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"...You should BEAR THAT in mind tonight, BEAR THAT in mind, yeah you should..."
NO WAIT, I think I picked the wrong column in the iTunes library. This is The View From The Afternoon, from the fantastic "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not". Oh yes, the early Artic, full of energy, adrenaline flowing like rivers through the Stratocaster of the now no longer teen, Alex Turner.
Those were good times, for the Arctic and for us, the new generation, who listened to them in the few GBs of music we had in our mp3 players. But let's return to the present, a bit with bitterness, a bit with a hopeful smile.
On June 5th, the fourth album of the English monkeys, "Suck it And See", was released, a name a bit provocative and a bit controversial for the American public, the puritan American public, which will ban the sale of the CD in some stores, and which will censor the album's title. A decision also debatable, but one that interests us little at this moment.
The album starts with She's Thunderstorms, the first song of the album. We are talking about a ballad almost a bit '60s/'70s, old sound revisited with some effects scattered here and there. Where have the grit and the frenzy of the riffs gone, that we had the pleasure to savor during our bus journeys or that kept us company while we went to school?
Black Treacle might be the answer. No, I don't think so. A song similar in style to the first, vintage sound, clean little guitar and not too pretentious.
We inevitably move on to Brick By Brick, which has nothing to do with Old Yellow Bricks from the second offspring of the four from Sheffield, "Favourite Worst Nightmare". In Library Pictures one might almost perceive the spirit that characterized the early Arctic Monkeys: fast rhythm and calm at times, distorted guitar and pounding rhythm. But it is just an illusion.
A few more songs pass, all more or less without noteworthy innovations, like Love Is A Laserquest, Reckless Serenade and Love Is A Laserquest.
Scrolling a bit, we arrive at the homonymous track of the CD, Suck It And See, which also carries a trail of endless choruses and blatantly Beatlesque guitars. They vaguely remind me of Best Coast, a surf-rock band of these years.
It ends beautifully with the twelfth and final track of the album, That's Where You're Wrong. "A pussyfootin' setting sun, make a wish that weighs a tonne. There are no handles for you to hold and no understanding where it goes...". Rhythm and melody that stick in your head, without too much difficulty, unfortunately or fortunately.
An album that leaves the old AM fans a bit bitter and that, in my opinion, might find intriguing for someone who has recently become passionate about the English band, which, unfortunately, has also become part of the "musically banal" and the "sold-out group that sells".
Besides the lyrics, our beloved monkeys should also dare a bit more in the music. Pull back while you can.
Listen It And Judge!
1 / She's Thunderstorms
2 / Black Treacle
3 / Brick By Brick
4 / The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala
5 / Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair
6 / Library Pictures
7 / All My Own Stunts
8 / Reckless Serenade
9 / Piledriver Waltz
10 / Love Is A Laserquest
11 / Suck It And See
12 / That's Where You're Wrong
Tracklist Samples and Videos
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By GrantNicholas
Suck It And See is another great answer to those wondering about Arctic Monkeys' staying power.
The frenzied guitar work of their sensational debut is completely absent, replaced by a more melodic, mature songwriting style.
