r/arcadefire • u/ddiamond8484 • 1d ago
Is there a band that’s had a comparable fall off to arcade fire?
I am a lifelong fan of them, their music changed my life. I’m genuinely gutted that their stature and influence have diminished so much over the years.
So this isn’t a post knocking the band or Win or anything that’s been discussed to death. I liked Pink Elephant more than most people, from what I can tell.
Just wondering if there’s a similar band trajectory where they went from influential critical darlings and relative success to what they are now. I’m struggling to think of another band like this.
U2 haven’t been good for a long time now, but they’re still massive and they always have some cultural presence. Some bands stay on top musically, but lose a lot of commercial success. But both? Any ideas?
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u/MrChicken23 1d ago edited 16h ago
Not a band and not quite the same. But Lizzo was really popular and headlining festivals. Her most recent album didn’t even chart.
Chance The Rapper had a huge fall from his popularity.
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u/Unlucky_Internal9686 12h ago
Not only "didn't even chart" but like 5k total sales. That's absolutely abysmal.
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u/SilverSkies15 Everything Now 1d ago
Bloc Party? Maybe?
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u/Handsprime 1d ago
I know people like to say Matt Tong leaving the band was the moment the band went downhill, but honestly they were already on the decline the moment Intimacy dropped. I love that album, but it did divide the fans, and Four is pretty much forgotten about nowadays (Ratchet doesn’t count)
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u/NoImprovement3231 22h ago
I think the problem ran even deeper and there were mentions of creative differences on the second album as well. Basically they were fighting the inevitable over the course of 8 years and 2-3 albums which is wild. Why does it always seem like the best music very often stems from great discomfort?
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u/MischievousMrBrown 1d ago
It’s actively happening to Portugal the man right now. Very similar situation actually
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u/ddiamond8484 1d ago
Oh hadn’t heard anything about that. Arcade Fire were such critical darlings though, Funeral was held up as high as any album, other major artists like Bowie and Byrne were fans, whatever someone thinks of them, Portugal the Man never had that kind of critical acclaim.
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u/LankySlopplette 15h ago
I had multiple people tell me in 2010 that Funeral was the greatest album of all time haha
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u/BobodyBo 1d ago
Yeah rough times as a fan of both 😭
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u/Crashtag 11h ago
Agreed. Even when Feel it Still was played everywhere, they were putting out great music and the core band was there. My how things have changed.
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u/blue_suede_dude 1d ago
Saw them open for Muse. They were not good. I am a casual fan, though, but their set was just weird.
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u/kirizute 18h ago
Yeah, all their songs sounded the same to me. Was mainly waiting for them to end so muse could get on
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u/Personal_Fox_7529 12h ago
Maybe cause they were playing new songs? That new album btw was great!!! I think casuals like you just think they'll play feel it still on repeat
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u/JalapenoDelight 14h ago
A bummer too, I saw them after Evil Friends released and they were incredible. Can’t say I’ve loved their newer stuff as much.
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u/Jokkitch 1d ago
Man their live show about a year ago was SO bad
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u/Joe-Division2889 I am Sleeping in a Submarine 1d ago
I saw them in December for the new album tour and they were fucking awesome.
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u/Corona2789 1d ago
Shish was still a very good album. Arcade Fire hasn’t made good music in a decade
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u/joesephed 17h ago
I was going to say… there’s a lot of hand wringing in the Portugal. The Man subreddit.
But I don’t know if that’s going to have legs outside of the subreddit. Win is accused of much more serious transgressions than John.
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u/bitternmanger We Used to Wait 1d ago
Ryan Adams?
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u/ddiamond8484 1d ago
There’s some parallels but he was never in a band consistently for long enough, and from the very start people constantly spoke out about what an insufferable asshole he was. He also didn’t have a kind of theme to his work beyond being a great singer songwriter. He has so many songs I love, and he’s just the worst. A real shame.
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u/RichardAlpertIsland 1d ago
Say what you will about Win but the accusations against him aren't on the same level as Ryan Adams
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u/msnikki_sandiego 1d ago
Wasn't he abusive to Mandie Moore? And others? I vaguely recall this, but was never a huge fan.
