Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, as well as other members William Butler, Richard Reed Parry and Tim Kingsbury originally formed the band in 2003. In the early days, the band played various gigs to small audiences, where they would sell their first EP. The positive reaction that the band received from their performances allowed them to land a contract with record company “Merge Records” before the band had even been together for one year.
The band’s first album titled ‘Funerals,’ was released in 2004 under Merge Records. Sadly, the title of the album had a profound meaning amongst the members: many of their loved-ones had passed away during the making of the album, hence the title ‘Funerals.’ The sadness that surrounded each member during the making of the album was a huge influence for songs such as “Une année sans lumière,” meaning ‘A Year Without Light’ and ‘In the Backseat.’ Although the band members may have been sad when the album was released, critics were not. The album made it on various top ten album lists across the world. By the end of 2005, the album had sold over one million copies worldwide; a huge feat for a new band.
After the madness of ‘Funerals,’ the band began recording for their second release. The members came together and bought an old church, which they converted into their own recording studio. The second album titled ‘Neon Bible’ was released in March of 2007 and contained eleven tracks such as ‘Keep the Car Running,’ ‘Black Mirror’ and ‘The Well and the Lighthouse.’ To date, this album was the most successful release from Arcade Fire, reaching number two on the top 200 album charts. Critics such as NME praised the album, which has been said to have made the indie genre even more popular today.
During the months between the band’s formation and the release of ‘Neon Bible,’ the group has played over one-hundred shows (over thirty of these were festivals) and have steadily built up a dedicated and adoring fan-base. Keep your eyes peeled for updates from Arcade Fire.
