oscillations.
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Post by oscillations. on Mar 7, 2007 14:13:59 GMT -5
Someone said 100k as of yesterday. I can't help but think they could hit 175k+.
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Post by busyboy on Mar 7, 2007 14:15:51 GMT -5
Yeah, with such a huge shipping I would think upwards of 100k.
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oscillations.
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Post by oscillations. on Mar 7, 2007 14:17:11 GMT -5
I think the Shins shipped 250k and opened with 118k. Not that that represents the definitive ratio. I'll admit - when I first saw 400k, I thought they meant SALES and I nearly wet my pants.
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Post by Love Plastic Love on Mar 7, 2007 14:17:53 GMT -5
Going by the "rule" (which of course is broken and changed all the time) a 400K shipment would mean they expect about 125-150K sold. I hope they get it. (the #1 on Billboard)
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Post by joker on Mar 7, 2007 14:19:10 GMT -5
Sweet! Anything in the six figures should be enough to hit #1. I'm guessing Korn's Unplugged won't beat them, and I think that's the only other 'big' debut this week (sorry Air, lol).
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oscillations.
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Post by oscillations. on Mar 7, 2007 14:20:56 GMT -5
Air will be lucky to make the Top 100.
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Post by busyboy on Mar 7, 2007 14:21:51 GMT -5
Considering the general trend (huge first week/second week slump/slow decrease in sales), the huge shipment means... Well...
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Post by busyboy on Mar 7, 2007 14:22:30 GMT -5
#1!
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Post by joker on Mar 7, 2007 14:56:55 GMT -5
Air will be lucky to make the Top 100. Hehe, yeah that's probably true. Their last two albums did debut at #88 and #61, respectively, so managing 10k this time around isn't really setting the bar too high. But the general lukewarm reaction to the new cd won't help any.
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oscillations.
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Post by oscillations. on Mar 7, 2007 15:10:59 GMT -5
Zero 7 barely made the Top 100 with The Garden, and that got more favorable reviews & had the benefit of post-Garden State exposure sales. I think Zero 7 is probably a lot more popular than Air now. I don't know. Most people I know don't even know who Air are, but they DO know "In The Waiting Line". ;)
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Post by jaxxalude on Mar 7, 2007 16:26:22 GMT -5
VILLAGE VOICEArcade FireNeon BibleMerge Anthemic Canucks Raise The Terror AlertArcade Fire's Neon Bibleby Garrett KampsMarch 6th, 2007 8:03 PMTwo and a half years after the Arcade Fire burst onto the scene at CMJ, frontman Win Butler is still scared shitless. "I don't wanna work in a building downtown." "I don't wanna hear the noises on TV." "I don't know why but I know I can't stay." This is one paranoid sonofabitch (those are all lines from different songs, by the way). "I don't wanna see it at my windowsill," he coos painfully on "Windowsill," referring to just about anything negative—wars, terror, MTV, debt, the Man, etc. It's a mad, mad, mad, mad world indeed. But then, that's nothing new for these Canucks. Funeral's 2004 breakout was forged in the fires of loss, and the result was the loudest, most brazen wake ever made for $10,000. Neon Bible is similarly burdened, only this time there's far less hope. "There's not much chance for survival/If the neon bible is right," goes the title track. "There's a fear I keep so deep/Knew its name before I could speak," goes "Keep the Car Running." Only humongous centerpiece "Intervention"—propelled by the humongous organ the band unearthed in the church it moved into to record the album—offers the sense of unwavering confidence that "Wake Up" did. And that's OK. Neon Bible isn't nearly as grandiose, as naive as its predecessor. The band's still outfitting their ramshackle sound with hurdy gurdies, accordions, horns, strings, and that humongous organ, but the songs here are generally more subdued, more nuanced. Unfortunately, there's also more lyrical cow patties like "MTV, what have you done to me/Save my soul, set me free." Dude, you've been living in a church in the middle of nowhere. Kurt Loder is not giving you the heebie-jeebies. So there are growing pains here, there's doubt and sadness and confusion. And there's fear.