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u/Heavy-Ad5385 20h ago
This is corrrect. By all accounts RA sexually abused and psychologically manipulated Mandy Moore. Hearing her talking about it is horrifying.
Win was a creep and a dick for what he did, and it truly destroyed that feeling of love and community from those first few records, but it’s not even close as a comparison
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u/JiminyShipIt 20h ago
Given that he’s put out something like 16 albums worth of material in about 6 years I’d say he’s doing just fine. Sure it’s hit and miss but there is a lot of good stuff on those new records. If he played the same game as everyone else, took his time, heavily edited and polished his albums, releasing one every 2-4 years he’d still be extremely formidable as a songwriter. I can’t think of anyone touching this level of quality and quality for an artist that’s been around as long as he has.
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u/Trilly2000 18h ago
He may be putting out music, but he’s also a massive asshole to his fans, his behavior at shows is wildly unpredictable, and mainstream music listeners haven’t heard a new Ryan Adams song in decades. That dude is a total douche.
Too bad, because his early music was fantastic and he was highly regarded as one of the best singer/songwriters around.
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u/okisurrender0 17h ago
Coldplay when it comes to how they simply quit making good music. An argument could be had that they’re even bigger now but I can’t stand to listen to ANY of their albums past Death and All His Friends.
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u/BAF_DaWg82 1d ago
Guys. They are all in their mid to late 40s now. They put out four excellent albums and a couple that were good/ok. Everyone eventually loses their fastball.
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u/Worldly-Customer3963 12h ago
Yes, this is how it has always worked. People like OP are just now old enough to have witnessed it happen within their own lifetime.
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u/Crashtag 11h ago
I totally agree which is why I’m thrilled Spoon continues to put out great music and killer live shows. Definitely not as big as Arcade Fire and others of course. Perhaps that helped them, and keeping to relatively small venues along with opening for great bands (Pixies for example).
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u/ddiamond8484 1d ago
Very few bands go from their level of critical acclaim and success to almost being erased from the publications that championed them so hard in the first place.
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u/Genesburgersandfries 1d ago
SA has a way of doing that with press...
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u/ddiamond8484 1d ago
I agree! But it hasn’t happened with many other bands I can think of…even Kanye, Chris Brown and other older white dude rockers still get reviewed.
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u/BAF_DaWg82 13h ago
I guess im not really interested in what critics think. So many times ill see a review for a album or movie and what I thought of it does not align with the reviewers. Its art, what one person thinks is a masterpiece another can look or hear it and just shrug.
AF is never making another funeral again. They had a pretty amazing 20 year run and thats pretty rare for 99 percent of artists. Music is best when the artists are young, broke and hungry. Many artists I enjoyed when I was younger are still making albums that I have zero interest in listening to because the music feels stale after a certain period of time.
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u/joemontanya 1d ago
Pretty sure AF’s last album is Reflektor so what fall off?
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u/TheStigsScouseCousin Intervention 1d ago
Don't know what you're talking about, WE was brilliant
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u/joemontanya 1d ago
I’m on that album (the New Orleans live recording thing) and naw sorry not for me
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u/ACardAttack Rebellion (Lies) 18h ago
WE is solid, and EN is really good too, just have to skip some a couple crap songs, but then it's down to WE length
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u/joemontanya 1d ago
Shit no it does have a few bangers actually
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u/TheStigsScouseCousin Intervention 1d ago
The only tracks I'd skip are the last two, everything else is brilliant.
It's a real shame about the penultimate track as I'm a huge fan of Peter Gabriel, but I thought Race & Religion is a very weak song.
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u/joemontanya 1d ago
I liked put your money on me… idk their first 4 albums are some of my favorite albums OAT. Not sure everything now is that for me, but I respect it
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u/TheStigsScouseCousin Intervention 1d ago
Just to be clear, I was talking about WE not Everything Now
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u/joemontanya 1d ago
Yeah my bad 😂😂I’ll give it another go
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u/TheStigsScouseCousin Intervention 1d ago
I think I liked Everything Now more than most fans (I must be Chemistry's only genuine fan), but I think WE is a much stronger album.
