Arcade Fire Pink Elephant
Arcade Fire's Pink Elephant arrives as a fraught, uneven chapter in the band's catalog where ambition often outpaces execution. Across seven professional reviews the record earned a 41.29/100 consensus score, and critics consistently point to a handful of salvageable moments rather than a coherent comeback. For anyone searching for a Pink Elephant review or wondering "is Pink Elephant good," the short answer from critics is guarded: a few standout songs float above a mostly listless whole.
Reviewers agree that the best songs on Pink Elephant include “Year of the Snake”, “She Cries Diamond Rain”, “Ride or Die” and “I Love Her Shadow”. Critics praised “Year of the Snake” for its tight chorus and echoes of earlier urgency, while “She Cries Diamond Rain” and the instrumental passages were noted for their ambience and surprising emotional clarity. At the same time professional reviews repeatedly flag problematic lyricism, production choices that tilt toward synth-heavy detours, and a dissonance between grand ambitions and muddled songwriting. Several writers highlight themes of guilt, accountability and performative confession in the lyrics, arguing that tone-deaf lines and evasive narrators undercut the intended penitent mood.
Taken together, the critical consensus frames Pink Elephant as a record of small rewards amid tangible decline: moments of intimacy and restrained instrumentation nod to past strengths, but stylistic inconsistency, weak lyrics and a palpable loss of spirit keep the album from registering as a true return to form. Those who ask "what do critics say about Pink Elephant" will find that while certain tracks are worth seeking out, the album as a whole struggles to justify Arcade Fire's earlier acclaim. For deeper context and full reviews, read on below.
Critics' Top Tracks
The standout songs that made critics take notice
She Cries Diamond Rain
4 mentions
"most of Pink Elephant’s best moments are the instrumental passages, like "Open Your Heart or Die Trying," "Beyond Salvation," and "She Cries Diamond Rain.""— Paste Magazine
Beyond Salvation
4 mentions
"most of Pink Elephant’s best moments are the instrumental passages, like "Open Your Heart or Die Trying," "Beyond Salvation,""— Paste Magazine
Ride or Die
5 mentions
"But the gorgeous “Ride or Die” registers more than enough emotive force"— Rolling Stone
most of Pink Elephant’s best moments are the instrumental passages, like "Open Your Heart or Die Trying," "Beyond Salvation," and "She Cries Diamond Rain."
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
Open Your Heart or Die Trying
Pink Elephant
Year of the Snake
Circle of Trust
Alien Nation
Beyond Salvation
Ride or Die
I Love Her Shadow
She Cries Diamond Rain
Stuck in my Head
What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 9 critics who reviewed this album
Th
Critic's Take
Hi, everyone - Anthony Scratchtano here, and my read on Arcade Fire's Pink Elephant is blunt: the best tracks are the few that flirt with the band's old urgency rather than the synth detours. The title track and “I Love Her Shadow” try to carry emotional weight but suffer from drab pacing and sloppy synths, so they read as attempts rather than triumphs. If you search for the best songs on Pink Elephant, you will find moments of genuine feeling, but mostly this record feels like a band doing damage control instead of making ornate, thrilling songs. The standout moments are small and isolated, not enough to lift what I find to be a generally underwhelming album.
Key Points
-
The title track is the clearest example of why the album feels underwhelming: drab pacing and lifeless guitars undermine its ambitions.
-
The album's core strengths are moments of genuine feeling and occasional urgency, but they are too isolated amid weak production and synth excess.
Themes
Critic's Take
In a tone equal parts scornful and exhausted, Arcade Fire’s Pink Elephant presents itself as a clunky, self-serving rebuttal rather than a persuasive comeback; the review singles out “Open Your Heart or Die Trying”, “Beyond Salvation”, and “Ride or Die” as the album’s clearest moments. The writer rails against Butler’s evasive lyricism and moral posturing while praising Daniel Lanois’s instrumental ambience, which gives songs like “She Cries Diamond Rain” and “Open Your Heart or Die Trying” their best effects. For listeners asking "best tracks on Pink Elephant" or "best songs on Pink Elephant," the review points to those instrumental passages and the sincere balladry of “Ride or Die” as the album’s handful of salvageable moments.
Key Points
-
Instrumental passages and ambient production are the album’s best parts, especially "Open Your Heart or Die Trying."
