It’s been nearly five years since Arcade Fire’s last album, the divisive Everything Now. While they haven’t been entirely quiet, it’s been a long slow buildup to any hints of new music. Back in 2020, Win Butler said they recorded “two or three” Arcade Fire albums during lockdown, and the band debuted “Generation A” on Colbert on election night. All across 2021 though, none of those albums materialized — just a long meditation app song and a show at a Vegas crypto party.