“WE” Arcade Fire
Arcade Fire’s 6th studio album is a return to the band’s roots. Nearly 20 years after its 2004 debut, Arcade Fire’s “WE” is filled with rock anthems and ballads that rail against our modern world. The title is drawn from a 1924 Russian novel, “We,” by Yevgeny Zamyatin, which depicts a totalitarian dystopia, One State, in which people are numbered, forced to wear uniforms and assigned what to do. The music is BIG — with both slow and fast anthems filled with guitar, piano, soaring synths, orchestra and drums. Win Butler and his wife, Régine Chassagne, share the lead vocals. Many of the tracks segue naturally. For example, Lightning I and II should always be played together. And tracks 3 & 4, and 9 & 10 could be segued. I’ve created “segued” versions of those pairs — including them as “bonus” tracks 11, 12 and 13. A satisfying “comeback” for the band after “Everything Now.”
— Francis

Highly recommended: 6/7, 4/5, 8, 1, 10, 9. (Radio edit on Track 5).

1. (5:27) Age Of Anxiety I — Rapid-fire, muted beats — like a racing heart. Shifts from a mid-tempo piano tune, with swirling effects and hand claps, into breathless, driving EDM pop halfway through the tune. ****
2. (6:41) Age Of Anxiety II (Rabbit Hole) — Pensive piano ballad, with a jittery disco-like rhythm building underneath. Butler and Chassagne trade off on the vocals.
3. (0:30) Prelude — Dramatic break. Thumping drums. Thunder effects.
4. (5:23) End Of The Empire I–III — Strummy guitar and piano, with full orchestra. A truly epic anthem for a dying American empire (and California falling into the sea!). The Beatles couldn’t have done any better. ****
5. (3:54) End Of The Empire IV (Sagittarius A) [Radio Edit] — Coda to Track 4. Sad piano ballad with saxophone as well. “I unsubscribe.” FCC has been edited.
6. (3:01) The Lightning I — A slow-building anthem that has an almost Bruce Springsteen vibe. Grows until it segues into Track 7. Play together! ****
7. (2:35) The Lightning II — Propulsive romp that serves as a conclusion to Track 6. Play with previous track. ****
8. (4:34) Unconditional I (Lookout Kid) — Bouncy folk rock that encourages kids (and all of us) to embrace life’s ups and downs, the pain with the pleasure. ****
9. (4:21) Unconditional II (Race And Religion) — Régine Chassagne on lead vocals. Funky and jazzy, with Caribbean rhythms. Layered synths. Peter Gabriel sings some of the backing vocals. ***
10. (3:52) WE — Strummy closer with piano and mellow vocals. Moving away from the anxiety of the past two years to a more accepting place. ***

Joined “Segued” Tracks

11. (9:18) End Of The Empire I-IV (Tracks 4 & 5) — Segued versions of tracks 4 and 5, above. ****
12. (5:36) The Lightning I, II (Tracks 6 & 7) — The lead single. Segued versions of tracks 6 and 7, above. ***
13. (8:12) Unconditional II (Race And Religion)/WE (Tracks 9 & 10) — Segued versions of tracks 9 and 10, above. ***