Arcade Fire’s new album, Reflektor, was released a few weeks ago and debuted at #1, selling 140,000 copies. This time around, the band cut deals with Capital and Universal Music Group, in addition to working with their indie label Merge Records. There massive album launch included several elements. One of those was partnering with Google to create this interactive video.
They also promoted the release through cryptic street art in various cities, which featured the date and time of a performance they did under the name “The Reflektors.” This performance was recorded and televised as “Here Comes the Night Time,” a late night post-SNL special which included cameos from several respected actors and comedians. It was quirky, weird and fit the band’s new sound, which they’ve described as “Haitian Voodoo meets Studio 54.”
A few days prior to the release, they also posted a “lyric video” of the entire album set to the 1959 film, “Black Orpheus”. They’ve since taken it down but you can still see the section they recorded for the song “Afterlife.”
Finally, for their recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel, they chose to perform at the iconic Capital Records building.
For an indie band, Arcade Fire have come a long way. For their fourth release, they pulled out all the stops and went big, which ended up paying off. Read more about their album launch here.