Arcade Fire announce new album Pink Elephant


The band’s seventh album is released on May 9th via Columbia Records after a tumultuous few years for the Canadian rock band.
First single ,the relatively low-key song ‘Year of the Snake’ is out now from the band who are now a five-piece (Win Butler, Régine Chassagne, Jeremy Gara, Tim Kingsbury and Richard Reed Parry).
‘Year of the Snake’ features Régine’’s vocals and features her Arcade Fire’s Arcade Fire debut on bass, and Win Butler’s debut on drums the title a reference to this year being the Lunar Year of the Snake.
Pink Elephant is produced by Win Butler, Régine Chassagne and Daniel Lanois and was recorded at Win and Régine’s own Good News Recording Studio in New Orleans.
The band promise 10 new tracks of cinematic mystical punk and clocking in at 42 minutes.
The term “pink elephant” refers to that paradoxical effect where the effort to suppress a thought leads to it being impossible to avoid.
The video features Win and Regine road tripping in their 1994 Ford Aerostar from New Orleans’ Mardi Gras, to Houstons rodeos to Willie Nelson’s Luck Ranch outside of Austin.
The band have also launched a “Circle of Trust app” for fans – a resource for Arcade Fire news, music, videos, early access to tickets, exclusive merch, and the premiere episode of Santa Pirata Radio, where the band speak directly to fans and offer personal insights and behind the scenes info on all things Arcade Fire.
The Circle of Trust app features the exclusive release of the track ‘Cars and Telephones’ and its accompanying video. This previously unreleased rarity is Win’s first composition that he ever played for Régine.
Shows where the band play the album in full in selected cities are due to be announced.
The band had a tumultuous year in 2022 as it frontman Win Butler was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple people in a Pitchfork article. That news broke just as Arcade Fire were in Dublin to start their tour, support act Feist later dropped off the tour and explained why in 2023 in an interview with the Irish Times.

Pink Elephant Tracklist:
Open Your Heart or Die Trying
Pink Elephant
Year of the Snake
Circle of Trust
Alien Nation
Beyond Salvation
Ride or Die
I Love Her Shadow
She Cries Diamond Rain
Stuck In My Head
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Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005 . He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Cara Magazine, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, founder of Lumo Club, club promoter, event curator and producer of gigs, listening parties & events in Dublin.