M in Toronto
poutine: fries, cheeses, gravy fries and mayonnaise: fries, mayonnaise

Steve
My fav Canadian band right now is The Diableros from Toronto. They get mentioned with Arcade Firt all the time although I feel they are more melodic and better lyrics.

CISM 89.3 FM montreal dj
I'm in montreal as well whilst listening to some of Radio one shows to inspired me coz I'm really into British music acts..but got to say montreal got hot bands in those days, I really love Arcade, The Stills, The Dears, wolf parade, etc... montreal and UK rocks, seriously

YUL rock
the best band in Canada... the best band in quebec... c'mon they're not even the best band west of St-Laurent. PE-LEASE

Rocinante
The question is if Arcade Fire is the best band EVER to come out of Canada, thankfully, they are not;)Neil Young, BNL, 54-40, DOA, The Guess Who, the Hip, are all kinda worthy of that title, kinda... But remember at the end of the day Rush is the best group to come out of Canada eh;)

Copshootcop
No mention of Martha Wainwright - who used to live in Montreal before decamping to poxy hipster hell that is Willamsburg, NYC.

djkiang
You guys are too much. I'm from Canada, I should know music, Arcade Fire sucks compared to...blah blah blah ...what you may like, others may not. Arcarde Fire has brought a different sound to the music world, and I'm sure there are many other bands, from all around the world that will do the same. Just ride the ride and be thankful Canada is finally getting recognized musically on the map. Typical indie rockers, knocking bands that are popular now, and trying to tell everyone the "new bands to check out".

Seb_est_la
Arcade fire sound too Frantz Ferdinan, its good but temporary. Creative underground music is not new for Montreal. Basically - if your are a mtl band - your are underground. Don't miss those who broken the St-Laurent's cultural gate - Banlieu Rouge, Planet Smasher - and the pollywog festival. Also not the worse BranVan 3000.

Jonny Pop
Before thinking about The Arcade Fire being or not the best band to ever come out of Canada. I urge you all to listen to the song The Kid from Uberko, an upcoming band from Québec City. (www.uberko.com)(click on the robot in the -Musique- section) They don't even have an album right now but believe me, when they will they'll be dangerous !

DJ Awol
what about Bran Van 3000, Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell, ...

Simon
from an English point of view - easily the best (& most consistant) band anywhere on Earth has to be The Tragically Hip. I've seen & heard plenty of bands in my long life and they are truly awesome, and electrifying, both on CD & live.

paul
Code Pie!

Mar
Arcade Fire is one of the best bands to come from Canada, but there have been countless others: Sam Roberts, The Stills, Bedouin Sound Clash, Broken Social Scene, to name a few. Glorifying Montreal as the next Seattle is going overboard. Montreal's got it's share of problems, just like any other city. Oh BTW, poutine consists of chips (fries), gravy and cheese curds, not mayonnaise.

Dj Alex Codaire
Dee is the next big thing. it's just fat

ashley
No.... The unicorns are!

Elle Ge
Montreal band Chiwawa has been digging its musical niche since the early nineties. Recorded their first album in Bristol England with Leed's native Steve Whitfield (The Cure,The Mission). Arcade Fire are good but do NOT represent the Montreal scene on the most basic level. In fact the founding members are not from Montreal and their label is out of North Carolina. They are "posers" and Montreal wannabes... but it has helped raise Montreal's profile - so good for everybody. For the real deal listen here: http://www.chiwawafanclub.com

celyn from montreal
of course they are! they rock! oh, and by the way, poutine is not gravy, chips and mayonaise- its curdled chesse melted over chips (or french fries as we call em) with gravy. i love listening to bbc thanks sooo much for doing a documentary on montreal.... thanks! celyn

Pyramid Pete
No.Look up north...Quebec city!Just watch them!!as would have say Trudeau.The name:La Chambre.Try one song...you'll have it in your head for a week!Brit-Pop,THE STYLE.Their faces.../@$?%&*!!Try them before you die!

djd
Love the Arcade Fire and their live show is above and beyond, but add me to the chorus promoting The Weakerthans. A truly amazing band whose music is appreciated more with each listen.

Tjarminder
well no one band can be the best sorry...so many great bands coming from that part of the country...arcade fire, wolf parade and a new one that CBC claims can join them code pie...i've listened to them all and they're all superb, but none yet as the best in canada.

Emz
Les Trois Accords are the best full stop

Simlim
Bedouin Soudclash will conquer de world.

Simon
I prefer the Planet Smashers.

