Three albums into their career and Arcade Fire seem more untouchable than ever. Indeed, on hearing the first note of 'The Surburbs', you instantly realise you're listening to something very special.
There's an effortless majesty here which spills forth across the 16 songs, all worthy contributions to the album, and which veer from the Abba influenced glam stomp of Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains) to the new wave guitar growl of Month of May.
Whereas previous album 'Neon Bible' has been criticised, somewhat retrospectively it must be said, for its overblown sound, here there is a delicacy of touch comparable with that of a fine watchmaker.
Sprawl 1 (Flatlands) is an understated masterpiece of youthful alienation. "The cops shine their lights/On the reflectors of our bikes" as the children of American surburbia lose themselves in the cultural wastelands, defining Arcade Fire's newfound ease of transition from sub-genre to sub-genre and thematically demonstrating the wonderful melancholy of growing up in 80's surburban towns with their nameless, faceless lack of identity.
Unfathomable boredom pervades the album, from the "great big words" the kids use but don't understand, through to the resultant tribal divisions of 'Surburban War' and the endless ennui of 'Wasted Hours'.
There's also anger at the business men who, "...drink my blood/Like the kids in art school said they would" and the apathy of youth, "But how you gonna lift it with your arms folded tight?"
Special mention must be reserved, however, for 'We Used To Wait', an authoritative statement on the intangible transience of modern life. "I used to write letters/I used to sign my name" Win Butler declares, the song culminating in the snarled, "We used to wait for it/Now we're screaming sing the chorus again".
The Suburubs is undoubtedly a masterpiece of the modern man.
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