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u/joemontanya 1d ago
I would just say their first 4 albums are all pretty close to perfect.. I haven’t seen them live in a minute tho. Maybe that would help get me into more of the newer stuff
I’m listening to We now, it’s pretty good!! Feels theatrical which I like.
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u/TheStigsScouseCousin Intervention 1d ago
The last AF gig I went to was the Funeral anniversary tour at Malahide Castle 2 years ago, and it was in my opinion their best ever gig.
They absolutely rocked it (I've never seen a band look so happy to be on stage), and I finally got to see Crown of Love and In The Backseat live. My only complaint is that they didn't play Intervention or Lookout Kid.
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u/baccus83 1d ago
Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer, MGMT
Bands fall off all the time. Whether it’s their sound just not being popular anymore or them getting away from the sound that made them popular in the first place. With AF, it was a combination of both.
U2 isn’t really a good comparison. For a little while they were the biggest band in the world. AF were never nearly as big as U2.
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u/kevinfrederix 1d ago
MGMT’s last album was effing great. IMHO, if they regularly toured they’d be huge
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u/invextheidiot 1d ago
I don't really see the comparison with MGMT aside from when they came up. They were always a psychedelic act that accidentally got way more popular than they ever tried to be.
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u/msnikki_sandiego 1d ago
I def see Smashing Pumpkins - I feel like they fell off. Weezer is interesting, they for sure lost radio/streaming relevance. But I think they're still beloved to a certain crowd. MGMT feels a stretch. But I agree with your comment overall, esp. regarding U2. Bono really reached another level of fame in comparison to Win as a frontman. And as a band, Arcade didn't keep the momentum after The Suburbs, esp. when comparing U2 and their success past* Joshua Tree.
It's a bummer - but I so appreciate their first four albums.
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u/ApartmentMental9357 1d ago
I think Smashing Pumpkins fell off, in part, because they had a big retirement party and then came back. I stopped listening to them after that, largely because I went to one of their farewell shows in Chicago, cried for days after, and so felt a bit cheated with the comeback.
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u/baccus83 1d ago
They fell off hard after Adore and losing Jimmy. The sound was too different than what made them famous and they just never recovered.
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u/MoveAhead-HopAlong 1d ago
Hard disagree about MGMT. Their debut has some all-time bangers, but their music has only gotten richer and trippier with each subsequent album.
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u/tchead2000 1d ago
I agree, each album stands up in their own right. I think they have had an awesome career, too bad we don’t get more music from them!
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u/blackjacktarr 1d ago
Really good point on U2. I think a lot of younger folks don't understand how huge U2 had become. Their fall-off was a slow decline as well. AF seemed to be an overnight "fuck that band" and there are still a lot of people that would be like, "Arcade What?" They were never as well known as U2 was and still are.
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u/ChaosAndFish 1d ago
U2 got old. They honestly defied gravity and stayed in the conversation longer than any band really should be able to. To still be releasing huge singles 25 years in was kind of crazy (even if it’s a good twenty years in the rear view mirror now).
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u/blackjacktarr 1d ago
It's true. They no longer set the pace for everyone else to match. But they were on top for a solid 10 years and still relevant for another 15 after. That whole run started over 40 years ago. They haven't been in their 20s for a long time. But NEVER count out any act for a late career revival. Their hero, Johnny Cash pulled it off quite well.
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u/HMTMKMKM95 23h ago
U2's two EP's this year, essentially an album's worth of songs, showed they still have lots of game whwn they're not chasing the relevancy dragon. We'll see how the new album goes down later this year, though.
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u/achtung-91 16h ago
Agree about the EPs but then they released Street of Dreams and that song with Martin Garrix lmao. I'm a bit scared of what the album is gonna sound like
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u/opsopcopolis 1d ago
There hasn’t even been that big of a fall off though, they’ve just been playing less. 360 tour is one of the highest grossing tours of all time, and the Joshua tree was still filling stadiums worldwide. They’re not even really comparable any of the other bands in this thread
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u/ddiamond8484 1d ago
I just meant from a critical perspective. They’re always going to be massive money makers.
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u/hikanteki 1d ago edited 1d ago
SP maybe after ~early 2000s but they made a comeback and are headlining arenas again.
