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Wake Up // Funeral (2004)
The definitive Arcade Fire song. Bringing together all that is good about the unconventional, experimental world of Arcade Fire. With a wordless chorus that is uplifting and saddening at the same time, ‘Wake Up’ surrounds listeners in a wave of elevating harmonies. Whilst the more downbeat lyrics of “turn the summer into dust” and “I guess we’ll just have to adjust” give the song a shroud of negativity, “With my lightning bolts a glowin’/ I can see where I am goin” see the band take a more optimist look at life after Funeral, an album shrouded by loss.
Live, ‘Wake Up’ has been the final song of every Arcade Fire set list. Performances at the 2007 and 2014 Glastonbury festivals have left audiences with an abiding memory of a band that is passionate, raw and full of meaning.
Words by Daniel Parker