10 Albums You Should Listen to Before You Die - Funeral

Funeral, the word alone is enough to let the mind wander through thoughts of death, sadness, and guilt. Our current society loves to immerse itself in isolation and in doing so renders itself spiritually and emotionally inert. We consume the affected martyrdom of our purported idols and spit it back in mocking defiance. We forget that "emo" was once derived from emotion, and that in our buying and selling of personal pain, or the cynical approximation of it, we feel nothing.

The years leading up to the recording of The Arcade Fire's debut was filled with funerals. Lead singer Win Butler lost his grandfather and his wife Regine lost her grandmother. Their bandmate Richard Parry lost his aunt the month after. These songs demonstrate a recognition of the powerful pain that follows the death of an aging loved one. Funeral brings out the understanding and renewal that comes with being a child, but does in a way that can only come with coldness of maturity. The recurring theme of a non-specific "neighborhood" suggests the supportive bonds of family and community, but most of its lyrical imagery is overpoweringly desolate.

Neighbourhood #1 (Tunnels)sets the tone early. The gentle hum of an organ, rippling strings, and repetition of a simple piano chord suggest the discreet unveiling of an awesome setting. The setting is tragic, as a boy's parents cry in the opposing room he sneaks out to meet his girlfriend in the town square where they attempt to plan a future as adults, that in the blur that is adolescence is barely even comprehensible to them. Even in its darkest moments, Funeral creates an overwhelming theme of positivity. Slow-burning ballad "Crown of Love" is an expression of lovesick guilt that perpetually crescendos until the track unexpectedly explodes into a dance section, still soaked in the melodrama of weeping strings; the song's psychological despair gives way to a purely physical catharsis. The anthemic momentum of "Rebellion (Lies)" counterbalances Butler's plaintive appeal for survival at death's door, and there is liberation in his admittance of life's inevitable transition.

As the album comes to a close, the beautiful voice of Regine Chassagne comes into play. The innocent delivery of her very real lyrics add to that catharsis felt earlier. In The Backseat does not mask the lyrics of it with singsong delivery and music. It's heavy, with sad strings. Her emotional cry at the end symbolizes the whole emotion put behind Funeral. Despite the tragedy the band members faced, they made a triumphant album. During "In The Backseat", Chassagne sings lyrics that in paper look unstable and random, as though all thoughts had must be said out loud by Regine. She weeps "My family tree's losing all its leaves, crashing towards the driver's seat, the lightning bolt made enough heat to melt the street beneath your feet," and the song fades into nothing, leaving the strings alone to finish one of the strongest debut albums of all time.

Best Songs
Neighbourhood #1 (Tunnels)
Neighbourhood #2 (Power Out)
Crown of Love
Wake Up
Rebellion (Lies)
In the Backseat

FULL ALBUM