Arcade Fire Lists Church-Turned-Recording Studio For $325,000
By Billy Gray January 22, 2013 2:43 pm
reprintsFans of indie rock heroes Arcade Fire got a surprise real estate news break yesterday on the band’s Twitter feed. “Anybody want to buy a church?,” read a tweet which linked to a listing for the 162-year-old Quebec church in which the group recorded its second (Neon Bible) and third (The Suburbs) albums.
Priced at 325,000 loonies (roughly the same in United State dollars), the 15,751-square-foot property at 401 Rue St-Joseph in Farnham (about 40 miles southeast of Montreal) is billed as a commercial and office space, with suggested use as an artist’s studio, place of worship or community center. Louise Goudreault, a broker with Sutton, is the agent for the proprty.
When reached by phone, Ms. Goudreault suggested getting in touch with Chantal Vaillancourt, a long-time assistant to Arcade Fire who manages the band’s real estate matters.
Ms. Vaillancourt refused to comment on the church, and the listing did not specifically mention Arcade Fire’s sessions there recording 2007’s Neon Bible and 2010’s The Suburbs, which went on to win Album of the Year at the Grammys.
The group bought the place, called Petite Église, in 2005 for about $200,000 according to Paste magazine, suggesting that the Arcade Fire patina has boosted property values. The 60 percent bump remains despite a recent roof collapse that forced the band to record their upcoming fourth album elsewhere. (The listing estimates that a replacement roof will cost between $24,300 to $44,200.)
Arcade Fire is collaborating with LCD Soundsystem frontman and Brooklyn demigod James Murphy on the new LP, which could lead to New York indie rock real estate developments.