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Post by jaxxalude on Mar 7, 2007 16:35:11 GMT -5
TINY MIX TAPESThe Arcade FireNeon Bible[Merge; 2007] Styles: driving, gang-banging rock ’n’ roll Others: The Hidden Cameras, Echo And The Bunnymen, Modern EnglishIt pains me to be the umpteenth writer/critic to say this, but things get out of hand in the music world fairly quickly these days. It’s not that the bands hoisted up by the MPMe generation aren’t quality. It’s more that once the hype for a band reaches a certain point it’s not about the music anymore. As you see the uniformly favorable reviews and same publicity photo used over and over and over, you realize nobody’s even listened to the record lately. When you take it upon yourself to check it out, you hear one magnificent song, a couple of decent space-pluggers, and a gaggle of grit-less retreads. That’s essentially what Funeral is. To be kind, it’s a decent album with one fantastic, original song (yes, it’s "Neighborhood #1: Tunnels") and a patchwork litany of derivative — albeit not altogether unpleasing — shit. There’s that Talking Heads song, that Polyphonic Spree song, and so forth. Identity? None to speak of once you get past the first song. Cohesion? More bulges and scrunches than a python’s torso after it swallowed the Robinson family. Greatness? You’ve got to be kidding... But while many of us were muffling our laughter, The Arcade Fire became Thee Go-To indie band. They had it all: a stomping, crowded live show, a believable storyline surrounding their debut record, a massive bidding war to pre-empt Funeral’s release... As Cusack relates in High Fidelity, "You couldn’t miss them." In the process, several other bands from their homeland — some worthy, some not — joined their brethren on the front pages of blogs wide and far. And, unlike, say, Interpol, Arcade Fire, because they plundered multiple troughs of influence rather than a single stall, remained relatively backlash-free. They smiled at each other while they played, and Win’s brother ran around onstage doing random shit. Who cares if they have nothing to say! Look, red-headed dude’s hitting a cymbal with a back-arching flourish... crazy! With Neon Bible finally coming out, it’s hilarious to see the scribes that allotted Funeral a ‘‘9.heaven’’ grade list their reasons for knocking the ol’ sophomore effort down a few pegs. Not as ‘personal’? Less ‘varied’? Faulty ‘production’? HA. While other sites look for reasons to take Neon Bible down a notch to make up for their wad-blowing, shit-losing, perspective-less, bandwagon-riding reviews of Funeral, TMT is simply going to evaluate the music and stake a claim: Neon Bible is the first step to The Arcade Fire becoming the band everyone wishes they were. Considering how out-of-hand things have gotten, it’s more than anyone rightly could have expected. The most encouraging development by far is the fact that Win Butler and co. have an identity now. Influenced by the ’80s and all-things-angular as it may be, Neon Bible is Arcade Fire from cover-to-cover. Short of a Revelation, it’s the sound of a talented band finding its true genesis. And gawrsh, they’ve got something to say now, too! Shucks, what’s next, a consistent, compelling album? Yeppers, it’s time to break out the party hats and your saved allowance money; Arcade Fire are coming out to play this time. They’ve latched onto a firm sound, no longer desperately clasping their hands onto the coattails of the greats. Most surprising is Neon Bible’s sequencing, which places each tune in its rightful resting place rather than front-loading the good shit and letting things slope from there. Following another bible to the ‘T’ (i.e. the Indie Bible), the best track is nestled in slot number four ("Intervention"), the opening number foreshadows the movements to come ("Black Mirror"), and the finale is a slow-builder with lotsa soul ("My Body is a Cage"). There are a few entries you won’t find yourself dog-ear-ing, to be sure, but this time the ripes outweigh the gripes. So far so good, right mate? What’s that? Oh, you want to know about the production... Well rest assured, the production is nails, masterfully compacting Arcade Fire’s multi-headed attack down to an acceptable size without