album of the Year, a rare feat for the usual underdogs of the indie genre.
Perhaps one of the most unique qualities about Arcade Fire’s past albums is that they took largely thematic approaches from religious falsity in Neon Bible to suburban mundaneness in The Suburbs. And while Reflektor carries on a theme itself, it’s hard to pin it down. Skepticism, maybe? Paranoia? Shiny things?
Inspiration for the album was drawn from their time spent in Haiti after performing there on their last tour, and it certainly shows in their deeply rhythmic soundscapes.
Greek Mythology was also transfused into the album with songs like “Awful Sound (Oh Eurydice)” and “It’s Never Over (Hey Orpheus).” They even released an 85-minute video that cued the entire double-album to visuals from the 1959 film Black Orpheus.
“Reflektor,” the opening track, fuses disco noir with deep, reflective lyrics (the unavoidable pun). Win Butler’s voice quavers under the opening lyrics, “Trapped in a prison, in a prism of light/Alone in the darkness, darkness of white” with sleek glam rock undertones. We’re also greeted with the voices of Regine Chassagne and David Bowie.
“We Exist” follows the same disco noir theme and seems to carry an afterglow from the groovy explosion of the first track. However, the proceeding songs begin to retract from that theme.
When observing the larger scope of an album, cohesiveness is important. And while no two songs sound necessarily similar on Reflektor, each song mingles effortlessly with the next.
Though each song is unique, some songs begin to blur and seem overly lush. But tracks like “Afterlife” and “It’s Never Over (Hey Orpheus)” serve as bright silver linings, waking you up when you find yourself venturing off into a lull.
“Here Comes The Night Time” kicks off with a fake out; it threatens cardiac arrest onto its listeners with what sounds like guitars being shredded to pieces but then cools down to a synthetic, Caribbean-esque tempo.
While Arcade Fire stays true to their classic eccentricity and obscurity in Reflektor, their obvious attempt at dropping their fear of “selling out” is something to be admired. Instead of looking to hoard indie points, they let themselves freely experiment more than usual with varying sounds and idiosyncratic lyrics.
However, I’m guilty of holding a bias. Though Reflektor is admirable and whole in itself, it felt pale in comparison to albums like Neon Bible and Funeral. Neon Bible spawned one giant gem after the next, like “Intervention” and “No Cars Go,” with chill-inducing organ music in the background and a military-style choir. It easily earned its spot as one of my all-time favorite albums.
But with biases set aside, I still believe Reflektor succeeds in carrying its weight independently. It’s hard to overlook its boldness, lavishness and sleek lyricism. Even Pitchfork, the pretentious big sister of indie music journalism, gleefully gave it a solid 9.2 out of 10 rating.
Ironically, the greatest part of the album is its flippancy. It’s refreshing to see a band go from literally wearing funeral attire on stage in their early days to finally cutting loose.
Critic’s Rating: 3 out of 5
Jackie Braje can be reached at jacquelyn.braje@spartans.ut.edu