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Friday, October 1, 2010

Live Review Arcade Fire, Memorial Coliseum, 09/30/10

Posted by Ezra Ace Caraeff on Fri, Oct 1, 2010 at 8:59 AM

We didnt send a photographer, so here is a great shot from Wednesdays show in Seattle.
  • BLUSH PHOTO
  • We didn't send a photographer, so here is a great shot from Wednesday's show in Seattle.

The problem with most any arena show—be it within the Blazers' old stomping grounds, or inside the house Paul Allen's wallet built—is that rarely does the headliner "fill" the room. Seldom built for concerts, even the finest arenas can be dull at best—where they have all the charm of a boat show—or cold and cavernous at worst. Yet for Arcade Fire, the room itself is irrelevant. Witnessing the ambitious Montreal band captivate tiny venues when they first started (+1 indie cred points), or share a huge stage in Central Park with David Bowie (+1 indie cred points) is essentially the same experience, and last night's performance in the Memorial Coliseum was definitely an event far more intense and personal than my only other previous concert inside that building, My Chemical Romance (-500 indie cred points).

In a live setting Arcade Fire have always had that ability to reel off a series of songs in succession that add an air of sheer unfuckwithability to their already pristine reputation, and they did just that with their opening six songs: "Ready to Start," "Month of May," "Neighborhood #2 (Laika)," "No Cars Go," "Haïti," and "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)." Leaning heavily on material from The Suburbs, and mostly ignoring Neon Bible, Arcade Fire commanded the big(ger) stage with a nonchalant confidence—it helps having eight members and more equipment than a Guitar Center showroom. Standing in front of a tastefully large screen (Kanye West's digital hologram backdrop this was not) the band was surrounded by images of flashing billboards, intertwined freeways, and track home kids wrestling in the street, but as to be expected, the screen was never a distraction.

There was a certain album feel to "No Cars Go" and The Suburbs' title track, neither of which strayed far from their original recorded versions. But songs like "Rebellion (Lies)" and "We Used to Wait" took on new life, imbued with an infectious wide-eyed energy that rattled throughout the Memorial Coliseum—which is saying a lot considering this band is always moving, even struggling to remain stationary during mid-songs breaks.

[Note: Why don't they open the curtains during Memorial Coliseum concerts? Is it a sound thing? It would be nice to have a view of the stars, or at least the Red Lion's rooftop bar, during the show.]

As expected, Arcade Fire closed with the most arena-friendly gem in their catalog, "Wake Up," as their eight voices were quickly eclipsed by the eager voices of thousands of fans shouting its massive chorus. Not bad, Portland. And to think, if our weather was always this good, we might get the band to relocate here permanently. As Win Butler put it: "It's really fucking dangerous to come to Portland when the sun is out. You almost feel like you can live here."

Funny, I always thought the same thing about Montreal.

 

Comments (2) RSS

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1
and I see a lot of pasty lesbians showed up
Posted by TageSavage on October 1, 2010 at 10:07 AM · Report
2
I'm so sad I missed this one. =(
Posted by AlyssaLynn on October 1, 2010 at 1:30 PM · Report

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