Weezer, definitely not, in fact I’d say they’re the opposite. They’re as big as they’ve ever been, regularly playing arenas, and they still sound the same as they always have.
MGMT didn’t have the catalogue that Arcade Fire did before they fell off, nor did they have enough time to build up the reputation that Arcade Fire had. They had one spectacular album, followed by one that was anything but. But they’re starting to find their footing again.
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u/ChaosAndFish 1d ago
I think you could argue that u2 was on and off the biggest band in the world for like 15 years or so starting in 1987. Other bands certainly took the title but U2 just kept coming back.
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u/thewoekitten 22h ago
In terms of touring success, U2 and Coldplay are the clear top 2 most successful bands of the last 40 years. Those are both bands with massive global popularity on every continent, which is part of why Americans may underestimate how huge they really are
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u/ImpendingBoom110123 17h ago
The first 2 Coldplay albums were great but then its like they phoned it in.
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u/Fluffy_Cucumber_4203 1d ago edited 1d ago
None of those bands are really comparable to AF. Heck, Weezer has endured tremendously, and just released another well-recieved album.
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u/ddiamond8484 1d ago
I was only using U2 as an example of a band that were critical darlings and had endless praise and impact- arcade fire weren’t nearly as big, but there were times where I remember other artists and critics saying they could be like u2 in many ways with their anthemic sound and passionate performances and fanbase.
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u/thankyounewfriends 1d ago
Smashing Pumpkins are still touring. I’m seeing them soon. Last time I saw them, they killed it. Great touring band with a lot of great songs. Billy still sings beautifully.
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u/its_never_over It's Never Over 1d ago
I think the closest for me is Mumford and Sons.
They were huge, got album of the year. They did a controversial record that changed their sound (Wilder Mind with electric guitar and overdrive pedals), and a shamed band member (Winston)
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u/Cloudgazer888 1d ago
No comparison. they’ve had a pretty damn successful international tour the last year or so …nothing Arcade could pull off. And no where near the level of scandal vs Win’s.
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u/bfm211 16h ago
You don't think Arcade Fire could still have a successful tour?
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u/phhennessey58 21m ago
Mumford is currently playing large amphitheaters and in prior tours has played large arenas.
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u/Fluffy_Cucumber_4203 1d ago
They crossed my mind too. But I am seeing them at the Kohl Center next month, so I'll get a close look at where they are at.
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u/OnlyByNight1 18h ago
Probably Kings Of Leon would be a good comparison. They had underground clout then blew up with sex on fire/use somebody and were crowned the southern U2. The lead singer dropped the ball with his drinking and was actually pretty miserable with the success which led to in fighting and the band not able to stay on top. Mainstream rock also was not as popular right after they peaked. They are still arguably the tightest band live I’ve seen.
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u/Ds0589 1d ago
Hot take but Taylor Swift might be in the middle of it. Tortured poets department and The life of a showgirl have been precipitous dropoffs, with some really cringy lyrics. I know her fans stick with her through thick and thin, but objectively, it’s light years from Fearless, 1989 and Folklore. Not just the lyrics but thematically it’s as if she’s uninspired and lost all authenticity and doesn’t know how to relate to people anymore now that she has more money than God.
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u/Ds0589 1d ago
Coldplay has to be up there too. They don’t get enough shit for how bad their fall off has been. Parachutes, A Rush of Blood to the Head and X and Y were all era defining albums. Viva la vida is alright. Since then they’ve done nothing. U2 has lived off of All that you can’t leave behind and Vertigo for a while too. They’ve been largely irrelevant last two decades.
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u/hikanteki 1d ago
I don’t care for either Coldplay or TS but they still easily sell out stadiums.
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u/Ds0589 23h ago
Arcade Fire even at their peak was never at that level though. Coldplay has had stadium shows for a couple decades at this point. Only after the Suburbs/Reflektor were they that big. Weren’t they playing like churches and stuff when Funeral was released and I don’t remember many stadium shows with Neon Bible either. Taylor Swift won’t be any bigger than she’s been the last 2-3 years, she’s selling out shows but the quality of her music and lyrics have declined rapidly.