snipping down their antics. Best of all, their use of instruments is a little less showy. A little less, mind you; the main difference is that we’re allowed to digest the bare elements before being bombarded by pomp. The songs are allowed to crack a few knuckles and stretch their legs before they do any heavy lifting, and you’ll find yourself appreciating their roots more as a result. It’s like working for a personnel service; if you put an employee in the right place at the right time, he/she will work THAT much harder for you. Why spend money on extra temps when you can staff an entire organization with just a few? With the compositions structured more effectively, Butler’s voice is given the chance to take center stage, and he doesn’t disappoint, delivering his message with an odd recasting of Ian McCulloch’s tremolovely yell that is distinctive without being overtly signature. His trembling vocals quiver and quaver like always, shaking uncontrollably like a leaf in a strong breeze or a lady’s lower lip when she’s about to get verklempt. His passionate delivery, rather than little ticks and cloying mannerisms, gives his vocals that extra something, and when he isn’t handling the singing for even a few bars — which is rare — I find myself hoping he’ll be back, and soon. "No Cars Go," for example, finds Butler and soul/bandmate Regine Chassagne combining forces, but she drowns him out and snuffs the song’s worth in the process. An exception is the jittery "The Well and the Lighthouse," which sees the two tandem-ing on a sweet chorus and tag-teaming a few other snippets to delightful ends. Neon Bible confirms what even naysayers like yours truly have known all along: The Arcade Fire have a scary upside. But do they have that extra somethin’-somethin’, that barely perceivable spark that separates the superb from the good? That extra cherry on top that makes all the cream seem that much tastier and worth chomping through? That presence that warrants special attention in a room full of competitors? Fuck, it’s their SECOND ALBUM; how the fuck would I know? Get a life. 1. Black Mirror 2. Keep the Car Running 3. Neon Bible 4. Intervention 5. Black Wave / Bad Vibrations 6. Ocean of Noise 7. The Well and the Lighthouse 8. (Antichrist Television Blues) 9. Windowsill 10. No Cars Go 11. My Body is a Cage by Grant Purdum
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Post by jaxxalude on Mar 7, 2007 16:38:45 GMT -5
NMEArcade Fire: Neon BibleCanadians' new testament to the world takes on epic proportionsAfter the funeral comes the wake. A celebration, a party; a bleary, teary toast to what's gone before, its impact on those who were touched by it. And after Arcade Fire's 'Funeral' - after all the grief, glory and emotional exorcisms that saw their debut album light up 2004 like an emperor's pyre - what next? "Mirror mirror, on the wall/Show me where them bombs will fall" - 'Black Mirror'. "There's a big black wave in the middle of the sea" - 'Black Wave/Bad Vibrations'. "World War Three, when are you coming for me?" - 'Windowsill'. Turns out mourning is in their blood. Now that the personal family losses that informed 'Funeral' are fading, Win Butler and his black parade of professional mourners have turned their tear ducts to more global tragedies: the Iraq war, the tsunami, the end of the world in general. It's as if, having proved so successful at capturing their own fervent anguish on album number one, Arcade Fire have decided to form an international grief-keeping force to keep the entire globe permanently shredding its shirts. What's that!? Up in the sky! It's Team Canada: Pain Police, spinning a black armband around the bicep of the world! Ca-na-DA - sob yeah! And their service is second to none. As a band who go to extraordinary lengths to convey their emotional maelstroms (onstage, every one of them screams and writhes as if possessed by the spirit of a thousand Conor Obersts; they beat drums, keyboards, guitars and each other's crash helmets with maniacal abandon and gigs usually end with a parade to a car park for a Clash cover or two), their second album 'Neon Bible' contains every ounce of the impassioned sound and fury of their live shows. Heralded by a series of miniscule gigs in London's