An alternate-universe arcade fire: more with the creepy and theatrical, less with the earnest

agrammar:

This is not just a matter of “meaning it.” I’m definitely not saying I’d prefer this band if they were only more arch, more theatrical, play-acting instead of really saying. The difference, I think, lies in what they mean. Because taking a path that involves shooting for the grand earnest statement, preaching to the kids, will lead you very different than a path that involves acting something out for them — acting out something possibly a little odd and perverse, something malleable, something that confronts reality by reshaping it, instead of shouting at it.