Formed around the future husband and wife team of Win Butler and Regine Chassagne in 1993, this powerful seven-piece band seemed to define onstage dynamism before they discovered an audience. Once beyond the obligatory low-budget debut EP, they fused their complex instrumentation - piano, viola, French horn, accordion, harp and hurdy gurdy etc - to produce Funeral, one of the greatest debut albums in decades. This 1994 release, bolstered by hearty support from the likes of David Bowie, David Byrne and U2, catapulted Arcade Fire to worldwide success. Triumphant sets at the Coachella, Reading and Latitude festivals only served to continue the momentum. This book looks beyond the triumphs that gather in their story, to discover a band who are determine to retain the pure yet complex personal dynamic that always set them apart.

Mick Middles has been writing about popular music since the early eighties, having been a contributor to Sounds magazine and a regular rock and pop reviewer for the Evening News in his home town of Manchester. He has written extensively about the Manchester music scene and the Factory label, and biographies of Ian Curtis, the Stone Roses and Elbow, all published by Omnibus Press.