Allan
No ! The very best band from Montreal is LaChambre ! www.lachambreinspace.co.uk

Christine
If you want to hear a variety of sounds and style, you MUST definitely check out the talents of CODE PIE. Monotonous sounds are definitely NOT in their vocab.

ashcan the trashcan
The best Canadian band is "THE GUYS" check out there x-mas songs as well...

Monheim
Arcade Fire are a great band but not a patch on Godspeed You! Black Emperor. The most powerful and yet beautiful apocolyptic music ever made. Silver Mt. Zion are also incredible as they are comprised mostly of Godspeed memebers!

Torontonian
Not the best, but the most exposed. Stars, Broken Social Scene and Metric all need more international coverage.

SE
Even if they don't produce another record of any substance, Funeral will remain an awakeing for many to the delights of canadian music that are in abundance. I suspect that the future for AF will be bright judging by tracks like "Intervention" which remain to be released.

DrJimmy
The Arcade Fire are the greatest band to come out of ANYWHERE in this decade. Funeral is a classic album that will be played and talked about for years to come.

Spidey
YES! In my humble opinion, they're the best best band to ever come out of anywhere. I certainly haven't heard another band I like better. We're all different tho, and we all have our own taste (which is how is should be). I can only tell you that after going to live gigs since 1978....and being lucky enough to see hundreds of amazing artists in that time, nothing (apart from David Bowie) has moved me like The Arcade Fire do.....they're magical. Can't wait to hear the new album (when it's ready) and to see them again :-)

John
Not the best band to come out of Canada but so far so good! As far as Toronto having a better music scene...what a joke! Toronto is always jealous of Montreal, whether it's hockey or music always remember...WE ARE THE BEST! VIVE LE MONTREAL!

loulou
good band so far and one of my favourite albums this year - but EVER is a bit on the dramatic side - never say ever best songwriter to come out of canada in my humble opinion is leonard cohen - the master !

Quebecoise
I'm from quebec but in the UK for a while. It's good to see that people love real great music here and do appreciate bands from quebec because some quebecois don't realize how some of our bands are good. Badly, people from the UK don't know french canadians artists like Jean Leloup, Fred Fortin, Les Colocs, Mononc Serge, Les Cowboys Fringants, Les Breastfeeders, Galaxie 500, Mara Tremblay etc... Add up french bands from quebec in your culture because it worths it!

James in Ottawa
Better than The Band? No.

Francois Tibo
I'll start by saying that Poutine is made with cheese curds instead of mayonaise. Such a mistake could start severe diplomatic problems. As for music, Arcade Fire are the best right now but so many things are hapenning in French and in English.

mark sabourin
the arcade fire actually suck. i like the stills, the dears many others. uhmmmm, i mean arent all their songs loosely based on david bowie's "starman"? duh, every montreal band is just remaking some of that british sound, morrisey etc, thats why brits are so heavily into it. maybe 1 video a week of good indie music on much music. montreal has no scene, just articles in the NY times and BBC radio.

Meletiadis Ioannis, Greece
Don't know if they re really the best band to ever come out of Canada but they re definitely the best band of the last 10 years by miles.Can you still make a better combination of french and english lyrics than this or is it possible to make pain sound so tempting?Pure genius, hope they will keep up the same level, the brazil song was quite good as well..

Dwight69
Jon-Rae and the River - best band in the country. Final Fantasy as well.

Montrealer now in Edinburgh
Okay, I do love the Arcade Fire, but seriously, everyone should check out Joel Plaskett from Halifax. He is unreal and his new album "La De Da" is incredible. Definitely worth a listen!

Diddy
Second behind Kiss Me Deadly

Martin from Mtl
Hey Fred, you say that ALL the members of Arcade Fire come from outside of Montréal, well you obviously don't know what you're talking about. If it's true that Win is Texan, Regine, the "muse" of the band, is a true Montrealer, as is Howard. As for the other members, they come from all over Canada but all lived in Montréal before the band even formed. British readers, the biaised comments from this Fred give you a good example of the chauvinist attitude of many english canadians towards everything good that comes out of Québec; it's been like this for centuries and will probably be for some more ;-)

jesus of suburbia
Arcade Fire? i wish someone would throw them on the fire, put them and us out of our miseries! i first saw them on "later with...", and it just made me laugh in dispair. the main squeaker was even playing his telecaster back to front at one point to make himself a little more "kooky" - absolutely pathetic!

Colin
It's been said ad nauseum here already, but before everyone waxes lyrical about the Arcade Fire, those of you outside of Canada should really, really check out the other bands that have been mentioned above. I'm amazed that so many people know the Weakerthans - awesome. Anyone remember Chixdiggit? Ahh, Calgary's punk scene. How we all miss it (tear). While AF are doing is bringing some much-needed exposure to Canada's indie scene, they're not the greatest ever. But hopefully we can distract attention away from the likes of Avril Lavigne and Simple Plan (pause to puke). I also find it funny how pretentious some of us Canucks are about our scene. Like it should be some sort of huge secret. Get over yourselves, let's share this stuff - clearly the UK is ready!

