The Suburbs (Deluxe)

Pitchfork 8.6/10 It's a satisfying return to form-- proof that Arcade Fire can still make grand statements without sounding like they're carrying the weight of the world.

A.V. Club A- Butler and company imbue The Suburbs with such a strong sense of place and mood that it builds in impact throughout.

The Needle Drop 8/10 On Arcade Fire's latest album, they take the most ambitious and immediate elements of their previous albums, and feed them into americana-style songwriting.

NME 4.5/5 They’ve judged their moment perfectly, and this deserves to be their ‘Automatic For The People’; an album that combines mass accessibility with much greater ambition.

Evening Standard 4/5 Those in search of arms-aloft anthems will leave feeling short-changed; the rest of us will agree that, in the case of The Suburbs, less is more.

Rolling Stone 4/5 The strange thing about Arcade Fire is how they instinctively scale their most intimate confessions to arena-rock levels, rolling out big drums and glossy keyboards.

DIY 4.5/5 While it could be said there’s a lack of the primal force that dominated ‘Funeral’, it’s been replaced with craft and beauty.

The Independent 5/5 The prevailing tone of The Suburbs is of a more reflective, nostalgic bent – as if rumination upon the past might indeed offer a valid refuge from the uncertainties and worries of the present.

All Music 5/5 If nostalgia is just pain recalled, repaired, and resold, then The Suburbs is its sales manual.

Gigwise 9/10 Scanning in at 16-tracks and bookended by tantalising tasters from the title track, 'The Suburbs' is a beautifully crafted and judged record.

Under The Radar 9.0/10 Trying to put The Suburbs in historical context at this stage is difficult, but it evokes Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation in its evocation of political discontent coupled with sheer white noise outbursts.

Clash 9/10 Taking their perennial themes of loss, fear, control and time they’ve re-woven their epic art rock around their fascinating suburban theme that literally lies on our own doorstep.

Slant 4.5/5 Another triumph of emotional generosity from the most humane and vital rock group of our generation.

Pop Matters 6/10 Last year’s war of words between the Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne and Arcade Fire front man Win Butler was, at the time, an enjoyable diversion. Although Coyne’s comments (about what he perceived as arrogance in Butler’s crew) seemed somewhat impolite and petty, the flare-up between the two acts injected some energy and fun into a modern rock scene that is too often stuffy and image-conscious. Butler responded, Coyne apologized then retracted his apology, and finally the whole affair died down. Both bands continued to sell records and make money.

The Guardian 4/5 There's something charming about the way an album about growing up in the suburban 80s gradually starts to resemble a chart rundown from 1983.

Spectrum Culture 80% If there is one thing that separates the Arcade Fire from their contemporaries, it’s their ability to expose a human’s beating heart and hold it up undaunted.

Beats Per Minute 93% There’s no shortage of the group’s usual flag-waving stadium rock ... but this time around, they are balanced out by hushed, pensive ballads.

The Telegraph 4/5 For all their mainstream commercial appeal ... you can’t take the “art” out of these art-rockers.

The Irish Times 4/5 Finishing with the archly titled Sprawl I and Sprawl II, which drip with childhood nostalgia, there's just time for a poignant a cappella reworking of the title track before they drift back to the city again. Very big and very clever.