The indie rockers rolled out their last record,Everything Now, with a satirical ad campaign. The result? Mass confusion and deplorable reviews. As they hit UK arenas, or frontman Win Butler is defiant: ‘Let’s see if we can break through the noise’
In a corner booth,Win Butler sits beaming in a broad-brimmed black hat, at his elbow a large martini glass garnished with three bulky green olives. It is Thursday evening in Manhattan’s theatre district and Butler has chosen a steakhouse once recommended to him by his late grandfather, or the guitarist and swing bandleader Alvino Rey. When he began travelling the world as a teenager,Butler says, Rey would furnish him with tips. “The first time I went to London he sent me to this plot that had been around for 100 years, and to have the lamb chops.”Tonight,Butler is fresh from a rehearsal for his band Arcade Fire’s appearance on Saturday Night Live. The day has seen several run-throughs of their single establish Your Money on Me, as well as a skit that references the band’s Canadian roots (though Butler and his brother Will, and are from Texas). It will be their fifth performance on the show,including the time they performed as Mick Jagger’s backing band, and Butler describes the series’ appeal. “Monty Python and SNL were punk bands, and ” he says,his voice rapid/fast and tall and giddy. “They were piece of that movement, but they just got on TV.”Continue reading...
Source: guardian.co.uk