Anthony
They are the best band to come out for anywhere in years let alone Canada, musical genuises! I had the pleasure of seeing them at Reading Festival and they put on the most mezmorising show I've seen. Bliss!

Marty
I don't know if the Arcade Fire is the best...I'd say they're are my favourite of the moment. There are so many great Canadian bands. A tip to others, if you want to explore other Canadian indie bands, check out the CBC Radio 3 or the CBC radio 3 podcast!

sarah
yes! great band.

Muff
I'm suprised that there has been no mention of the Dave Schram Band. Truly Canada's finest!

mary
the best band i've seen in montreal is dead messenger. and i've seen alot of bands in montreal.

Andrew
There are plenty of great bands in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver. For another interesting Montreal band, people should check out Code Pie.

GO TO HELL
NO THEY SUCK AND ARE OVER RATED GET A LIFE MAN THEY ARE NOTHING, ITS OVER, THEY RIPPED OFF SO MANY BANDS

Matt P
Lived in Canada last year and saw the Weakerthans in Halifax, Nova Scotia!!! They kicked ass indeed and now i'm back in the UK i have been checking out more candian bands. I thing the weakerthans are better than the arcade fire, they have only had one album, how can they be the best?!!!

bluseychris
Arcade fire? Meh, much preffered Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Exhaust. Bands like that are better than Arcade Fire will ever be.

magical unicorn
no they are not the best band ever to come out of canada. they don't neary match up to the life affirming sound of the most credible, most intelligent artist of our time shania twain, also from the land of the maple tree and the siamese cat

Ben Keeler
I agree, kinda. They're probably the best, but don't forget bands such as DFA1979, Hot Hot Heat, Wolf Parade etc... Any of their records are worth buying - any! They have a uniquely lovable sound, that even the pickiest listeners would love to bits...

Little Lightning Paw
Well as Godspeed don't really exist anymore,it has to be Silver Mt Zion...

Ads
Forget Manchester! The place is about to blow up (again)! Arcade fire are amazing tho and teh album is really special!

Jay
I live in Montreal and that was a decent representative of the indie rock scene here. It's journalism so of course it's exagerated but pretty good on the whole. And in response to a lot of these posts on here, saying you are Canadian does not make you an authority on things to do with Quebec, sorry but a lot of people outside of have no idea what is going on in here.

Randall
Way too much emphasis on Montreal here...Toronto's music scene is easily just as strong, making it, according to this article, one of the best in the world. Bands like Broken Social Scene, Metric, and DFA 1979 all worked their way through the T.O. indie rock club circuit before making it big. Look out for The Diableros...

Caro
Arcade Fire is a great, exciting band, but only time will tell what they mean to Canadian music. About the "Montreal Scene" : most Montrealers don't recognize their scene in the buzz that's been set out by the journalists, for the simple reason that from the start, two thirds of the "scene" had been completely cut out from the review. I talk about the french scene : the Jean Leloup, Malajube, Georges Leningrad, Breastfeeders, Trois Accords, Cowboys Fringants and so on. While you play in the background the beautiful ballad of Rufus Wainwright, who in the anglo saxon world will ever hear the equally brilliant, baroque and cheeky Pierre Lapointe? Food for thought, mes amis.

Fred
Hey everybody.... nobody in the Arcade fire are originally from MTL - they're from the States and West Canada so please don't tell me this is the Montreal sound - It's kind of insulting - They're a good band but honestly there's tons of incredibly talented bands in MTL that could be named way before, AF happened to be the lucky ones - The best band to ever come out of Canada is in my opinion Toronto's the Deadly Snakes (in the red records (usa) - paperbag records (can)) - they mix together everything that was good in the 50's - the 60's - the 70's - the 90's and the 00's - ( by the way I didn't forget the 80's) - They have really good lyrics - solid songs - obvious and really unoubvious influences and they don't look cool - They reek of total sincerity and integrity - check them out - Scruffy rock n roll - Soul - Folk - They're the Stones-The Faces-Dylan-the Birthday Party-Tom Waits-the Velvet Underground-Wilson Picket-Otis Redding-the Band-Donovan-Nick Drake-Reingning Sound- All mixed together

tony
there are plenty of great bands in montreal playing all sorts of music. priestess, dead messenger, bbq, the american devices to name just a few. the entire scene is great and hopefully more bands will get the credit they deserve.

