ArcadeFirearen’tshyofmaximalism.Since
roaringintopublicconsciousnesswith2004
debutFuneral, the Canadian collective have
habitually gambled with excess. When fi-
nessed and expertly deployed (Funeral,The
Suburbs), they convincingly paint a singular universe. But
when ambition outpaces them (Neon Bible,Reflektor), their
passionsoundsalotlikepomp.
Fifth albumEverything Nowis a playful genre-surf
backtothatgiddyuniverse.Producedbyapropopteam
including Thomas Bangalter (Daft Punk) and Steve Mack-
ey (Pulp), the album swings wildly through songs both con-
cerned with the modern onslaught of data and borne from
it.Takeback-to-backcuts“InfiniteContent”and“Infinite_
Content”–theformeragarage-punkrush,thelatterawist-
fulAmericanalope.Butthey’realsothesamesong,Win
Butler singing “Infinite content/We’re infinitely content”
oneach,inanodto–andexplanationof–theuneasydu-
plicate. While the ABBA-aping title-track and disco strut
of “Signs of Life” are danceable odes to classic pop, the
shade behind them is more interesting: the spooky, saturat-
ed-tape pulse of “Peter Pan”, theBlade Runner-meets-Ne-
braskamelancholy of “We Don’t Deserve Love”, and spongy
Eightiessynthgrooveof“ElectricBlue”.
Thistapestrymeshesonrepeat,leavingabreadcrumb
trail of weird new sounds and avenues in the Arcade Fire
pantheon to explore. If you can find the time.MARCUS TEAGUEFoster the People
Sacred Hearts ClubSony ★★½
L.A. outfit continue down a
misguided path on third albumNot quite the one-hit-wonders
many pegged them as, Foster
the People nonetheless followed
uptheirsmashhitdebut To r c h e s
withSupermodel,arecord that
lost its predecessor’s restraint
while amplifying all that was an-
noying about the band – main-
ly twee lyrics and overblown
whimsy. OnSacred Hearts Club
that sweet spot remains mis-
placed as Mark Foster leads his
band through a kitchen sink
approach to songwriting that,
while occasionally catchy, if un-
subtle (the chugging chorus of
“Doing It For the Money”), more
often feels all over the shop – the
trappy WTF departure of “Loyal
LikeSid&Nancy”–orcrippled
by lyrical daftness, as on “I Love
My Friends”. ANNABEL ROSSRandy Newman
Dark Matter
Nonesuch/Warner★★★★
Great American storyteller mines
history for tragicomic gold Onealbumevery10years means
zerofillerwhenRandyNewman
takestimefromhisHollywood
day job (hisCars 3score is out
now). These nine richly imag-
ined historical narratives begin
with the eight-minute “Great
Debate”, in which the complex-
ities of science are arrayed in
court with much symphonic in-
trigue,tobeshouteddown by a
gospel chorus of “I’ll take Jesus
every time”. An intimate chat
between the Kennedy brothers
on the eve of the Cuban Missile
Crisis, the identity theft of blues
pioneer Sonny Boy Williamson
and a touching family deathbed
scene are sculpted with the dry
wit, thespian empathy and light
orchestral touch of a master. M.D.Arcade FireEverything Now
Sony★★★★Arcade Fire’s
Genre Surfing
Fifth album finds the band landing on an
ideal outlet for their powersborn Again”, which echoes the
Thin White Duke’s Seventies
period when he married glam’s
fuzzed-outstomptoart-rock’s
twists and turns. Even Hom-
me’s ly r ics nod to Bow ie’s jive
talk-meets-Nadsat style. “Acid-
faceJack,helikethemdancing
straight boys, it makes his pu-
pils dilate,” he moans. He goes
on to namecheck Skinny, Juzzy
and Twizzy, almost as if he’s re-
naming the members of the Spi-
ders From Mars.
Meanwhile, Dean Ferti-
tachooseskeyboardsounds
that quiver and slither some-
where betweenHeroesand
Scary Monstersthroughout the
album. Or perhaps this had
somethingtodowithMark
Ronson, who producedVil-
lains.Bestknownforhisown
nattydance-popandasapro-
ducerforAdeleandAmyWine-
house,Ronsonrecentlysaid,
“Queensareandhavealways
been my favourite rock & roll
band.” He doesn’t exactly re-
model them, but adds window-
dressing–theelectrohand-
claps behind the buzzy boogie
of “The Way You Used To Do”;
the blaring horns at the end of
“Un-Reborn Again”; the sawing
violins that link the title track
to “Fortress”.
More surprising are the mo-
ments when Homme plays the
sensitivecardanddoesn’tget
afullhouse.“Fortress”seems
tobeamessageforsomeone
whoisgoingthroughahard
time, but it comes across as ear-
nest, while “Villains of Circum-
stance” finds him expressing
feelingsforageographicallyim-
possibleloveinterestonasong
thatstraightensouthalfwayto
becomealittletoochintzyfor
itsowngood,ashecroons“I’ll
be forever yours”.
Ofcourse,Queensofthe
Stone Age sometimes cop criti-
cismforleaningtooheavilyon
desert-rock drones, hedonism
andtestosterone,soallofthe
abovemarksaconsciousshift.
There’sstillplentyofmuscu-
larriffery,punishingrhythms
andrib-rattlingwailsinthese
grooves,butthatinitialmission
statement develops into a series
of stylistic jumps rather than a
revelatory leap.Reviews
80 ★★★★★ Classic | ★★★★ Excellent | ★★★ Good | ★★ Fair | ★ Poor Ratings are supervised by the editors of ROLLING STONE.