grand halls and churches that you needed to be either Chris Martin or a tunnel-building expert to get into, 'Neon Bible' is a climactic monolith of a record in the grand tradition of melodic transatlantic clamour rock, as extolled by Mercury Rev and The Flaming Lips. But while the Lips hold Barbarella parties for gangs of blissed-out Santas in pods orbiting Neptune, Arcade Fire are of more Biblical stock. As the title suggests, they're standing at the gates of hell as the apocalypse rages, brandishing Satan's brimstone iPod, set to shuffle on a playlist called 'All The Best Tunes'. It begins with a thunderstorm. An ominous roll of kettle drums approach across a spectral synth landscape to where Win, fresh from a nightmare and still singing as if constantly on the verge of mental breakdown, is staring out at the pitch-black ocean and finding the darkness reflected in his own war-weary soul. We're facing the onrushing orchestral tidal wave of 'Black Mirror', a shifting sea-roll of guitar crescendos and violin eddies that overwhelms, confuses and eventually recedes - after four or five listens - to expose a delicate, devastated melody washed up in its wreckage. We're clearly at the mercy of some elemental musical forces here: indeed the entire record has the rhythm of a mighty tide to it. Hence the jubilant mandolin jive of 'Keep The Car Running' comes on like a tribal celebration of having survived the opening song while the hushed acoustic title track that follows is essentially the mile retreat of the surf before the next tsunami attack. A church organ strikes up a cheery disco wedding march. Win steps swiftly in before we can throw any confetti ("Working for the church while my family dies... hear the soldier groan/We'll go at it alone"). And so 'Intervention' builds into a stirring pop memorial to Iraq war victims and a rallying cry for revolution against the White House lies ("Who's gonna throw the first stone?/Who's gonna reset the bone?"). See, 'Neon Bible' is no mere wail against the woes of the world but is, like its predecessor, an astutely political record. To wit, 'Black Wave/Bad Vibrations': while the second, Win-sung half - thumping funereal drums, wave crash noises and all - seems to bemoan the tsunami tragedy of 2004, the Régine-sung first half is a sister-piece to ('Funeral''s) 'Haiti' wherein she appears to be escaping a civil war-struck province. A reference to guerrilla-held areas of Aceh that were reconciled in the aftermath of the disaster, perhaps? Or have we been watching way too much Sky News 24 here? Time to spin the globe back home, to a cold bed in Montreal laid waste by more personal battles: "The ocean of violence/Between me and you/It's time to work it out", goes the harmonious mariachi blues lilt of 'Ocean Of Noise', while the fantastic blue-collar factory rattle of '(Antichrist Television Blues)' is a vibrant exposé of 9/11 paranoia from the point of view of a terrified stage parent that also, crucially, manages to rock like Bruce Springsteen doing the dirty boogaloo with a teenage Courteney Cox. In hell, obviously. And as we stand, awestruck, through the agoraphobic sociopathy of 'Windowsill' ("I don't wanna fight in a holy war/I don't want the salesman knocking at my door") and the ecstatic escape anthem 'No Cars Go', waiting for the final wave crash of the dark Armageddon blues of 'My Body Is A Cage' to finish us off; as we stand staring humanity's darknesses (war, cataclysm, hatred and fear) square in the eye, we know we've been brought here by an Important Record. A record with the bleak-yet-redemptive spirit of REM's 'Automatic For The People' and the musical magnificence of a 'Deserter's Songs'. But also a record that - as much as 'London Calling' or 'What's Going On' - holds a deep, dark, truthful Black Mirror up to our turbulent times. After the funeral, the awakening. Mark Beaumont
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oscillations.
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Post by oscillations. on Mar 7, 2007 16:44:22 GMT -5
HITS: Meanwhile, Arcade Fire’s much lauded Neon Bible, #1 at iTunes, is also flirting with 100k, though it will more likely end up in the 85-90k range
Oh, come on. That HAS to trend upward. This is ridiculous.