Fura
Heroes & Villains is the BEST band ever!!! Buy the EP!! go see them live! Amazing!!

Po
Wow you all are so trendy. So fresh, on here talking about the latest buzz. What hip, trendy people you all are.... to know about Arcade Fire. That's so hip. Cuz that's what's "cool" right now right? the Arcade Fire? that's what all the scenesters and posers are claiming as "the next Big Thing" right? Arcade Fire? Wow you guys are so hip. BTW you all should spend a little less time following the crowd, no matter how "underground" you think it may be, and start opening your ears. Every city has their own music scene and each scene has it's shining bands, find someone that you like that the media hasn't gotten a hold of, cuz let's face it the fact that Arcade Fire is even being mentioned on this site makes them more commercial than you all desperately say they aren't. Seriously, nothing makes me angrier than people who break down and categorize music. Let it be, trust me in 6 months you all will be on here discussing the next flavor of the month as "The best band to come out of Ohio." or trying to pin down the "Muncee Indiana Sound" It's pathetic. Nothing matters less about music than where the band is from. Don't you all see that?

Mat
No.. Neil Young is from Canada

Jesuit
3 Words... Heroes And Villains... easily the most promising band of the lot...check them out live ASAP!

punky!
I hate it when bands that happen to coincidentally all hail from Montreal are lumped in together as having a "Montreal sound". It makes you think that if you were to pop by Montreal at any given time, you could happen upon those bands playing live gigs (when in fact it's rare), or that there is a unifying sound that ties the whole city together. These bands happen to have a high profile but there is definitely not a consistent sound the way there might have been 10-15 years ago in Seattle.

Will Smith
I think Stars and Wolf Parade are definitely worth a listen over Arcade Fire. That said, I think there's a hell of a lot of Canadian music that should get a bit more promotion in the UK... Metric... Broken Social Scene.... Hidden Cameras... New Pornographers... The Stills... The Weakerthans... Do Make Say Think... so lets really give it all a listen!

bendix
don't forget the weakerthans!!!! love live the 'peg man.

AJ
There's no shared Montreal "sound" . For a potted look at some Montreal indie pop bands it was pretty good, but it ignored the huge electronica/electro/club scene - Ninja Tune maintain their North American offices here, Amon Tobin lives here now, and there's the longstanding influence of Tiga and his Turbo Recordings label.

Sandy
No! They just happened to get good publicity. Its all a roll of the Dice.

Marco
There are a few really heavy bands that have yet to break out. The Donkeys, Besnard Lakes, nitrosonique, to name a few. Perhaps Bands like Priestess, Arcade Fire and Wolf Parade will sort of pave the way.

booglazee
speaking as a Canadian... Best band ever at this point cannot go to a group who has released one debut album only. They are great - don't get me wrong. But we all know that in the business of rock n roll, longevity counts. You couldn't for example compare them to The Tragically Hip or Bare Naked Ladies. (BTW, the leader of the band is from Texas [which explains those beautiful southern sounds mixed in], so they are sort of only half Canadian, technically speaking :)

G
Recently we had a TV show which listed the top selling artists in the UK of the 21st Century when we are only 5 years into the 21st Century! Everyone is bored with referencing, discussing and sensationalising previous era's, so hey, lets do the last 5 years. For anyone to make a statement claiming the Arcade Fire to be the best band to ever come out of Canada is absurd when they have only released one album, and that made up primarily of songs on a previous EP (i.e. they haven't written new material for it) They are a great band now, but time will tell if they have the talent to continue producing great music.

Iain
Arcade Fire are the best new band of 2005 but why haven,t they done more Uk and ireland tour dates

Dana
As a canadian I can tell you they are a very good band but that is only the tip of the iceberg , please keep in mind that we have alot of band that you guy's will never here , as we will probley never here 90% of the great bands in the UK!!(I am alway's the frist to say that the UK has the best sound ever)Thank you

Jen in Montreal
I hesitate only because that's a huge sweeping statement. Yes, they have definetly produced one of the most original sounds in the past year, but Canada's indie scene includes so many more up-and-comers like (as mentioned above) Stars, Wolf Parade, Broken Social Scene (who I would argue are BETTER than Arcade Fire, but maybe not as accessible). But Canada's music industry is pretty huge and has produced some awesome mainstream talent like The Trews, Sam Roberts, The Tragically Hip, Neil Young and (let's of course not forget) Alanis Morrissette. However, I do think Arcade Fire is awesome because they have put Montreal back on the map (or can we thank Coldplay for incessantly talking about them???).

