[5] It was produced by Arcade Fire, alongside Thomas Bangalter of the electronic-house duo Daft Punk and Steve Mackey, the bassist of the band Pulp.

[6] The album is a departure from the sound of Arcade Fire's previous records, influenced as it is by synth-pop, dance-rock, and other derivatives of electronic music, and has been called more "digestible"[7] than their earlier output.

It was promoted by an elaborate marketing campaign, as well as five singles: the title track, "Creature Comfort", "Signs of Life", "Electric Blue", and "Put Your Money on Me".

It was marketed with a Facebook post that was purportedly written by a disgruntled "Everything Now Corp" employee, in which he railed against the band's refusal to engage in corporate promotion of its new album.

[16] Preceding the album's release, the band went on a near two-month-long tour of Europe, headlining festivals and their own shows, which included appearances at some smaller venues.

[further explanation needed] Jeremy Winograd of Slant Magazine claimed that "The result is by far Arcade Fire's most upbeat and easily digestible album to date.

[25] Will Hermes of Rolling Stone praised the album for its lyrical content, writing that it is "treacherous territory, but the band navigates it bravely, especially when it turns the critical lens on itself.

"[29] Equally negative, Brendan Frank of Pretty Much Amazing wrote that "For the first time in their career, Arcade Fire haven’t made a record; they've manufactured one.