A young girl's telephone beeps
Yeah she's dashing for the exit
she's running to the streets outside
'Oh you've saved me,' she screams down the line
'The band weren’t very good
And I'm not having a nice time'
-"Fake Tales of San Francisco"
Sometimes it takes a little longer for a record to hit the shelves of US stores than it does in the UK. This can be rather frustrating to one who checks NME as much as I do. On the otherhand, having to wait an extra month gave me an opportunity to let all of the hype die down and approach this review from a totally objective perspective. Unlike other superhyped acts, I find Arctic Monkeys undeniably likeable. Their story - English lads in their late teens who build buzz through the internet and giving away free CDs at their shows draw the attention of major labels, building a bigger buzz and leading to a record-smashing debut. Once their record as fastest selling UK debut is surpassed (probably in the next few years), the thing about Arctic Monkeys that will matter is how good the music is. Thankfully, it happens to be very good. Whatever People Say I Am (streaming here) is - similar to anything Jack White touches - the kind of record that renews your faith in rock and roll. Arctic Monkeys take a low-fi approach, tearing through a series of garage rock anthems that generally move at a furious pace - but not too furious that you can't dance to it. The songwriting, with its details of everyday life, recalls that of Ray Davies, while the rough accent of singer Alex accentuates the biting humor. But if it were merely a series of garage jams strung together, it would probably begin to feel repetitious. Arctic Monkeys, however, know when to slow things down, and when they do - the results are rather pretty. "Riot Van" details with nostalgia an evening of drinking and debauchery ("Have you been drinking son, you don'’t look old enough to me/I'm sorry officer is there a certain age you're supposed to be?/…Nobody told me"). It is sung so softly, one wonders if the would just prefer a simple life to one of such high a profile.
4 (out of 5)
::5 Related Links::
1•Arctic Monkeys: I'm Believing the Hype
2•Listen to the album
3•Live on KCRW
4•Download MP3s
5•Arctic Monkeys: How This Band Has Changed the Music Industry (Ben's Daily Review)
5 comments:
Great review...very interested in how this artist does in the US.
--RC of strangeculture.blogspot.com
Will, I think you've nailed it. They are a really top group, and I like the album a lot, but to award it a 10/10 rating, like the NME did, shows that the hype got to them.
Not an absolutely perfect album; just a very good album. I saw that NME also called it one of the 10 best British albums ever, or maybe that was a readers' poll. Either way, seems like the hype did get to some people.
Well done review. Wish I could write reviews like that!
Thanks Jacquie. I think you write excellent reviews.
I appreciate the support- gives me confidence to keep doing them.
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