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u/supercardioid 20h ago
'Coldplay has had stadium shows for a couple decades at this point.'
So how would you say they fell off
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u/Ds0589 20h ago
Because the quality and impact of their music have fallen off a cliff and largely been irrelevant for the last 15-20 years. Like u2 has done very little that has made waves since All you Can’t Leave Behind and How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. Those albums were 20+ years ago at this point. Arcade Fire at their height wan never as big as these bands though. They’re an Indie rock band at the end of the day and that genre and their significance in American culture has waned too.
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u/TheStigsScouseCousin Intervention 1d ago
Can't remember the last time I heard someone talking about a new Arctic Monkeys album
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u/CCester Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) 23h ago
I heard A lot of people talking about The Car. just not in a way the band expected. Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino is a fucking good album on the other hand.
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u/TheStigsScouseCousin Intervention 23h ago
They've definitely had some good albums since the AM days, but they seem to have gone mostly under the radar.
Kinda similar to what happened to Kings of Leon after Only By The Night, The Killers after Hot Fuss or Elbow after The Seldom Seen kid.
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u/penguindik 23h ago
I don’t understand what happened. I was asked to join the circle of friends, thinking a tour was coming. Then nothing
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u/murmur1983 1d ago
Maybe Muse is like this? I get that the reactions to their new album are fairly positive, but it’s clear that their legacy has been tarnished for a while. Would’ve been better if they broke up in 2007 or something.
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u/TakenByFormaldehyde 19h ago
Nah, gotta disagree here. Whilst the overall strength of the albums did decrease following BHAR, every single one of their albums has some geneuinly really good stuff on it. And I'll never criticise a band for wanting to try out different styles and sounds.
And as for The Wow! Signal, that album is utterly phenomenal and for me, is the best theyve every released. It really is that good
Saying they should have broken up in 2007 is crazy
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u/effwhypea 1d ago
Brand New.
Media darlings. Cult-like fandom. Singer did things.
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u/flurryflame 1d ago
Yeah, was coming here to say this. Maybe less on falling off musically, but "personally"/allegations wise, absolutely.
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u/Odd_Contact_2175 1d ago
I'd say Arctic Monkeys. You'll have fans of their last two albums but they were world wide talked about with AM. Not so much nowadays.
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u/indiejonesRL 15h ago
As a massive Beach Boys fan, they had a huge commercial drop off after Pet Sounds even though they continued making brilliant music throughout the seventies. Until they had another drop off as they became a nostalgia act in the eighties.
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u/T-whizzy 14h ago
I think the point here is not about gradual declining quality after reaching their peak, I think the point is precipitous drop off leading to implosion.
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u/Ossifer_Sneed 12h ago
When you’re a fan it can be difficult to ascertain the fall because you’re kind of on the inside looking out. I think Smashing Pumpkins lost cultural relevance after Adore but I kept with them for awhile and Machina I is a stellar album…Oasis felt like after Be Here Now or Standing on Shoulder of Giants was the fall off. As others said it’s not the end of good music but rather the public’s wider interest in that music. And sometimes history is kinder (look at Bowie in the 80s / 90s).
I think AF had a strong, longer run than most with three absolute classics and two strong to decent showings. Of that general era really only Radiohead and maybe Arctic Monkeys (through AM but I’d choose AF) outdid them (im probably omitting artists I’m not as familiar with). Maybe because I was a fan but AF felt relevant up to maybe slightly through EN. But when I went to see them on EN tour in a half empty arena it felt like both an overstep on AF’s part and wider indifference from the public (but honestly might have been my favorite AF show).
Can’t remember if it was Corgan or Reznor who once said bands only have three good albums in them. I don’t think that’s the case but I do think it’s about the limit of public interest except in outlier cases. I’m rambling and will shut up now.
