We Used to Wait

The song was used in an experimental project, The Wilderness Downtown, an interactive music video developed by Google Creative Lab and Chris Milk, to experiment and exploit HTML 5 and the then new Google Chrome web browser.{{Cite web|url=https://experiments.withgoogle.com/the-wilderness-downtown|title=The Wilderness Downtown by Google Creative Lab {{!}} Experiments with Google|website=experiments.withgoogle.com|access-date=2018-10-30}}{{Cite news|url=http://techland.com/2010/09/10/the-wilderness-downtowns-creator-talks-about-what-motivated-him-whats-next/|publisher=Techland|date=September 10, 2010|title=The Wilderness Downtown's Creator Talks About What Motivated Him, What's Next|author=Michelle Castillo}}{{Cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/WN/arcade-fire-music-video-wilderness-downtown-pulls-google/story?id=11554139|publisher=ABC News|title=The Conversation: Exploring "The Wilderness Downtown"|date=September 3, 2010}}{{Cite news|publisher=Entertainment Weekly|url=http://music-mix.ew.com/2010/09/08/arcade-fire-video-interview/|date=September 8, 2010|title=The Arcade Fire's revolutionary 'We Used to Wait' video:Director Chris Milk explains how it was created}} It figures prominently in the location-based audiovisual web experience and the name of the project is taken from a line in the song.{{cite web|url=http://www.thewildernessdowntown.com/ |title=The Wilderness Downtown |publisher=The Wilderness Downtown |date=August 19, 2010 |access-date=December 6, 2010}} Rolling Stone named the 'thewildernessdowntown.com' one of the best music videos of 2010. In July 2011, the music video was named one of "The 30 All-TIME Best Music Videos" by TIME Magazine.{{cite magazine |url=https://entertainment.time.com/2011/07/28/the-30-all-time-best-music-videos/slide/arcade-fire-we-used-to-waitthe-wilderness-downtown-2010/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110926214854/http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2085389_2085359_2085377,00.html |url-status=live |archive-date=September 26, 2011 |title=The 30 All-TIME Best Music Videos - Arcade Fire, ‘We Used To Wait/The Wilderness Downtown’ (2010) |last=Sanburn |first=Josh |date=July 26, 2011 |access-date=October 19, 2024 |magazine=Time}} It was one of three Grand Prix winners at the 2011 Cannes advertising awards in the Cyber category.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} Viewers were invited to fill out a virtual postcard at the conclusion of the video and the postcards were used to populate background visual for "We Used to Wait" during the Suburbs tour.{{Cite news|url=https://adage.com/article/behind-the-work/work-arcade-fire-wilderness-downtown/145696/|title=Behind the Work: Arcade Fire 'The Wilderness Downtown'|access-date=2018-10-30|language=en}} In February 2011, music video blog Yes, We've Got a Video! ranked the project at number 2 in their top 30 videos of 2010. The project was praised as a "beautiful experiment that has significantly pushed the boundaries of the music video by introducing the factor of interactivity."{{cite web|url=http://yeswevegotavideo.com/2011/02/03/top-30-videos-of-2010-10-1/|title=Top 30 Videos of 2010: 10 – 1!|date=February 3, 2011|work=Yes, We've Got a Video!|access-date=March 19, 2012|archive-date=October 6, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006051420/http://yeswevegotavideo.com/2011/02/03/top-30-videos-of-2010-10-1/|url-status=dead}}

Like the rest of the album, "We Used to Wait" was mixed through vintage analog consoles in Montreal and New York by Craig Silvey.{{Cite web|url=https://www.soundonsound.com/people/craig-silvey-mixing-arcade-fire-suburbs|title=Craig Silvey: Mixing Arcade Fire 'The Suburbs' {{!}}|website=www.soundonsound.com|language=en-gb|access-date=2018-10-30}} In an interview with Paul Tingen, Silvey provided additional information on the challenges with "We Used to Wait"; he stated that the massive number of individual tracks on the premixed recording, over thirty, and elements like the use of three drum kits, was particularly challenging to mix because of the complexity of the textures.

Rolling Stone named "We Used to Wait" the 5th best song of 2010.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/50-best-songs-of-2010-148374/arcade-fire-we-used-to-wait-177072/|title=Arcade Fire, "We Used to Wait"|date=2010-12-14|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=2018-10-29|language=en-US}} Not all reviews were positive: Pop Sugar's Thomas Britt stated the track was "mawkish" and "failed to take off."{{Cite news|url=https://www.popmatters.com/128940-arcade-fire-the-suburbs-2496160728.html|title=Arcade Fire: The Suburbs|date=2010-08-01|work=PopMatters|access-date=2018-10-30|language=en}}

In 2017 Paste magazine named it number eleven of the best fifteen Arcade Fire songs and name the song the lynchpin of the entire Suburbs album.{{Cite news|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2017/07/the-15-best-arcade-fire-songs.html|title=The 15 Best Arcade Fire Songs|work=pastemagazine.com|access-date=2018-10-30|language=en}}

On 20 October 2010, Mark Ronson and Business Intl, featuring Alex Greenwald on both vocals and the mandolin, and Rose Dougall on backing vocals, covered the song on Jo Whiley’s BBC Radio 1 show.{{cite web|url=http://stereogum.com/550361/mark-ronson-covers-arcade-fire/mp3s/ |title=Mark Ronson Covers Arcade Fire |work=Stereogum |publisher=SpinMedia |date=October 20, 2010 |access-date=December 6, 2010}} The Drums also covered this song.

{{Reflist}}

• [http://www.thewildernessdowntown.com/ The Wilderness Downtown] - official site and video

{{Arcade Fire}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:We Used to Wait}}

Category:2010 singles

Category:Arcade Fire songs

Category:Merge Records singles

Category:Songs written by William Butler (musician)

Category:Songs written by Win Butler

Category:Songs written by Régine Chassagne

Category:Songs written by Jeremy Gara

Category:Songs written by Tim Kingsbury

Category:Songs written by Richard Reed Parry

Category:2010 songs

Category:Rough Trade Records singles