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Post by jaxxalude on Mar 8, 2007 17:43:58 GMT -5
DROWNED IN SOUNDArcade Fire: Neon BibleOut: 05/03/2007 Label: Sonovox Forget your wake adages: this isn’t the post- Funeral party, the celebratory exhalation of relief following the enduring of an impossible to pinpoint pain. Arcade Fire’s Neon Bible is an album luscious of misery; it’s fully and deeply rooted in foundations rich in the dramatically maudlin and endearingly melancholic. It’s a gathering of individuals wearing frowns ‘pon their brows and tears in the creases under their seen-it-all eyes. It’s easy to become enveloped in what may or may not be the thematic threads that weave in and out of these eleven songs; there seems to be some disaffection for the band’s profile in the wake of international exposure and almost universal acclaim. Lyrics can be twisted into metaphors for many a meaning: ‘Keep The Car Running’ because we’ll need to make a quick get away if this all turns sour, perhaps? The desperation that pervaded so many of Win Butler’s howls an album ago remains, but it’s informed by a new intelligence: the band has the listener within their warm, moist palm from the get-go this time out, and there’s no need to over-egg the emoting. Of course, this occasional employment of restraint doesn’t prevent the Canadians from smothering their arrangements in the finest embellishments available: a succession of songs leave the listener fully sated so far as appetites for compositional cherry-on-tops go. ‘The Well And The Lighthouse’ is as grand as the most successful showtune, all glitter and glitz and glamour sparkling above an underbelly of discomfort and, quite probably, despair. For it is these kinds of emotions, still, that influence so much of Arcade Fire’s material. Even when the collective offer us their finest Springsteen impersonation, on ‘(Antichrist Television Blues)’, they’re far from fist-punching in their expressing of innermost rumblings and ripples. Everything’s got a dour demeanour to it; everything’s a little sadder than it should be given the millions of ears sure to turn this record’s way. “How come nothing tastes good?” they question; “Nothing lasts forever, that’s the way it’s gonna be.” There’s so much negativity coursing through the veins of this record, so many shocking shrieks and mumbled whimpers of displeasure at something that’s not quite specified. The arrangements, too, seesaw between the oppressive and the apologetic. ‘Black Mirror’ is blunderbuss boisterousness tempered by a tenderness borne of family ties within the group, a swooping, swooning opener that sets a tone that rarely shifts throughout – a tone that’s a few baby steps on from their breakthrough but far from the epic leap some might’ve expected. This is no ‘difficult’ second album; if anything, it’s almost too easy to absorb, digest and expel. Which, in a way, is indicative of its brilliant pop credentials – these songs are great as a coherent album and when taken as standalone tracks, as many download-friendly followers will be receiving them as. But, in turn, Neon Bible therefore lacks the absolute unity of its predecessor – there was something about Funeral that made it a sit-down, turn-up, tune-in experience. This, although a fine collection of songs, doesn’t have that grab factor. Perhaps it’s because the advantage of surprise is no longer on Arcade Fire’s side, or perhaps it’s because of the myriad interpretations that can be drawn from these engrossing, but often bewildering, lyrics. There’s just something amiss. Ever so slightly, but left of centre nonetheless. Great – truly great – songs are in abundance here – the twin-part ‘Black Wave / Bad Vibrations’ is magnificent, each of its multitude of layers more glorious than the last, and ‘No Cars Go’ is a brilliant echo of their most excellently effervescent songs of an album past – but the sourness that remains once the final murmurs of ‘My Body Is A Cage’ fade away is difficult to wash away with anything else but a return to Funeral. Closure’s ambiguous in its execution – the listener leaves each session with Neon Bible with many a question unanswered. But perhaps the true beauty of Neon Bible is its imperfection. Had it proved to be the be all and end all of indie records, where the hell would Arcade Fire go next? This, like Bloc Party’s A Weekend In The City, sets up album three as something incredibly special – both sophomores are flawed, for sure, but amazing nonetheless. With Glastonbury on the horizon, 2007 is the year that Arcade Fire go mainstream in a major league fashion; their In Utero, though, is certain to be fascinating. Rating: Words: Mike Diver
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Post by jaxxalude on Mar 9, 2007 14:10:55 GMT -5
