When the opening and title track, at seven and a half minutes, leaves you wanting an even longer song, you know you're on to something special.
Arcade Fire finally got the recognition fans long-thought they'd deserved when they won the Grammy for Best Album with 2010's The Suburbs. With every
release they change things up, so despite making the perfect album with 2004's Funeral, the Canadian band have veered in different directions since.
Reflektor, a double album, is a monster at one hour 16 minutes and will leave you breathless.
The influence of co-producer James Murphy from LCD Soundsystem is clear and dominant, as they up the electronic component, but the sound is recognisably Arcade Fire, particularly the vocal partnership of Win Butler and Regine Chassagne.
The album does have its faults - we could have done without the reggae dub of Flashbulb Eyes, and parts of Disc 2 seem superfluous - but the positives far outweigh the negatives.
Like much of the album, the epic title track has a retro tinge, with an almost New Romantic taste over a Latin beat. It's a clear standout, alongside Normal Person which reverts to piano and fuzzy guitars, evoking Talking Heads and even Deerhunter as the band takes the chance to rock out.