Ashley
Arcade Fire are truly the best Canadian band that has come out lately but they still have to come out with a couple more ablums to show that they are the best to ever come out of Canada

Dante
Get real people. The Arcade Fire are a great band but what happens when their second album bombs? Are you still going to be comparing them to Neil Young and The Tragically Hip for goodness sake? There are tons of great Canadian bands that deserve credit but lets just keep things in perspective here. Don't get me wrong, it is nice to see a great band getting attention but I also think bands like Stars, Broken Social Scene, Hot Hot Heat, DFA 1979, and The Sam Roberts Band should be noticed as well.

Bill Shaw
I love Arcade Fire, but Neil Young is the best Canadian artist ever !!!

Derek
1> The band is good 2> Poutine is chips, cheese curds and gravy; no mayonnaise 3> it's KAYbekwa, not KEWbukwa

Richard
They are a fine band, and the album is truly great. But amazingly there are several other Canadian bands of almost equal merit - Stars, Broken Social Scene, New Pornographers, the Stills.. I suppose after all those years of suffering Bryan Adams the Canadians probably deserve a good run.

Clare
Oh yes!

R1 - Big Al
Am I the only person who dare admit how awesome Sum 41 are?

Brad
I'm an Arcade Fire fan, but that is an insane statement to make. One full length album and an EP is not enough material to judge if they are the best ever to come out of Canada. I want to see two or three more quality albums before I can give you an answer. Also I have to say, this whole Montreal scene buzz has been blown out of proportion, Toronto has a scene that is arguably as good or better right now.

Byron
No. While I think that Arcade Fire's album is fantastic, The Tragically Hip, in my view, still hold the title of best band to come out of Canada. With a long list of excellent albums and songs talking about distinctly Canadian issues and history, The Hip will hold the title for several years to come.

James
Canada has always had lots of talented bands and artists. The ones that have made a large impact are usually artists that have consumer appeal in the United States. You don't get to hear about most of the really good bands. Arcade Fire are great but so are Billy Talent, Sam Roberts, Death From Above 1979, Hot Hot Heat, Controller-Controller and established Canadian bands like Sloane, The Tragically Hip, 54.40, Matthew Good Band and Wide Mouth Mason. Commercially the Arcade Fire will have a hard time outselling Canadian bands such as Rush, The Guess Who, Sum 41 and (sadly) Nickleback. Time will tell how good these guys really are.

Iain Ross
Does Celine Dion count as a band, if no then the answer is yes.

Matthew Baxter
GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR. exactly.

Corey
Best band.. maybe. Best artists...debatable. Remember, Neil Young was the founder of modern day indie music and the father of Canadian music in general. The Arcade Fire are amazing, but they weren't the first and they certainly wonn't be the last.

rabi
By far

adam frazier
To put it quite simply....yes!

john
In a word, no.

Joe
Yeah they sure are! Aint heard of any other bands from Canada as good as these lot! Cracking 1st album!

Ian in New Jersey (USA)
Hell yes! The Arcade Fire are helping Canada make up for the existence of Rush. Rush is a pretty deep and well-set stain on Canada's heritage, there may be only so much AF can do. Well, unless they become assasins with a time-machine.

Jams
Yes, no doubt about it!!! Arcade Fire are fantastic and Funeral is a masterpiece. I'm gutted that they're not touring the UK until they make another album :-(

Andy
Not at all! Godspeed You Black Emperor are the most creative and exciting Canadian band, along with Broken Social Scene, those crazy Canadians are making some incredible and most refreshing music around without a doubt. The Arcade Fire are interesting and have potential but after one record it's hard to see how they could be labelled the best ever Canadian band. Its also tough to call Montreal the new Seattle, as Seattle itself is enjoying a bit of a renaissance with the indie scene, including Death Cab, Modest Mouse, Smoosh etc....

alex
By far the best band out of Canada and have produced the best album this year

Gav
Yes, but are there any other worthy Canadian bands. Most Canadians appear to be warbling pretentious women or angsty teen females

Chris Brown
No wayare the Arcade Fire the best band to come out of Canada, and considering I have been born and raised in Canada I should know. We have an outstanding music scene here, and for better or worse, we have a tendency not to share our best band with the rest of the world. Never mind some of the old standards like the Guess Who, Canada has also produced such momumental acts like Propagandhi. If you want further proof of the depth of the musical talent here in Canada, I would recommend just going to any university pub and watch shows. A few weeks ago I went to see the Corb Lund band here in Saskatoon Sasktachewan , one of the best shows I've ever been to. Not discounting how good Arcade Fire are, but no where near the rank of best band to ever come out of Canada

Tom
Auf Der Maur for me every time. Also from Montreal...hmmm...