“Wake Up (live in the crowd at Judson Memorial Church, New York 2/16/2007)” – Arcade Fire
(Words/music: Arcade Fire, original version available on Funeral, Merge Records 2004)

First, there’s no way that a live MP3 can capture this performance properly.  I didn’t see the Arcade Fire at the Judson shows and when I saw them later on in the Neon Bible tour they did not play “Wake Up” at all, let alone in the crowd.  Still, the other time I saw them, Arcade Fire paraded out through the crowd chanting the end of “In the Backseat,” so I can imagine what this was like.  That being said, I love the way that this sounds – the recording makes the drums, horns, and mandolin audible along with the crowd singing in unison.  Thankfully, the recording captures the audience as a group rather than one or two individuals (save for a little chatter right at the beginning that mercifully ends).  It’s pretty cool that the band immersed itself in the crowd to perform the song, and the recording preserves that sense.

It’s also appropriate because “Wake Up” is the song that turned a lot of people (myself included) on to the Arcade Fire.  Sure, the soaring strings and Win Butler’s straining vocals made it sound larger than life, but I imagine the song’s lyrics drew just as many people in as well.  On an album borne out of the loss of several family members, “Wake Up” confronts the death of innocence as we grow up, and as the innocence wears away, we expose ourselves to the harsh realities of the world.  When we’re young (or feeling youthful, at least), we feel the way that “Wake Up” sounds – grand, wide-eyed, and ready to do battle.  It’s the adjustment that kills us – learning that we aren’t as invincible as we feel, stepping back and taking stock of life.  The musical transition from the broad processional feel of the first three quarters of the song to the more subdued final stretch underscores the lyrical theme – just as Butler declares that he’ll have to adjust, his band shifts into a double-time shuffle with softly sung vocals rather than the throaty screams in the first half. 

However, rather than seem mournful over lost youth, “Wake Up” celebrates the part of youth that stays with us as we get older.  Even as we grow larger and endure life’s hardships, we still have those moments where we reconnect with the part of ourselves that make us feel like we’re the gods of our world ready to hurl bolts of lightning at will.  The moment at Judson, I can imagine, was one of these “lightning bolt” moments where people felt the youthful rush of being part of a flawless moment.  This is probably also the same reason that “Wake Up’s” inclusion in the trailer for Spike Jonze’s adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are resonated with so many people over the past few days.  This is the power of songs – songs let us reach down inside ourselves, reconnect with our personal past, and even if only for a fleeting moment, let youth’s lightning strike twice.

More on Arcade Fire: Allmusic | Amazon MP3 | Emusic | Last.fm