andPOP - Pop Culture With Substance

Montreal-based band Arcade Fire is set to release a concert film which includes both live and behind the scenes footage. The material is from the band’s European and North American tour.

Arcade Fire announced the project through a new website (Miroir Noir or Black Mirror) which shares the same name of a song on the album “Neon Bible”.

Fans can catch a clip of the film – which is set to release on Monday – on the site, according to a news release. The documentary is 70 minutes long and will be available to download and on DVD in 2009.

The film focusses on the period after the band recorded “Neon Bible”. This includes appearances on “Saturday Night Live” and “Friday Night With Jonathan Ross”.

The documentary was shot by French filmmaker Vincent Moon, who has also worked with REM.

Fans of Arcade Fire will get a behind-the-scenes look at the Montreal band in a new documentary.

“Miroir Noir” chronicles the making of the band’s 2007 album, “Neon Bible,” and their subsequent tour.

The 70-minute doc features both studio and live footage, the making of promotional films and videos, and several short films created while on the road.

“Miroir Noir” was shot by Parisian director Vincent Moon and co-directed by the band and Vincent Morisset, who previously worked on an interactive video for the “Neon Bible” title track.

Beginning Monday, the doc can be purchased online at miroir-noir.com in digital format. You will also get an instant download if you pre-order a standard or deluxe DVD edition that will be released next year.

The deluxe DVD includes bonus material such as Arcade Fire’s live performances on “Saturday Night Live,” British TV program “Friday Night With Jonathan Ross” and at the Maida Vale BBC studio.

Arcade Fire are working on the soundtrack to “The Box,” the latest thriller from “Donnie Darko” director Richard Kelly.

Kelly had not yet named the Montreal-based rockers as his collaborators, but the news, which marks Arcade Fire’s first film score, was leaked by producer/engineer Markus Dravs on his official website, according to Pitchfork.

Dravs, who last worked with the band on their 2007 album “Neon Bible,” wrote, “… having finished Coldplay’s forthcoming album ‘Viva La Vida’ — now off to Canada to work with Arcade Fire on a soundtrack for the forthcoming Richard Kelly film.”

“The Box,” which is expected to hit theatres by the end of 2008, stars Cameron Diaz and James Marsden in an adaptation of Richard Matheson’s 1970 short story “Button Button.”

A number of Matheson’s works have been adapted for the big screen, including his novels “What Dreams May Come,” “Stir of Echoes” and “I Am Legend.”

Montreal-based band Arcade Fire threw their support behind presidential hopeful Barack Obama in the lead-up to Tuesday’s hotly-contested U.S. primaries.

The group played two free concerts in Ohio on Sunday and Monday, hoping to sway undecided voters toward the Obama camp.

Sunday’s show took place near Ohio University in an obvious appeal to young voters, who have been crucial to Obama’s campaign so far.

Hillary Clinton’s people hit back by reminding reporters that the band was “Canadian.”

In fact, lead singer Win Butler and his brother Will were born in the U.S. and raised in Texas, while fellow band member Regine Chassagne has dual citizenship.

In his blog, Win Butler explained that his decision to back Obama came after watching Clinton’s victory speech in New Hampshire. He felt she was insincere when addressing the issues of university students, especially that of college loans.

Butler wrote that Obama, who has promised to make college education affordable, “is the first candidate in my lifetime to strip some of this b.s. away and I just hope we don’t blow this chance.”

Did the Fox network super rip off the Arcade Fire?

The band was reportedly surprised to hear their song, “No Cars Go” in a commercial that aired during the Super Bowl. According to PitchforkMedia.com, “Fox never even asked the band if they could use their song, and they certainly weren’t given permission to do so.”

Reportedly, the band’s reps are looking into the matter, and there is the possibility of a lawsuit.

The song was featured in a montage ad for NHL on Fox that appeared during the halftime show. Some fans have pointed out that the song has been used “on NFL on Fox ads throughout the football season.”

Just three of the 54 albums nominated for this year’s Shortlist Music Prize are by Canadian artists, reports ChartAttack.com.

The award is handed out for the best album released in the U.S. between January and November of last year that sold less than 500,000 copies domestically. Albums from 48 different labels and nine countries were nominated by Gary Lightbody of Snow Patrol, Ronnie Vannucci of The Killers and four radio personalities.