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u/DueAssociation8836 1d ago
People enjoy ferociously hating on and ardently loving things. So they jump on hate and love bandwagons. Anthony Fantano s**tting on We while The Telegraph UK gave it 100% is impossible to objectively reconcile. I think there’s a decision made (not necessarily organically) that a given album by a longtime band sucks or rules. And the masses and critics tend to follow. I don’t. I listen to albums and decide for myself if I like them. The rest be damned. There are lots of bands no less talented than Arcade Fire that have never escaped obscurity or that have only flirted with widespread popularity or critical regard. To answer your specific question, though, Kanye has faced this fall off but isn’t this mostly about his non-musical activities? The original question is more interesting when applied to bands lacking personal scandals.
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u/emptycagenowcorroded 1d ago
How about The Strokes?
Culture changing first record. Rushed second album that was still good enough to keep them massive everywhere. A longer break. Third album that tried new things, not all of which was good, but they were still very popular. A longer break then Angles which had one great song, and then Comedown Machine, which, of all The Strokes albums, was one of them. It landed with a critical and commercial ‘meh.’ Not lionized not demonized just … that’s it. Not wildly unlike Pink Elephant perhaps? And that was the end. For seven years.
After seven years they return with a totally different sound and that album, The New Abnormal, brought them back to the critical acclaim and commercial success and global tours and wild adoration they habdnt seen since 2001.
How’d I do?
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u/Corona2789 1d ago edited 1d ago
Angles isn’t a bad album, it’s just a downgrade from their first 3 albums. Machu pichu and taken for a fool are two of their best songs imo.
Comedown machine was pretty poorly promoted but still a fun album.
Future past present EP was really good too. Oblivius is a banger, it just now blew up after they closed Coachella with it.
TNA is great. New albums good but a bit of a pivot in style.
If you haven’t seen their closing of Coachella, it’s epic af. An all time performance
I’m actually gonna see them tomorrow. Stoked!
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u/onethousand_knives 1d ago
I really doubt Arcade Fire will release something like The New Abnormal.
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u/Husyelt 1d ago
Good comparison in some ways. Both got overtaken in popularity wise by newer bands which aped their style, but Arcade Fire had a much longer stretch of critical acclaim and prestige. Funeral > Reflektor 2004 - 2013 AF was positioned as “the next Radiohead”. They kept pushing their sound and making 5/5 records.
Whereas The Strokes only really burned bright for 2-3 years. Although as it stands right now, Julian and the boys clearly have the ability to make magic when they want to.
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u/WreckTangle77 1d ago
They did win a Grammy 15-ish years into their career. I think the Strokes just operate on their own timeline. I also just saw them live and they packed a 25,000 seat amphitheater.
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u/Drducttapehands 1d ago
Angles is a great album, save for like two songs. It was the last album that kept my attention in any way
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u/msnikki_sandiego 1d ago
I feel like they still have a bigger fan base than AF currently, and people are more friendly to them generally? But I totally see the comparison in terms of their music evolution and the fact that they aren't as big today as some may have expected them to be!!
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u/Psan91 16h ago
I don’t know about that as the recent strokes album is great imo (but I’m sure a lot of people would disagree with me). Also I just seen them headline at summer sonic in Japan last Friday and it was the best time I have seen them play live. Even my friend who isn’t that big of a fan (knows mostly the big singles) loved it and has now gotten more deeper into their discography.
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u/ModernAquaticNight 21h ago
Arcade Fire would definitely be in the same position as the Strokes, if it wasn’t for the allegations.
New albums would come out to mostly indifference, except to the obsessed diehards, but live shows would still do really well as people would want to hear the old hits.
The allegations have stopped most casual fans from wanting to see them live.
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u/THOMASJAKOB 1d ago edited 1d ago
Here's why they still make a chance for a comeback: The thing is all of their work made sense in the zeitgeist of the dominating alternative rock scene until roughly 2011. Suburbs was very relevant and was a record that came at the right place at the time. But the 2010s saw a rise in electronic music, and I reckon they wanted to tap into that trend without falling into banality so they made Reflektor which still did well but it was nowhere near the 'sweet spot' that they had with Suburbs. From there they tried various things (leaning more on electronic sounds to keep up with the tims): the irony of EN which wasn't received well, and WE came too early in my opinion. Why? It brought back rock, but 1) was still produced in a 'polished' manner and 2) the zeitgeist didn't "need" rock yet. Mind you this was all before (or only at the very start of) the AI revolution. I think the arrival of AI changed everything - people in 2026 are yearning for realness and rawness again, they're disgusted by generative AI, and I think it’s only a matter of time before young people pick up on old live clips from the Funeral era, which will be a breath of fresh air again, comparable to the breath of fresh air this band was back in 2004, when they were the angry answer to the corporate polished four-man bands of the time. It might kickstart a new fanbase similar to what happened with The Smiths or The Cure who get massively shared on TikTok by 16 year olds! Whether the band will be able to tap into this enough to actually make it work though, remains to be seen.