NMEArcade Fire fans invade the stage Band joined by all-dancing crowd for euphoric Manchester openerArcade Fire kicked off their sold-out UK tour in Manchester tonight (March 8) for a show which culminated in a mass stage invasion. As the Canadian outfit drew their 80-minute set to a close at the Apollo, singer Win Butler ran over to the crowd and pulled a large group of fans on stage for a roof raising rendition of 'Rebellion (Lies)'. The band, who were joined by two extra members throughout their euphoric performance, played their new album 'Neon Bible' almost in its entirety but for the title track. Kicking off the show against a red neon backdrop of the album cover, the band launched straight into a rousing version of 'Intervention'. Butler who was in high spirits throughout the performance, at one point joked about his surroundings as he told the crowd: "I feel like we are playing in a medieval castle and there is lava flowing between us and the crowd." Although the new songs were well received, the biggest cheers of the night were reserved for old favourites 'Neighborhood # 1 (Tunnels)', 'Neighborhood # 3 (Power Out)' and 'Rebellion (Lies)'. Arcade Fire played: 'Intervention' '(Antichrist Television Blues)' 'Keep The Car Running' 'Black Mirror' 'No Cars Go' 'Haiti' 'Black Wave/Bad Vibrations' 'My Body Is A Cage' 'The Well & The Lighthouse' 'Crown Of Love' 'Neighborhood # 3 (Power Out)' 'Rebellion (Lies)' 'Neighborhood # 1 (Tunnels)' 'Ocean Of Noise'The tour continues tonight (March 9) with a second night in Manchester. The remaining UK shows are: Manchester Apollo (March 9) Glasgow Barrowlands (11,12) London Brixton Academy (14,15,16,17)
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Post by galvanize on Mar 9, 2007 14:23:21 GMT -5
#1 UK Midweeks with 50K sold so far.... they're going to sell well. #1 in Ireland as well.
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oscillations.
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Post by oscillations. on Mar 9, 2007 16:24:30 GMT -5
Thanks for the news!
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Post by busyboy on Mar 11, 2007 14:06:56 GMT -5
#2 debut on the UK album chart, behind Kaiser Chiefs! Yeah!
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Post by busyboy on Mar 11, 2007 14:07:59 GMT -5
"Funeral" re-enters at #74!
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oscillations.
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Post by oscillations. on Mar 11, 2007 20:25:25 GMT -5
I bought the (deluxe) album yesterday. It's definitely the best album so far this year.
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Post by britneyrules on Mar 12, 2007 0:20:25 GMT -5
I am in love with this cd right now. Thank God for 'Gilmore' for introducing to them to me 2 seasons ago.
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Buy COUNTRIFIED today!!!!! Includes #1 HIT "MOMENTS" as well as "A Good Man" and "You Still Own Me"!
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Post by EmersonDrive13Rocks on Mar 12, 2007 1:09:10 GMT -5
How are they doing in Canada? Should be #1 here but with what level of sales?
I should check them out.
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oscillations.
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Post by oscillations. on Mar 12, 2007 11:47:49 GMT -5
good question...anyone know the answer?
yeah, definitely check them out!
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Post by joker on Mar 12, 2007 13:01:03 GMT -5
^I assume it'll debut at #1 in Canada, but I haven't heard anything about that yet.
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Post by galvanize on Mar 12, 2007 13:06:45 GMT -5
UK Sales article from Music Week: Take That Shine for second week at one 12 March 2007 - 11:22:32 Sales slipped marginally last week, with singles declining 2% to 1,502,460 and albums down 1.9% to 2,357,183, writes Alan Jones. Take That and The Kaiser Chiefs continue atop the singles and albums charts, respectively, with Shine and Yours Truly, Angry Mob, though both barely survived challenges - Shine sold 1,045 copies more than new runner-up The Sweet Escape by Gwen Stefani and Akon, while The Kaiser Chiefs defeated an even more determined challenge from Arcade Fire’s Neon Bible by just 525 sales. Holding a commanding lead in the first midweek sales flashes, Arcade Fire’s Neon Bible seemed set to become the first number one album by a Canadian act since Avril Lavigne’s Under My Skin in 2004. In the end, its sales of 65,700 weren’t quite enough to dethrone The Kaiser Chiefs’ Yours Truly, Angry Mob. The album’s high debut comes as no surprise - it is Arcade Fire’s major label (Universal) debut, and follows the success of their 2005 (Rough Trade) breakthrough Funeral, which peaked at number 33 but has sold 228,000 copies to date. The Arcade Fire album was the star performer but the artist album chart is unseasonably busy, with a year’s best tally of 17 new entries to the Top 75. ------------------- Either way, oscillations. would be pleased. An alternative top 2.
