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Before the reign of the almighty Google commenced, when someone stole something from you, you'd file a police report.

Now of course, you bitch about it on your blog.

Chris H. has gone one step further into the sea of asshattery and has started a blog just to defame Win Butler of Arcade Fire for allegedly stealing his basketball. The blog's address is http://arcadefirestolemybasketball.blogspot.com/ . It has just two posts. First, Chris H.'s surly account of what he claims happened at the Cal Berkely gym, and the second asking Win to make restitution for the $40 basketball and the 10 bucks he had to pay to get into the gym that day.

Arcade Fire pointed out on their blog that it's incredibly easy to make something up these days if you've got a computer hooked up to the internet. Without video documentation or a police report, I'm inclined to agree. Something else is also telling me that this is so.

What really irks me about this is that for the next 6 months at least, the band is going to get asked why they steal basketballs by everyone they do an interview with. Why do I have a sneaking suspicion that someone at MTV2 paid that dude to start that blog?

Edit: The blog's offline now, as is "Arcade Fire Didn't Steal Dude's Basketball." Bummer. Anyone get any screenshots? It's kinda disappointing this didn't go on for longer since most people won't understand why I made this post at all, but I'm glad 'cuz Arcade Fire will probably be spared a lot of annoying questions at interviews this year.

If Arcade Fire expected a warm hometown welcome at their Montreal shows on Mother's Day weekend, they were disappointed. Though they packed the stands of Arena Maurice Richard (and even oversold the venue with special permission), only about 5% of the crowd showed any enthusiasm while they played. Being in that 5%, I've got to say the rest of you looked like idiots. How could you NOT DANCE during Power Out!??

Anyway, apathy from the audience didn't phase Arcade Fire in the slightest. They gave a solid performance, bringing their creative fun musical genius to the visual aspect of the show. Neon bars lined the front of the stage and a shiny pipe organ facade rested at the back, somehow not tacky. Meanwhile, fuzzy images familiar from the Neon Bible website were projected onto the back curtain and 5 round tv screens positioned across the stage. The screens also showed live shots of the band as they played, with periodic close-up views from sneaky cameras attached to some of the instruments. Really well done.

As for Arcade Fire themselves, they were wonderful to watch. It's clear that music is what they should be doing, all the time. They looked ecstatic with every movement. Régine danced her precious little heart out; Will and Richard goofed off with the tambourines, etc (drumming on a stage pillar during Laika!); Tim rocked out sufficiently; and Win was, in a word, majestic. He was just so comfortable onstage, if a little detached. He looked simply cool. They were the perfect little indie rock package up on that stage, with the exception of the kids on violin. Talented musicians no doubt, but they were a little wooden-looking. Not rockstars yet.

The setlist went something like this:
1. Keep the Car Running
2. No Cars Go
3. Haïti
4. Neighborhood #2 (Laïka)
5. Black Wave/Bad Vibrations
6. My Body Is A Cage
7. Intervention
8. The Well and the Lighthouse
9. Ocean of Noise
10. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
11. (Antichrist Television Blues)
12. Neighborhood #4 (Power Out)
13. Rebellion (Lies)
Encore
14. Black Mirror
15. Crown of Love
16. Wake Up

The whole show was pretty excellent, though I probably had an advantage being 20 feet from the stage. The sound was full and the visuals provided intimacy in a huge venue. The band - charged. They did a really great job of sustaining that charge, despite a crowd too cool to dance. Régine wasn't too cool to dance though. She was adorable and fun, pretend-swimming during Black Wave/Bad Vibration. It needs to be said that Régine really sparkles onstage, though every member of Arcade Fire's got their own energy. The only point I didn't feel that energy was during My Body Is A Cage. It was even a little boring. The band was less animated for some reason. They didn't lose it during other ballads like Ocean of Noise and Crown of Love, so I'm not sure what happened there. Going into Intervention though, things picked right back up. It started off the sequence into the high point of the show, with the upbeat, weird fable of The Well and the Lighthouse leading into a resonating version of Ocean of Noise. The real treat of the show though was Tunnels. The whole band played beautifully, and Win's vocals stood out over an entire crowd singing along (Sometimes we remember our bedrooms, and our parents' bedrooms, and the bedrooms of our friends!) The end of the show was just a blast, ending on carefree versions of two faves from Funeral and giving us an encore that swapped French Song (Une Année Sans Lumiere) for Crown of Love at the request of a sign-holding fan. Though Win sort of went off on the guy with the drumstick sign ("Put away that fuckin' sign! Yo! That sign!"), the band showed fans once again that they really love playing for us, and could pull off a fun, cozy little show inside a big hockey rink.