-
The album’s core strengths are Lanois’s ambience and occasional sincere balladry, but these are undermined by tone-deaf lyrics and clunky production.
Themes
Critic's Take
Arcade Fire's Pink Elephant is presented as a cautious retreat that nonetheless yields a few telling moments, most notably “Year of the Snake” and the overstuffed “Alien Nation”. Ian Cohen writes with a weary precision, noting how the band has fashioned a vow of penance and how Win Butler is barely audible on “Year of the Snake”, which registers as one of the album's more revealing tracks. The review frames these best tracks as evidence of a band trying to reapply for greatness while sounding oddly diminished, and so the best songs on Pink Elephant feel like fragments of the Arcade Fire that used to burn brighter.
Key Points
-
“Year of the Snake” is the most revealing track because Butler's near-absence underscores the album's restraint.
-
The album's core strength is a coherent, streamlined mood even as it often lacks the band's former soul and spirit.
Themes
Critic's Take
Arcade Fire's Pink Elephant mostly limps along, with only a few fleeting moments that approach interest - the reviewer's ear is caught by “Year of the Snake” and, most of all, “She Cries Diamond Rain”. The voice here is weary and exacting, praising the chime-y motif in “Year of the Snake” while marveling that the brief instrumental “She Cries Diamond Rain” is the only track that genuinely lands. Even when songs like “I Love Her Shadow” flirt with success, repetition and vapid lyrics pull them under, leaving the album salvageable only in small pieces. Overall the piece reads as disappointed, precise critique aimed at why these are the few best tracks on Pink Elephant rather than a return to form.
Key Points
-
The best song is "She Cries Diamond Rain" because its beauty and ambient hint outshine the rest.
-
The album's core strengths are brief moments of good motifs and occasional atmosphere, undermined by poor lyrics and inconsistent execution.
Themes
Critic's Take
There are clear best songs on Pink Elephant, and Arcade Fire land them with a mix of tenderness and stomp. Arcade Fire find sweetness and directness in “Year of the Snake”, whose tight chorus and Butler quiver make it a centerpiece, and the gorgeous “Ride or Die” supplies pastoral emotion reminiscent of earlier classics. The title cut “Pink Elephant” is brutal and haunting, capturing the album's alone-together mood, while “Circle of Trust” is the record's most hypnotic dance ditty. The record has missteps like “Alien Nation” and “Stuck in My Head”, but overall its intimacy and big beats keep these best tracks resonant and memorable.
Key Points
-
“Year of the Snake” is best for its tight chorus, Butler’s quiver, and lyrical heft about change.
-
The album's core strengths are intimate production, sweet harmonies, and a blend of big beats with pastoral emotion.
Themes
Critic's Take
In a bruising, sarcastic tone the reviewer argues that Arcade Fire’s Pink Elephant largely fails to land, with only a few moments of interest. They single out “I Love Her Shadow” as the record's lone highlight, praising its lo-fi recession pop and playful electronic adornments. The reviewist contrasts that track with lead single “Year of the Snake” and the clunky titular themes that keep pulling the album down, explaining why listeners asking "best songs on Pink Elephant" will find slim pickings. Overall, the reviewer frames the best tracks as modest salvations in an otherwise tone-deaf, threadbare set of songs.
Key Points
-
“I Love Her Shadow” is best because it briefly sets aside awkward context and offers playful, lo-fi progression.
-
The album’s core strengths are sparse moments of melodic invention, but overall it suffers from tone-deaf lyrics and weak songwriting.
Themes
Critic's Take
Arcade Fire's Pink Elephant reads as a band treading water, but the review repeatedly points to the best tracks as the title song and “Year of the Snake”. The reviewer praises the barebones production on “Pink Elephant” for how it "highlights a pleasing slide into a minor-key middle eight" and compares “Year of the Snake” favorably to earlier work like "Ready to Start". Still, the reviewer warns that much of the album falls back into flaccid disco beats and tacked-on themes, which blunts the highs these two tracks achieve. Overall the best songs on Pink Elephant are framed as the ones that recapture Arcade Fire's old skill, notably “Pink Elephant” and “Year of the Snake”.
Key Points
-
The best song is the title track for its stripped-down production and a pleasing minor-key middle eight.
-
The album's core strengths are occasional lo-fi immediacy and moments that recall the band’s earlier songwriting skill.