2006: Following on from a sold-out-on-pre-order limited edition EP and a chart-topping debut single, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not became the fastest-selling debut album in British music history, cementing Arctic Monkeys’ place as the Saviours of Rock, confirmed further with countless awards nominations and subsequent victories.
2007: Favourite Worst Nightmare arrives 15 months after the debut (and a slight personnel change) and continues t’Arctics’ relentless rise. Even more awards nominations are piled on the quartet and yet more trophy wins follow. A near-triumphant headline slot at Glastonbury is marred by technical difficulties.
2009: Having decamped to the Californian desert with Queens of the Stone Age front man Josh Homme, the Steel City boys head back home with their third album Humbug completed. Mostly, people moan about Alex Turner’s lustrous hair. This weekend, the hair and the songs will be centre of attention as Arctic Monkeys headline the Reading and Leeds festivals. But what of the songs, and why is the response to Humbug so tepid compared to that of the debut?
It may be a little naive to expect such unprecedented reaction to every record the band releases as was seen upon the release of Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not. Enthusiasm like that doesn’t make an appearance too often, at least not on the side of the general public anyway (compared to the hyperbole-addicted press) and once we’d all gotten used to the lyrical charms of one Mr Turner and the impressive racket he and his bandmates could make... well, we seem to have become a little desensitized to it. If anything, the group have graduated from the kitchen-sink social commentary of old, progressing rather nicely onto the art of fantasy, with Humbug fit to burst with sexual desire, innuendo and euphemism. Traces of this has always been visible in Turner’s words, from first album b-side Bigger Boys and Stolen Sweethearts to Favourite Worst Nightmare single Teddy Picker, but here it's more mature and altogether a bit more twisted.
Of course, the most oft talked about side of Arctic Monkeys is Alex Turner’s exquisite way of words, so much so that the world seems to forget about Messrs. Helders, O’Malley and Cook’s contributions. On Humbug, they prove to be the perfect example of musical pathetic fallacy, embodying they varying emotions of lust, despair and longing evident in Turner’s lyrics through prowling riffs and beats - something which is key taking Turner’s monotonous drawl into account.
You’ll have heard lead single Crying Lightning by now, no doubt, with its pick’n’mix imagery. Its a good ambassador for the rest of the album; the first time I heard it, lying in bed ill, I couldn’t work it out. It confused me, made my head hurt even more. For the most part, Humbug is a bit of a headfuck but once you’ve got yourself into the mindset of it, it becomes another beast entirely. From the pretty melancholy of Cornerstone to the obviously Josh Homme influenced Dangerous Animals, its a record that may not have the immediacy that its predecessors had in buckets but one that with every listen opens up and shows you something new. Its a brave move from four boys who clearly don’t give a damn about sales or what the fans want. Its the sound of Arctic Monkeys stepping up their game and you know what? Its bloody brilliant.
I was just coming on to moan that I hadn't seen a review of this on here yet and question it when, alas, I stumble upon this well written and enthusiastic piece.
I saw this in my local record store today and was gutted to find I only had 29p, a button and a crumpled up Club King Size packet with a snapped fag inside in my pocket. Even more so to discover I only had 8p in the bank! So I salivated over it for a while, you know the way, you go into the record shop, pick up the object of your desires, run your fingers over the front of it as you check out the artwork, flip it over and read the tracklist once without taking it in, again to find the songs you know and where they are on the CD and if there are any surprise omissions or a named bonus track, which there never usually are, and when not purchasing you very reluctantly edge it towards the shelf for what seems like an eternity, before finally plucking up the heart wrenching courage to put the damned thing down!
I had to leave it behind but I thought maybe it's a good thing because I'll read some reviews first. I didn't want to read the NME's review because I just don't trust the reviewers so I came on here, where I do trust the reviewers, even though the majority of the time I don't agree with a word they say. At least I know they mean it though.
I expected this to get a shit review to be honest, 3 stars max, because, as Rhian said, the Arctic Monkeys just don't seem like a big deal anymore. I personally love them to bits but there isn't that anticipation that there used to be. Though now I know this is on the shelf waiting for me I'm DYING to hear it. So ultimately, I'm glad it's got that 4 star review. Anymore, I probably would have been disappointed listening to it, and less and if I didn't agree I'd have been on here moaning tomorrow no doubt.
The thing I wanted to say is the single, Crying Lightning, I wasn't really into it at first. It seemed to plod along. Then, after about 4 or 5 listens I sear I could actually hear the desert. Maybe it's because I know it was recorded in the middle of the desert or whatever, but I swear that song is the sound of the desert and, well, I think the camels would approve.
I wasn't that taken with the single. But I have a copy of this and I shall report back tomorrow, from the review at least they aren't just churning the same album over and over again.
I'm half way through can't say Its doing much for me either, a couple of moments and I quite like the moody LA tinged production but its not exactly a great leap forward musically there are just a few stylistic flourishes...
Hope you guys are wrong but I've found with alot of albums by bands that I'm into I listen to them, dislike them, abandon them for a month or 2, go back and it all clicks into place. Still not bought it, thanks to my student loan not going in today, but I'm looking forward to hearing it.
This is not disappointing really because, like many others, I didn't have great expectations of it. Good call on The Cribs though Bill, I had written them off with the “Mens Needs..." album as being on the same truckload of trash exiting indie as Kaiser Chiefs & Maximo Park. Thanx to you I gave The Cribs album a listen & it's really good.
Mens Needs is a great album, 12 songs of concise indie racket. It felt kinda of old fashioned, I was glad Johnny Marr joined because you could really hear a big Smiths influence in songs like Shoot The Poets...anyway, I'm really digging this album. Bought it because I thought Crying Lightning was great and I'm enjoying it thus far.
It's interesting reading these comments as the early impressions are similar to what I had. I've had the album a month now (yes I cheekily consulted a torrent) and at first I really couldn't see the attraction. But it has grown and grown and certain tracks on there are amongst my favourite by the Arctic Monkeys now. The one problem I have with it is it seems they're trying to move too far forward and mature too quickly. None of the cheeky lyrics and young, teen wit is in there. I can't relate to anything in Humbug like I could the material in the first album. Humbug is great in a lot of ways but Alex Turner seems to have 'fixed' something that wasn't broken.
Aye It's not exactly immediate is it?And that was one of AMs strong suits...the immediacy of their tunes the quickwitedness of some of the lyrics.Here its traded in for more mature sound that's flecked with a kind of LA rock influence that doesn't really improve them much, apart from a few instrumental flourishes, in fact it just makes them sound like just another stoner/indie rock band in places....Which is kind of pointless if you're trying to live up the hype of the AMs machine...
