★★★★
Four Stars
‘In five years’ time will it be: “Who the fuck’s Arctic Monkeys?”’
It’s now been seven years since Alex Turner first sang those words, and I think it’s fair to say that Turner’s fears of his band being consigned to indie music history have proven to be unfounded.
Indeed, since the release of their debut LP Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, the Arctic Monkeys have emerged as the kings of British rock music; handpicked by Danny Boyle to perform at the London Olympics Opening Ceremony last year and chosen by Michael Eavis to headline Glastonbury for the second time in their still relatively short musical career earlier this summer alongside the legendary Rolling Stones and, erm, Mumford and Sons, the Arctic Monkeys have succeeded in being mainstream enough to be a popular, Glastonbury-headlining rock band, whilst also making sure not to drift too much into the mainstream by constantly developing their musical style, therefore remaining ‘cool’.
Given that the quartet are no strangers to musical experimentation, with their sound gradually evolving from straight-out indie rock on their first album – rich in lyrical content and social commentary but not exactly musically ground-breaking – to the heavier, more lyrically abstract stoner-rock of the criminally underrated Humbug and its follow-up Suck It And See, it comes as no surprise that the boys from Sheffield (or perhaps Los Angeles is more accurate, which is where they all now live) are on top experimenting form on their latest outing AM.
Lead single ‘Do I Wanna Know?’ opens up proceedings; aided by heavy guitars and a thumping drum beat supplied by the ‘Agile Beast’ Matt Helders, Turner reaches new-found levels of sexiness both lyrically and vocally (‘I’m constantly on the cusp of trying to kiss you/I don’t know if you feel the same as I do) which is enough to send this 21-year old man listening to the first few minutes of the album giddy with delight.
The follow-up ‘R U Mine?’ continues in a similar vein, this time with a more upbeat tempo and with the added falsetto backing vocals of Helders, although the song’s inclusion on the album seems a little cheeky given that it was released more than 18 months ago for Record Store Day 2012; a rollicking rock song nonetheless, with the inevitable lyrical gem provided by Turner (‘I’m a puppet on a string/Tracy Island/Time-travelling diamond’) who claims to have been inspired by R&B and hip-hop artists Drake and Lil’ Wayne.
This experimentation with R&B and hip-hop is a regular feature of AM – Turner recently said that the album ‘sounds like Dr. Dre’ – and it is something that the Arctic Monkeys pull off exceptionally well. Third track ‘One for the Road’ is a fabulous mix of R&B and Queens of the Stone Age-esque stoner-rock, the influence of the latter thanks in no small part to QOTSA frontman Josh Homme, a frequent collaborator with the Arctic Monkeys who provides backing vocals not only here but also on penultimate track ‘Knee Socks’, another song with a distinct R&B feel.
However it is fourth track ‘Arabella’ that is arguably the stand-out example of the R&B-hip-hop-rock equilibrium which the Arctic Monkeys achieve on the album – the song alternates between verses which sound like they wouldn’t be out of place on an Eminem album and punchy, heavy rock choruses that Ozzy Osbourne would be proud of – a supreme example of two differing musical styles blending perfectly together and evidence, if it wasn’t obvious already, that the Arctic Monkeys are a band who possess such confidence and musical ability that they are fully aware that their bold musical experimentations will pay off.
Elsewhere on the album, ‘Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High’, with it’s funky bassline and drumbeat and Turner’s high-pitched vocals is yet another glorious concoction of rock and R&B; ‘No.1 Party Anthem’, despite its title sounding like an LMFAO track, is a wonderful, downtempo piano-driven track with echoes of David Bowie’s ‘Life On Mars’ (though such is the audacity of Turner and co. that a future collaboration with LMFAO would no longer be entirely implausible); while ‘Mad Sounds’, a dreamy, psychadelic ballad again catches us off-guard with its song title. Turner brings the album to a close with the heartfelt ‘I Wanna Be Yours’, an excellent song adaption of John Cooper Clarke’s poem; if ever there was a poem written for Alex Turner to turn into song, this would be it.
The album is admittedly not without its flaws; ‘I Want It All’ is a disappointing album filler which is not something that we have come to expect from the Arctic Monkeys on the basis of their previous albums and b-sides, but this is nothing more than a minor blip on what is otherwise a highly-accomplished, breathtakingly ambitious album by the stand-out band of our generation who seem to be going from strength to strength.
There may be people who claim that the Arctic Monkeys have never bettered their breakthrough debut album and who rue their change in musical direction; but if AM is a sign of things to come, why on earth would they ever look back?
Spotify player temporarily removed. Apologies.
