New Orleans Jazz Fest
featuring Arcade Fire
New Orleans, LA
May 6, 2011
Review, Photos and Video by Adam McCormick
Music festivals exemplify all that's right about the current music scene (Bonnaroo, Coachella, Sasquatch), they're a melting pot containing the brightest rising stars and respected legends. If there's one bad thing about festivals it's that it's impossible to see every act. No matter how fast you run and how well you push through crowds, you'll never get to see every band.
It's depressing to think, but some people at New Orleans Jazz Festival missed Arcade Fire's set on May 6th. Sure they may have seen Willie Nelson or Lupe Fiasco, who were also playing at the same time, but they missed one hell of a show.
Arriving promptly at 5:35PM, all eight members of Arcade Fire quickly picked up their instruments and jumped into the appropriate opener “Ready to Start.”
Video by Adam McCormick
One of the first things you notice about Arcade Fire when they get on stage is the size and musical diversity of the group. The band somehow incorporates drums, guitars, a bass, violins, a xylophone, a keyboard, an accordion, and even a hurdy gurdy (look it up on Wikipedia). When an indie rock band starts picking up a wide variety of instruments, the result is often a noisy, lo-fi, cacophony, but by the time Arcade Fire launched into “Neighborhood #2,” a hit from their first album Funeral, it was apparent each member of the band were adept musicians. Each chord struck by the two violinists and every key played on the xylophone rang clearly, perfectly accompanying the more mainstream instruments.
The sixth song of the night, “Haiti,” brought band member Regine Chassagne to the front of the stage, a position she would triumphantly hold for the remainder of the show, only relinquishing briefly to play the drums. The dark haired French-Haitian from Canada sang with a beautifully haunting passion during the song about her parent's homeland. To say Chassagne is an accomplished musician would be an extreme understatement. The female voice of Arcade Fire played the accordion, the drums, the hurdy gurdy, the keyboard, and the guitar at different points throughout the set.
To say Chassagne is an accomplished musician would be an extreme understatement. The female voice of Arcade Fire played the accordion, the drums, the hurdy gurdy, the keyboard, and the guitar at different points throughout the set.
Arcade Fire
The performance flew through all the most upbeat songs Arcade Fire's three critically acclaimed albums has to offer. Nearly everyone in the increasingly massive crowd felt compelled to dance or at least tap their feet and smile. New songs “The Suburbs” and “Modern Man” showed off the Arcade Fire's range and evolution. “The Suburbs” in particular utilizes a cheerful beat paired with Chassagne's husband and other lead singer, Win Butler's, low almost falsetto voice.
As the sun dipped below the top of the stage and Arcade Fire began “Rebellion,” the crowd finally felt reprieve from the brutal New Orleans heat. The single from their first album was the perfect way to end the first part of the set.
Usually encores serve as an obligatory and lame attempt to ratchet up the show's intensity to “11,” but Win Butler's announcement to the crowd that one of the band's idols would be joining them on stage was only the beginning to what became an epic end. Moments later, an all-black clad Cyndi Lauper strutted confidently on stage simultaneously belting out the beginning to her 80's super hit, “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” Despite some early audio issues with Lauper's microphone, Chassagne stepped in to aid with the vocals as the two danced playfully. The rest of Arcade Fire seemed completely star struck by the experience, unable to contain their giddy expressions.
Arcade Fire
Young indie fans and their parents alike rejoiced in the unusual pairing, eliciting the biggest response from the audience during all of Jazz Fest. The second song of the encore, “Sprawl II” again combined Cyndi Lauper and Regine Chassagne's beautiful voices.
Even those who were not necessarily Arcade Fire fans felt as if they were witnessing something special. The last song of the performance was their resurgent hit “Wake Up.” At this point, Arcade Fire had nothing to prove, the performance surpassed even the most diehard fan's expectations. No matter how loose and lighthearted the band seemed to be, the music remained articulate and tight.
I wasn't at the Willie Nelson or Lupe Fiasco sets, so I can't tell you how good they were; all I can say is that Arcade Fire put on a performance that proved both entertaining and extraordinary. I left with the feeling that it would be years before I saw another show that great. I'm not mad at the people who missed their set, I'm just a little sad for them.
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