Lucky Canucks Feist, Arcade Fire and Stars will duke it out against the likes of Bjork, Justice, M.I.A., The Hives and Wilco. Previous winners include Sufjan Stevens, Damien Rice and N*E*R*D.

Canadians Arcade Fire, Feist and Stars are among 54 acts being considered for the Shortlist Music Prize.

The U.S. award is given to artists considered underappreciated and deserving of greater commercial success by a jury of musicians, producers and journalists.

Albums are only eligible for nomination if they have not been certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America ? that is, if they have sold fewer than 500,000 copies in the U.S.

Arcade Fire is nominated for their album “Neon Bible,” Feist for “The Reminder” and Stars for “In Our Bedroom After the War.”

The 2007 long list also includes Bjork’s “Volta,” Eddie Vedder’s “Into the Wild” soundtrack, PJ Harvey’s “White Chalk,” Wilco’s “Sky Blue Sky” and Klaxons’s “Myths of the Near Future.”

The jury for the Shortlist Organization, known as the “Listmakers,” is this year made up of Snow Patrol’s Gary Lightbody, the Killers’ Ronnie Vannucci, journalist Rev. Moose, DJ Chris Douridas and the hosts of Hunnypot Internet Radio.

Created in 2001, the Shortlist’s past winners include Sigur Ros, Damien Rice and last year’s winner, Cat Power for her album “The Greatest.”

Montreal’s Arcade Fire lead the pack of Canadian nominees for the Plug Independent Music Awards with six nods, including artist of the year.

The band, which has fast become the pride and joy of Canada’s indie scene, also holds nominations for best live act, best indie album, best packaging, and best album for Neon Bible.

Other Canadians who could take home awards from the New-York based show are Vancouver rockers The New Pornographers for best indie rock album, Montreal’s Sunset Rubdown, and Canada’s indie sweetheart, Emily Haines, has a nod for best female artist. Toronto group Fucked Up is nominated for their punk album Year of the Pig LP.

Another Toronto band with an expletive in their name, Holy Fuck, has a nomination for avant album. Caribou’s Andorra and Chromeo’s Fancy Footwork are nominated in the electronic/dance category while A-Trak (Kanye’s former sidekick) is up in the DJ category.

A group of 350 music lovers created the nomination list for the Plug Awards. Fans can vote online for their favourite independent recording artists.

Montreal band Arcade Fire has received a whopping six nominations for the 2008 Plug Independent Music Awards.

Only French band Battle and Georgia’s Of Montreal got more nods in the New York-based awards for independent recording artists around the world.

Arcade Fire is up for artist of the year, best live act, best single for “Keep the Car Running” and best album, indie rock album and album art/packaging for “Neon Bible.”

Also nominated in the best album category are Radiohead’s “In Rainbows,” The National’s “Boxer,” Of Montreal’s “Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?” and Spoon’s “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga,” among others.

There are 12 nominees in each category.

Canadians had an impressive showing this year, with Vancouver’s The New Pornographers (”Challengers”) and Montreal’s Sunset Rubdown (”Random Spirit Lover”) also getting nods for best indie rock album.

Emily Haines of Metric and Broken Social Scene was nominated in the best female artist category, and Toronto’s Fucked Up got a best punk album nod for “Year Of The Pig EP.”

Other nominated Canadians include Caribou, Chromeo, Holy Fuck and A-Trak.

The Plug awards are voted on by fans, who choose from a nomination list created by a group of 350 music lovers.

Votes can be cast online at www.plugawards.com until Feb. 8, 2008.

The awards ceremony takes place March 6 in New York. Performers and presenters will be announced soon.

Patrick Watson must be close to euphoria after winning the second annual Polaris Music Prize yesterday for their album Close to Paradise.

The band won the $20,000 pot over such steep competition as Calgary’s Feist, Hamilton’s Junior Boys, and fellow Montreal bands Arcade Fire, the Dears and the Besnard Lakes.

Performances at the industry gala included Montreal’s Miracle Fortress, Halifax’s Joel Plaskett Emergency, Calgary’s Chad VanGaalen and New Brunswick’s Julie Doiron. While the bands rocked out, a jury of 11 music experts from across the country chose which nominated album deserved the prize, based solely on artistic merit.

Nomination were provided by more than 170 Canadian music journalists, broadcasters and bloggers who submitted their top five favourite albums that were released between June 1, 2006, and May 31, 2007.

The Polaris Prize is modelled after the U.K.’s esteemed Mercury Prize.