After such a praise-singing review, it probably won't surprise anyone that this is already the #1 concert of 2007 for me. No contest. Next Arcade Fire show though, I want to see you fuckers dance!

Photos of Win & Régine by the lovely Pamela W.

Man, I feel like an idiot for never hearing The Apples in Stereo until a couple days ago. Not because I lose my precious indie cred (which I do lose...dangit!) but mainly because they're fantastic. I'm especially digging the track "Sunndal Song" off their latest release, New Magnetic Wonder. It's a good example of this album's sound: low-fi but danceable with sweet, airy vocals. When I listen to it, I feel that I'm very much in 2007 and simultaneously in the 1970s. Sometimes this throwback stuff can get cheesy, but these guys have done a great job. It's kind of like being in a William Gibson story backwards...Gibson wrote in the '70s with a futuristic feel, and The Apples in Stereo write songs with a '70s feel in the 21st century. Great music that reminds me of one of my favorite authors? Damn straight I love this album. "Energy" (and the world is electricity...there's a light inside of you and there's a light inside of me) and "Sunday Sounds" are a couple of my other fave tracks. I need to get my hands on their other recordings ASAP!

New Magnetic Wonder: 9.0/10

I'm completely addicted to Neon Bible, the latest from the Arcade Fire, mais oui. I listen to it when I wake up and I'm checking my email, I listen in the car even if I'm only driving 5 minutes away and have barely enough time for 1 1/2 songs. I listen and I'm filled with all kinds of wonderful feelings...though the album is very bleak with lyrics discussing endtimes and a discontent with the way humanity's trying to live these days. But they still use those lovely whimsical xylophones and the upbeat guitar/keyboard/violin explosions that give you hope and make you want to dance anyway.

I really get the feeling when I listen to each song that humans should always hope, and always be prepared to face the darkness in the world with a little spark that will lend us inner light and personal strength. It might not get us to the absolute end, but will keep us going as long as we can. I mean, there's nothing wrong in accepting the inevitable, as long as you don't simply remain inert and withdrawn. Because that's fuckin' boring. Arcade Fire to me has always been about living with that little spark that says, "Yeah, we're fucked, but I'm still trying!"

Neon Bible: 9.8/10

Download it now, buy it when it comes out on March 6, go to a show...support these guys because they're downright phenomenal. Here's an mp3 of No Cars Go to get you started!

Oh, it's been a while since I've been excited about music. But it's a new year, I have new speakers (!), and I have the latest Arcade Fire single - Intervention. (!!!)

There are some things you need to know about this song. [1]There is a pipe organ. [2]It's less poppy than most of the last album. [3]I cannot stop listening to it. I want more!

Okay, so the track starts off with a pipe organ. Those things are loud! It sort of hits you in the face, but not in a bad way. More like a wakeup call reminding you that you've got something important to do that day. But after the shocking volume of the organ, the band eases you into the song, leaving room for it to grow. Just an acoustic guitar and the organ at first, then a steady throbbing drum. The rest of the band chimes in (xylophone included!) about halfway through, and with Win's vocals getting more and more plaintive, but always controlled, the result is a beautifully written song that sounds damn good.

Intervention definitely shows a new levelheadedness that lends insight to what these guys are about - yeah, they're talented musicians who are a little dark, a little whimsical, a lot of fun. And each band member seems to be very grounded in who they are as an individual, which is probably why they have such an awesome dynamic as a group.

I am so, so excited to hear the rest of Neon Bible, their album scheduled for release in March. This one song makes me want to get up and do something. I can't wait to hear the rest!

Without further ado: Intervention.