Signs of Life- Arcade Fire Review

Image result for signs of life arcade fireWhen I heard Everything Now, the first single for the new Arcade Fire album and a collaboration with Thomas Bangalter of Daft Punk, I was transfixed. The song was a really good bass driven semi-disco track that seems to float along with the help of various keyboards, guitars and synths, meaningful but mixed up lyrics and massive choruses. Creature Comfort, the next single was a synthesized romp about society's standards and suicide, an important but unoriginal topic.

Signs of Life starts off with the sounds of an ambulance and emergency radio chatter, which leads in to massive hand claps and some good notes on the bass. Then a saxophone and some glittering but urgent cascading keyboard synths come in. Suddenly, Win Butler launches into repetitious lyrics which fit their content, about how humans do the same thing over and over again and don't know why. When the second verse ends, the saxophone gears up to a background of cavernous synths, and then cuts out to give impact to lyrics about trying to figure out a direction in life, and then the same chorus over again.

The main advantages of the song are its great musical composition, lyrics that effectively communicate the subject, and jazzy saxophone. The main disadvantages are the overuse of too many instruments, the overly repeated chorus, and the slightly choral aspect to the song. The song doesn't match the power of Everything Now, but it's still a great single in its trio that makes me, who never really liked Arcade Fire, want to purchase their new album and at least listen to every one after that.

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