Josh Stephenson - 6/22/2011
I don't think anyone expected the impact the Arctic Monkeys would make when 'Whatever I Say I Am That's What I'm Not' hit shops. It ushered in a new wave, for better or worse, of British Indie guitar bands and made the Arctic Monkeys overnight sensations. With commercial and critical acclaim however come pressure, and with the bands last album 'Humbug' many people were questioning whether the Arctic Monkeys have had their time in the sun. With 'Suck It and See' though, the bands fourth album, the Arctic Monkeys have managed to prove their relevance by making an album of lovelorn, 60's infused pop songs, but still managing to retain the trademark Arctic Monkeys sound.
Lead single 'Brick by Brick' was somewhat of a red herring, filled with thick riffs, nonsensical and clichéd lyrics, and cringe-worthy deep backing vocals; it quite rightly had many fans worried about what to expect from the bands latest. Fortunately though it proved to be the exception to the rule, and follow up single 'Don't Sit Down, 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair' encompassed all that we have come to expect from the Monkeys a catchy, riff filled tune with Alex Turner's preposterous lyrics including the gem 'Do the Macarena in the Devil's lair/But don't sit down, 'cause I've moved your chair'. In fact the whole album is infused with the kind of lyrics that have people questioning whether Alex Turner will end up been one of the all time greats, from the hilarious 'Do you walk the walk/Or catch the train', to the sultry 'That's not a skirt girl, that's a sawn-off shotgun/And I only hope you've got it pointed at me', to the quintessentially British 'You're rarer than a can of Dandelion & Burdock'. All together Alex Turner is on fine writing form, but seems to be focusing more on witty couplets than on grand stories as he did on their debut.
Other highlights can be found on album opener 'She's Thunderstorms', which combines a 60's style guitar riff, with pounding drums to the sing-a-long chorus of 'She's thunderstorms/Lying on her front/Up against the wall/She's Thunderstorms'. It's a seductive opener and sets the tone for the whole album, including the short & sweet 'Reckless Serenade' driven forward by a fantastic bass line, while Turner croons 'Called up to hear the voice of reason/And got the answer machine'. By the time we reach 'Piledriver Waltz', originally off Turner's 'Submarine' soundtrack, Turner's tales of breakfast at the heartbreak hotel, with miserable waitresses and rotten food will no doubt have seduced you. The full-band version of this track does nothing to detract from that as it is quite stripped back, with almost a dream-poppy feel to it.
Not every track on the album is up to these standards, 'Library Pictures' and 'All My Own Stunts' feel like 'Humbug' B-Sides, and 'Library Pictures' fast paced drums are at contrast to the more mellow pop songs that are on the album. These tracks, alongside 'Brick by Brick', are the only real missteps on the album, and with the hooky 'Black Treacle' and 'Hellcat Spangled Shalalala', the former with its beautiful chorus of 'Now it's getting dark, and the sky looks sticky/More like black treacle than tar', providing the necessary hooks to keep the stadium audiences interested, this is an album that has something for everybody.
It's at the end of the album though that the Arctic Monkey's show maturity beyond their ages, with the one-two finish of 'Suck It and See' and 'That's Where You're Wrong'. The first been a love sick ballad of Turner's courting of a woman featuring the line 'Be cruel to me/As I am a fool for you', whilst the latter shows Turner consoling someone who is struggling to come to terms with aging, as the guitars, drums and bass slowly build into a crescendo with the final line of 'Don't take it so personally, honey/You're not the only one that time has got it in for/ That's where your wrong'. With that glimpse of furthering maturity in just 5 years, something Oasis couldn't manage in 20, we get the answer to the question who are the Arctic Monkeys? Back in form.