LONDON ¨C Much has changed in Arcade Fire¡¯s world since the band was last in Japan. Back in February 2008, the Canadian six-piece, still propelled forward by the momentum created by its debut ¡°Funeral,¡± a record that attained perpetual cult status through nothing more than its sheer brilliance, was winding up promotion of its followup, ¡°Neon Bible.¡±
The record was solid with spectacular moments, but the 18-month tour itself became something of a fraught affair: illness either blighted shows or forced their cancelation entirely, and the impression was of a band besieged by stress, in danger of imploding.
Frontman Win Butler, in particular, seemed ill-equipped to cope. Irritable interviews and petulant behavior ¡ª he smashed his guitar to pieces when performing on TV program ¡°Saturday Night Live¡± ¡ª were so commonplace it moved the normally sanguine Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips to launch into an uncharacteristic tirade on the band.
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