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Arcade Fire, Live In Concert

Arcade Fire's stellar and all-too-short performance at Capitol Studios wasn't listed on the band's official tour. It was meant to be an intimate show for friends, family and public radio fans, broadcast live across the U.S. on NPR and in Canada on the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). The stage was cozy and the performance kept to an hour, but the members of Arcade Fire managed to run through most of the band's new double album, the bold and often epic Reflektor.

The performance came a day after the death of Lou Reed. Arcade Fire paid tribute to the much beloved artist by performing two of his songs: "Perfect Day," from Reed's 1972 album Transformer, and "Satellite Of Love," from the same album. Arcade Fire frontman Win Butler also dedicated the band's song "Afterlife," from Reflektor, to Reed.

While no encore was originally scheduled as part of the performance, a persistent and overjoyed crowd coaxed the band back on stage to end the night with "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)" from the group's 2010 album, The Suburbs.

Set List

  • "Reflektor"
  • "Flashbulb Eyes"
  • "Afterlife"
  • "It's Never Over (Oh Orpheus)"
  • "We Exist"
  • "You Already Know"
  • "Normal Person"
  • "Haiti"
  • "Here Comes The Night Time"
  • "Supersymmetry" (With Lou Reed's "Perfect Day" and "Satellite Of Love")
  • "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)"
  • Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

    Robin Hilton is a producer and co-host of the popular NPR Music show All Songs Considered.