Arctic Monkeys came onto the British music scene as one of the most talked up bands I can remember in my time on this galactic debris we call Earth. Their debut 'Whatever People Say I am, That's What I'm Not' sold millions on the back of fast paced, quick witted songs about nights out and modern life (Bwit pop?). Their follow ups, 'Favourite Worst Nightmare' and 'Humbug' did not quite reach such dizzy heights, yet Alex Turner and co remain one of the most popular bands in the country. And so, Arctic Monkeys return with 'Suck it and See', a title which suggests a return to the sentiments of their angsty and fierce debut. Is this the case? There's only one way to find out...
She's Thunderstorms begins not with the pace which got the nation excited on 'Whatever People...', but with a rather more subdued and mature sound; a move towards a more guitar pop sound rather than the darker visions which we were presented with on 'Humbug'. Turner's voice rings out with a confidence which feels more one borne of comfort, than frustration, which might be observed in the Monkeys' early work. Black Treacle begins with a guitar riff not entirely dissimilar to the Libertines' 'Campaign of Hate', before a strong bass riff floats towards the chorus, with rasping guitars and a steady beat, which has a strangely nostalgic feel to it - I can't help bit imagine this being played as a soundtrack to a 1960s film for some reason. Come to think of it, the album artwork isn't a million miles away from that of the Beatles' White Album.
Brick by Brick is an incredibly radio friendly song, with the first notable crashing riff and real thunderous feel to it. It is no wonder that this was one of the lead singles from this album, as it is definitely one which encourages not just one listen, but many more to boot. This has the feeling of a 'proper' rock song. The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala is a gentler affair, starting with a jangly guitar and Turner and the bass coaxing us into a false sense of security before striking at us with a stadium chorus. 'Shalalala' is one of those choruses which might be yelled back by an audience of thousands. This is song is a joyous affair and will, in all likelihood, be coming to a radio near you soon.
Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair is the other track which the public have been exposed to up til now. The darker vocal from Turner juxtaposes the gloriously simple and effective 'ooooooooh yeah yeah yeah' chorus which is uplifting and powerful all at the same time. Library Pictures is a hark back to the olden days of stomping, thrashing and anger. It's brilliant. I'll go no further than that, because you should definitely have a listen yourself and be blown away by it.
All My Own Stunts is a perfect demonstration of the development of Arctic Monkeys' sonic offerings - it is undeniably dark and mystic in comparison to their first two albums, but yet signals an, at times, almost imperceptible uplift in tone. This is much more listenable than much of 'Humbug', with Turner and team having found a penchant for a simple guitar pop riff and embedding it within their music. This isn't a single, but is a fantastic wee album track. Reckless Serenade glides along with a contrast between bass and a summery electric guitar lick and a kick in the drums. This song echoes of sitting back and enjoying a barbeque with mates, this playing in the background and talking of times gone by. There's a real quality in this album, one which I haven't felt on quite the same level for what seems like an age.
Piledriver Waltz takes us to a post modern ballroom, with a jingle here and a jangle there, wallpaper worn by the dreams of a million dancers and spits of champagne falling from their tilted glasses. As with any waltz, there is a real rise and fall which captures us and sends us to this parallel world, as might have just happened when I got a wee bit carried away describing the ballroom there. It's a cracking slower paced track, one to rock you to sleep, or at least to encourage a daydream or two. Love is a Laserquest has a brilliant title. Any song which manages to talk about laserquest is a winner in my book. I love the drums in this track - simple, but effective.
Suck it and See, our title track, is another one which belies the recent image of the Monkeys, with a thoroughly positive tone. Here, Turner 'pours his heart into a pop song/ because I couldn't get a hang of poetry', and we can be glad that this is the case, for otherwise, this song, where the 60s feel is evoked again, would never have brought us a damn good, if not great, track. That's Where You're Wrong takes us to the finish line with a pounding bass harassing the ear, in some punishing duel with the drums and guitar, weaving in and out with one another as if engaged in battle, before resting in the bridge and resolving to work together and provide an end to this album which is utterly fantastic, with rolls and flicks which stroll and lick the floor and tick towards the conclusion of SIAS.
All in all, this falls short of meeting our initial encounter with Arctic Monkeys, but it does signal a resurgence and a feeling that better things might well be on their way. The final track gives us great cause for optimism that, while SIAS is not a fantastic album as a whole, it is very good and offers some awesome flourishes and glimpses both to where we've been and what is to come.
8.0/10
Buy Suck it and See on Amazon here: Suck It and See
Buy Suck it and See on Amazon mp3 here: Suck It and See
oh come!!! it´s really no 8/10!!! Its like 3/10! be a bit objectiv!
ReplyDeleteHello critics. The independent article isn't all that great (as is pointed out by the comments section there, funnily enough) - it may well be better than my effort, which, to be totally honest, is probably the worst quality review I have done to date (I only started about 10 days ago). Thanks for reading anyway and hopefully I'll redeem myself in future reviews - I'm still finding a style and voice if I'm honest.
ReplyDeleteAnd, 'anonymous', I really don't think SIAS is a 3/10. It's much different to their other stuff and thus has to be evaluated on different grounds. Maybe 8 is too high, but it's how I felt after listening to it, so I'm going to stick with it. Having had a further glance around reviews, it seems that 4 stars (i.e. 8/10) is actually not that uncommon a mark to give. However, the beautiful thing about music is that people will agree and disagree on things. I might love something which you find entirely abject. Thanks for reading nonetheless.
You can only compare work based on context. Now the context of a band's album work is what preceded it, its relation to that and also its the context in which that album relates to current works around it. Purely because it is 'different' to their other stuff does not give license for a completely new and different set of criteria of reviewing an album.
ReplyDeleteI will be honest, hold my hands up, and say that I have not yet gotten around to listening to this new album. What I will say though is this, they as a band have gone down hill in recent times, their debut and second albums were exceptionally good and caught your attention, whilst the third was a boring and poor excuse for an album. I have low expectations for this one, and fear my feeling towards their past works may taint my reception of this.
I think that's reasonable - in the review I did try to draw comparisons with their previous and perhaps overstated how much I think each album should be isolated from the rest of their discography in my last comment. By saying that it should be evaluated on different grounds, I meant to take into account the past, but not form my whole opinion based on what's come before.
ReplyDeleteLike most, I loved AM's first two albums. I thought Humbug was poor and fairly dull, but I do think this is a definite move in a positive direction. As I said a couple of times, it's good/very good, but not great. If I was to slap a number on it now, I might go for 7, but it might be a little Orwellian to go around covering up my misgivings when loads of folk (about 90 so far - I never thought that many folk would read these!) have already had a look.