“In the Backseat” by Arcade Fire

Canadian band Arcade Fire rose to prominence in 2004 with their debut album, “Funeral,” which drew critical acclaim and established the group as a driving force in indie rock. The band’s success, however, was tinged with tragedy: Leading up to the recording of “Funeral,” Arcade Fire collectively lost three family members — a devastation which inspired the album’s name and lent deeper meaning to many of its songs.

One such song is “In the Backseat,” a mournful, innocent ballad sung by frontwoman Regine Chassagne. The song’s instrumentals are stripped down to a wandering piano melody as Chassagne sings:

I like the peace in the backseat

I don’t have to drive

I don’t have to speak

I can watch the countryside

And I can fall asleep

Chassagne’s mother, Alice, was among the relatives who died prior to the release of “Funeral.” In this song, Chassagne conveys the childlike peace of being cared for and the feeling of shock and vulnerability that comes with losing the person who has always protected you.

Regine Chassagne
Credit: Phil King

While “In the Backseat” resonates with melancholy, it also culminates with a sense of hope, with Chassagne’s fragile soprano breaking into a triumphant chorus over an orchestral swell. The song gorgeously realizes the wide-open feeling of loss and the beauty sometimes found in that startling newness.

Alice died in the night

I’ve been learning to drive

My whole life

I’ve been learning how

Although “Funeral” often feels technically elaborate — at the time of recording, the band comprised six people and over twelve instruments — it maintains a sense of intimacy through its sincere, imaginative lyrics and the flawed but haunting vocals of Chassagne and frontman Win Butler. As its final track, “In the Backseat” closes the album with a heartfelt elegy that is both raw and exquisitely gentle.