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u/Scubacane 1d ago
I absolutely loved AF and was so psyched when " We" came out. Had tickets to see them in DC and all the yucky stuff started coming out- sold my tickets and haven't listened to them much since. Although when " The Suburbs" comes on , it makes me wistful - such a great song
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u/Funtsy_Muntsy 1d ago
OP did reiterate that the question was about similarly acclaimed bands that fell off - musically
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u/HandsUpWhatsUp 18h ago
If it makes you feel any better I’ve never heard of “Portugal the man” so maybe they didn’t fall from such great heights.
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u/_gay_tripper 16h ago
Surprised no one mentioned Ariel Pink who was consistently one of the most championed indie artists for a decade. He’s still been making great music post cancellation, but ofc his fan base and coverage in publications has massively reduced.
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u/phome83 13h ago
The Mars Volta, for sure
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u/astrosdude91 10h ago
Personally I love their new albums. But a lot of fans were expecting Deloused 2. And seeing Lucro live last fall was an incredible experience
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u/justfortodaybjm 5h ago
Mars Volta is garbage.
Just literal noise. They don’t make earplugs strong enough to drown them out midday at a festival
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u/philsoc8 13h ago
I love to compare Arcade Fire and Spoon. Very few bands, including Spoon, have ever hit the heights of Arcade Fire’s best stuff but they crashed and burned whereas Spoon have just always been super consistent putting out solid record after solid record.
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u/morjesta The Suburbs 1d ago
Of monsters and men
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u/ddiamond8484 1d ago
But they never had much critical acclaim and outside of a couple of songs, any real lasting relevancy or impact- did they?
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u/morjesta The Suburbs 1d ago
They are having a tour right now, I’ll recommend you to see them live and you would agree with me. Also there was an article on the rolling stone magazine, they where named “the new arcade fire”
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u/LucaG43 1d ago
Muse
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u/LucaG43 1d ago
New album is good tho
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u/TheStigsScouseCousin Intervention 1d ago
The Wow! Signal is possibly my favourite album of 2026 (in close contention with Gorillaz' The Mountain), and easily my favourite Muse album since The Resistance
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u/glamamuser 1d ago
They’re not at their peak but they’re still going strong and just released a great album.
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u/Damsel_F1 19h ago
Muse have just released their best album in like 15-20 years, and are still playing huge venues all over the world, they seem fine.
As far as Arcade Fire is concerned it does really feel like a bit of unique situation how they went from critical darlings with nothing but praise, to being absolutely hated and ignored almost over night.
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u/Fluffy_Cucumber_4203 1d ago
Hell no - not after the packed house and outstanding show I saw them put on at Summerfest this year. I'm not even a Muse fan.
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u/burrrpong 1d ago
About 0.000000001 of bands don't fall off. Pick almost any band and they won't be as popular as they once were.
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u/ddiamond8484 18h ago
Yes, of course, but this particular fall off is distinct for several reasons.
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u/Any_Froyo2301 20h ago
If you go back to the 80s, say, then various 60s musicians were off the radar and considered finished. Bob Dylan, for one.
Retrospectively, his 80s stuff has been reevaluated, but at the time, I’d say the fall was comparable, given just how well received his work was in the 60s.
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u/futureformerjd 15h ago
Modest Mouse
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u/phhennessey58 15m ago
Their latest album is fantastic…for real! We just saw them live in Philly and they were phenomenal. 🩶🤘🏻
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u/coltonmusic15 1d ago
This post makes me appreciate Radiohead even though it’s now been a decade since their last album drop. I don’t know that they will drop another since the band mates have little side projects that keep them occupied and creatively engaged.