On The Live Concert Venue... The Arcade Fire.

After a long day of trekking around the city it was amazing to walk inside the swank (and air conditioned) Chicago Theatre. The giant marquee catches my eye everytime I'm in town and I have to say seeing a show there had been on my list of things to do for some time. We picked up our tickets at Will Call and picked up our cocktails at the lobby bar – they were equally intoxicating (THANKS AGAIN, CHRISTINA!). Looking around the place it was hard to avoid uttering the clichéd “they don’t build’em like this anymore”. The details and the elegance in the craftsmanship – from the staircase to the walls and adornments – it was all quite a sight to behold.

We made our way to our seats, which were about fifteen or so rows back from the stage on the lower level. We were happy.

The opening band, Electrelane, was pretty cool. They’re a four-piece all-girl band from Brighton, UK. While many people were still filing in and finding their seats the girls made sure they were anything but background music and the crowd seemed to love them. Their sound actually reminded me a lot of our local Rosehips (who BTW have a new 7-inch being released June 1st on Manup, but more on that later), if not for the obvious female connection, for the blazing guitar work often balanced by sweet, yet spirited vocals. Although the comparison could be considered a bit of a reach by some as Electrelane split their set pretty evenly between psyched-out scorchers and airy, keyboard-driven melodies.

After a modest pause between bands and a couple more cocktails through our hands, The Arcade Fire strode confidently onto the stage. They went right into a thunderous version of “Keep The Car Running” which instantly whipped the crowd into a sing-a-long frenzy.

For better or worse, I found myself analyzing the band throughout the show – analyzing the show even. After all, as a fellow musician, it’s hard not to wonder how a band can achieve such meteoric success on the independent level.

How have they done it? Here are a couple of conclusions I came to: write really great songs and be really awesome live. Also, stay humble, surround yourself with smart, talented, fun people who "want it" and always eat a balanced breakfast. Simple enough, eh?

When I saw them a little over two years ago, they were six sordid people playing (mind you, tearing up) a small club in Columbus, Ohio, for some four hundred folks. Now, they were ten strong, standing up straight and commanding a legendary stage to a sold-out crowd in one of our nation’s largest cities. It was pretty inspiring to say the least.

I wish I would have jotted down the set list as they played, but I was too caught up in the moment. By my recollection they played a pretty balanced set between songs off of Funeral and Neon Bible. Though the new record hasn’t really affected me as much as the last one, I have to say that the new material held just as much weight live.

The presentation on stage included five small circular screens that rotated through various imagery, from live shots to old artsy (found?) footage run through a grainy over-saturated filter which made for a really cool effect. And the band members themselves are always fun to watch as at least six of the ten swap instruments every song or two. The stage is in a constant state of flux and the energy they create keeps the crowd on their feet (and dancing) throughout the entire show.

Regine’s tunes seemed to especially resonate this night as personal highlights included “Haiti”, “In The Backseat” and the dark and new wavy “Black Wave/Bad Vibrations”. “The Well And The Lighthouse” and “(Antichrist Television Blues)” were rocking, too.

I shot some video of them doing "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)" above. It probably doesn’t do the band much justice – not enough detail and a little too much crowd noise - but check it out anyway. I know that a lot of people have been turned off by this band due to the constant barrage of hype here, there and everywhere. All I can say is you are doing yourself a disservice if you don’t at least try to be open-minded and experience this band once in your lifetime live. It will move you, trust me. And you will understand why so many people have such a hard time shutting up about them.