Oh Delta, what have you done!! Ok – so we’ve listened to both tracks. Then we listened again….and again. We were asked today for our professional opinion – and spent the afternoon arguing among ourselves. The similarities are there for all to hear – and they exist. The underlying groove of the verse, the piano, the drums, the tempo, chord changes (in part), even the key are identical. Certainly (and importantly) the lyrics and melody bear little if any similarity at all. Then there’s the bridge and chorus of each song which are also entirely different. We are clearly dealing with 2 different songs. BUT then there is THAT ‘hook’! For Delta its the “wooorld wooorld” for Arcade Fire it’s “lies, lies!”. Now that’s interesting! What Kookaburrah confirmed is that if we can prove a “copy” (ie a melodic copy), then the only question is whether the copied ‘part’ constitutes a “substantial part” of the copied work. In Kookaburrah it largely came down to maths – 2 out of 4 bars was substantial. But strongly suspect that isn’t a hard and fast rule. Hard to imagine the opening guitar riffs of (Can’t get no) Satisfaction, Walk This Way, Play that Funky Music or Superstitious are not considered “substantial parts” of those songs! So is “lies, lies!” a substantial part of the Arcade Fire song Rebellion (lies)?? Unfortunately that is in the “ear of the listener”. Its a great and important hook – but also a long and interesting song! How substantial? – really hard to know! Wouldn’t we love to see this one battled out in a court room – if just for the sake of the debate and the theatre of course. Sadly we doubt that will happen – but we’d pay to see it! DS