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nucker
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Post by nucker on Mar 12, 2007 13:26:05 GMT -5
YAY to them selling well in UK. It's always nice to see great musical acts being rewarded by big sales. Hopefully they sell well in North America too.
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Post by joker on Mar 12, 2007 13:35:05 GMT -5
Arcade Fire @ The Apollo, Manchester by David Renshaw on 12/03/2007 gigwise.com/contents.asp?contentid=29131This writer has a confession to make - I don’t love Arcade Fire. A seemingly lone voice in a sea of unadulterated love and hyperbole, yes. I own both their albums and love their good songs but find seventy percent of their material hard to endear to. It’s frustrating, as I know there must be something very special about them. Still, open minded, I’ve never seen them live before and have heard it’s an experience one will never forget. Excitement then is at an optimum upon arrival at the Apollo and Patrick Wolf's support set only heightens the feeling. Unique, flamboyant and utterly engaging, Wolf takes to the stage clad in hiking socks, shorts and a pair of platform shoes- he cuts a striking figure to say the least. Bursting through a set that included ‘Bluebells’, ‘The Libertine’ and fantastic album title track ‘The Magic Position’, Wolf shows what a fantastic talent and brilliant live performer he is. The stage is now set for Arcade Fire. Neon microphone stands and a neon bible backdrop is a very direct reference to the band’s new album. If you didn’t know they had a new album out the band are keen to remind you, the first eight songs of tonight’s show are from ‘Neon Bible’. Songs such as ‘Black Mirror’, ‘Ocean Of Noise’ and ‘No Cars Go’ all enrapture the audience and new single ‘Keep The Car Running’ sounds as big and beautiful as the bands older more established tracks. A classic in waiting. That said, something seems missing - perhaps dividing the new songs up with songs from ‘Funeral’ would have ensured that the set flowed at a more enjoyable pace. Ah yes, ‘Funeral’. The album that catapulted Arcade Fire from Canadian obscurity to super-stardom. The album is visited towards the end of the gig and inevitably they make for the highlight of the show. ‘Rebellion (Lies)’ and ‘Neighbourhood #1 (Tunnels)’ are spine tingingly magnificent, truly worthy of all the Arcade Fire bands plaudits and worshippers. On the band’s second encore ‘Wake Up’ blasts out from the speakers and two thousand people are enraptured by the spell bounding sight in front of them. Like the best church choir you have ever seen, the ten piece band the human embodiment of passion, power and brilliance. For those five minutes they are truly the best band in the world. So is your humble Gigwise hack converted? Well yes and no. Yes it’s easy to completely understand what people see in Arcade Fire - in terms of the technicalities of it they are an immense spectacle. However, amidst the mighty high points, there are still moments where it’s hard to loose yourself. Long, drawn out and suffering some sound difficulties sections of the gig floated past me. With Neon Bible’s commercial possibilities and the inevitability of a tighter set come the summers festivals, Arcade Fire can only go from strength to strength. Tonight’s show is an exciting start on the march towards world domination. Don’t even try to stop them.
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oscillations.
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Post by oscillations. on Mar 12, 2007 13:38:44 GMT -5
I just checked the Canoe charts - Arcade Fire's eligible week isn't up yet. We'll find out Thursday.
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Post by busyboy on Mar 12, 2007 16:33:07 GMT -5
"Neon Bible" should also chart pretty high on the European chart, since UK sales are very influential to that chart. We'll find this out on Thursday too.
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