Corner of Chaos
Created | Updated Jan 26, 2006
Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
Perhaps it is just because my roommate, as I type this, is booking a flight from Glasgow to Chicago, via Amsterdam, paying £307 exclusive of
accomodation to stay in The Windy City for five nights with no other
intention than seeing the Arctic Monkeys (ticket price US$10), but it does seem that the Monkeys are somewhat of an up-and-coming band. NME, Q and various other music publications are hyping them up for more than they are worth but, previous to that, fans were paying upwards of £100 for tickets that originally went for a mere seven pounds sterling and they did, between October and December of 2005 (extended from November due to popularity), tour Britain, Holland, Belgium, France, Germany, Canada, USA and Japan before extending the tour to Spain, Sweden and Denmark. Perhaps then, they are as good as the hype says they are - after all this is a band that had released nothing more than a two track EP, Five Minutes With The Arctic Monkeys so they must be doing something right. Now, however, they have released a full, 13 song, 41 minute LP and will be under much scrutiny by fans and critics alike.
Now clearly it would be impossible to live up to such hype, sell-out tours and positive reviews by fans and critics alike; taken alone, however, the album is very much a positive thing. The first thing that is likely to stand out, though, is the repetitive nature of their music. Though there is enough difference between tracks to distinguish between songs, there is a feeling that they know only a few chords more than Status Quo but then again, the Quo have hardly done badly in their time - this problem does become less apparent as the album reaches the end and variants are found. There are one or two slower, quiet songs, such as 'Riot Van' which do break up the album a bit and a bit of Clash-style funk in my roommates favourite 'Red Lights Indicate Doors Are Secured' - an amusing track about trying to sort out a cab home from a night out. For the most part, though, certainly to begin with, is a barrage of fast-paced, hard pop-rocking tunes to jump around to and nod your head along with.
The lyrics, more discernable now than when I went to see them live, are mostly amusing and very rarely as cryptic or pointless as Oasis, certainly not as clichéd as Coldplay though I feel sometimes that bits and bobs are somewhat more touching to a northerner. Still, for a 'southern softie' I'm often laughing along to them when I work out a quick-sung pun or clever allusion to one of their influences. 'Mardy Bum'1 is, for no real reason other than a great introduction and a rather odd, but memorable, opening line, my favourite so far but on the whole this album is very rare on the filler. Not many of the songs are absolute anthems but they are all above standard, which is better for me than an album with pure rockers and total flops on it.
Though I doubt this album has as much replayability as most others in my collection, its certainly something you can pull out every now and again for a good laugh and certainly something to listen to as you walk somewhere; it will put a bounce in your step. Like their two singles 'I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor' and 'When The Sun Goes Down', this will definitely go in straight at number one and I don't believe its at all a bad thing. For them to continue in the years to come there definitely needs to be some progression, and there is a worry that they may suffer from a sophmore slump, but that will be in a few years so not to worry now; just let the music use and amuse you.
