Wake Up

This is about a band, The Arcade Fire, who are known for giving their fans a little bit extra at performances. They're well on their way to bigger things in the world, and who knows how much longer they'll be able to reach out to their fans quite like this.

It reminded me of that first time I saw The Arcade Fire. Some of the details are fuzzy, but I think they were on the same bill as The Constantines and Jim Guthrie. It was October 2003, and they were playing The Horseshoe Tavern. It was before Funeral came out and the band exploded everywhere, and I had no idea who they were: I was there for The Constantines. This was one of those nights where I couldn't find anyone else to go with, so I just went by myself, which was good because I would have missed out on discovering Arcade Fire for myself, and bad because I sort of wish I had someone with me that I could share that story with and say:

"Do you remember when there was that breakdown during the show and the amps went dead? Regine's keyboard was still working, so she started playing the 'Super Mario Brothers' theme music until everything was working again..."

and watch them smile at the memory. I must have fallen for that band hard, like a high school crush: I wouldn't shut up about that gig for weeks. I get that way when I fall for a woman too. This video reminds me about that magic of finding a band, and love at first sight, something that one tends to forget in these static grey months of winter. This video is about joy.

During their 5 night stand in London, The Arcade Fire performed an impromptu encore in the foyer of the Porchester Hall.

• Chris Martin of Coldplay saw a couple of the London shows, and can be seen briefly in the background of the opening of the video.
• Win Butler's entrance at the start comes moments after he got into a scuffle with venue security, who backed off.
• OK, maybe not backed off entirely. They're the pissed looking guys in suits behind the band.
• Oh yeah, Jim Guthrie, who I saw all those years ago? That's his little "Hands in My Pocket" jingle on the Capital One credit card commercials.
• The Arcade Fire's new album, Neon Bible is out March 6th, and the song "No Cars Go", which I heard at that gig and was on that first EP I bought, is on the new disc.
  

YouTube - Impromtu Wake Up - Arcade Fire in Porchester Hall foyer
Wikipedia - The Arcade Fire