Weaves Do Arcade Fire’s “Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)” For SiriusXM Polaris Cover Session
Weaves cover Arcade Fire.
The Polaris Music Prize has debuted its first SiriusXM Polaris Cover Session for 2018 featuring Weaves reinterpreting “Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)” from Arcade Fire’s 2004 Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize-winning album Funeral.
An in-studio performance video of the song is now available via the Polaris YouTube channel. Additionally, an audio stream of it can be found on the Weaves YouTube channel.
“Polaris Music Prize had asked us if we were interested in covering a song from their Heritage albums list and I saw that Arcade Fire’s Funeral was included on the list. I guess I immediately gravitated towards wanting to cover one of their songs because I grew up listening to them — seeing them for the first time just opened the gates as far as live music. I think ‘Neighbourhood #3 (Power Out)’ seems more pertinent than ever so in Weaves fashion we spent a weekend working on it and then just went into the studio and recorded it pretty freely. I think this song keeps breathing and growing over time and I guess that’s the magic of revisiting one’s favourite albums,” says Weaves’ vocalist Jasmyn Burke.
Weaves recorded their version of “Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)” at Revolution Recording in Toronto and it was produced and mixed by the band. Their version of this song is also being performed at select dates on their current tour. Those dates include:
05/08 Lethbridge, AB, Geomatic Attic
05/12 Sudbury, ON, Grace Hall
05/15 Quebec City, QC, L’Anti
05/16 Fredericton, NB, Capital Complex
05/17 Halifax, NS, Seahorse Tavern
05/18 Sackville, NB, Thunder & Lightning
06/03 Pinconning, MI, Riverscene Music Festival
06/08 Brooklyn, NY, Northside @ Knitting Factory
06/27 Toronto, ON, TD Jazz Fest @ The Phoenix
07/20 Yellowknife, NWT, Folk on the Rocks Festival
09/07 Elizabethtown, NY, Otis Mountain Get Down
The Weaves cover is the first of three cover sessions planned for 2018 that feature past Polaris nominees interpreting songs from albums that have received Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize designation. Arcade Fire’s Funeral won in 2016 for the 1996-2005 category. Weaves made the Polaris Music Prize Short List in 2017 for their self-titled album.
Two more Polaris Cover Sessions will be revealed in the coming months. All three will be pressed on a limited edition 10″ vinyl record that will be free to purchasers of 2018 Polaris nominated albums at participating retail stores starting in July. The record will also be given to Polaris Gala attendees.
This is the tenth cover song commissioned by Polaris. Other songs in the series include Little Scream performing Mary Margaret O’Hara’s “Anew Day,” Zaki Ibrahim performing Leonard Cohen’s “Show Me The Place,” Whitehorse performing The New Pornographers’ “Bones Of An Idol,” Sarah Harmer performing Caribou’s “Odessa,” Great Lake Swimmers performing Sarah Harmer’s “I’m A Mountain,” Arkells performing Owen Pallett’s “I Am Not Afraid” and Joel Plaskett performing Feist’s “Bittersweet Melodies.” All these performances are available on the Polaris YouTube and Soundcloud channels.
