Song of the Moment

J. Cole - Lost Ones

Monday, June 13, 2011

Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I Am Not



Monday, Monday. Just another manic Monday. Per usual, the weekend cruised by entirely too fast. But getting back this morning, I realized that I hadn't done a follower Shaqwanda based review in forever! And if you're reading today Shaqwanda, I've only got one or two left from you - so pop in some more bands! The Arctic Monkeys here originated in Sheffield, England and started making music in 2002 or so. These guys have a couple really interesting stories from their humble beginnings. When they were playing smaller shows in England, they were giving away burned cd's with some tracks on it for people to listen to and get accustomed to the band's style. Not all that unusual for bands getting their start. Well what ended up happening, is many people began file sharing the album, somehow it got the title of 'The Broadway' and it leaked everywhere. Most people that were late to the party truly believed it was an actual studio album because the title gained that much popularity. The other neat story was fans created a MySpace page for them in the early years. In an interview, they were asked what the internet medium has done for them and the industry - and they mentioned they had no idea how to put songs on the internet. When the follow up was asked, 'well, how do you explain your myspace page?' - they claimed they didn't know anything about it. Fun stuff. These guys have sold really well in the UK, but not great in the states. Many critics believe the UK press is simply a hype machine, and bands from there are too overhyped when they make it to the states. I enjoy the vocals on this record, and oddly enough the lead singer sounds a tad like the the guy from Cage the Elephant. It's got a really high energy, indie feel to it - which is pretty cool. Depeche Mode keyboardist criticized the track 'I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor', saying it was - a bombardment of the most unsubtle, one-dimensional noise. While I don't agree with that, I'll concur that is music isn't exactly the most complex either. But it doesn't need to be complex to be good sounding, and this is a flat out good sounding album. Give it a run today, I think you'll be impressed.

TRACK LISTING:
1. View from the Afternoon, The
2. I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor
3. Fake Tales of San Francisco
4. Dancing Shoes
5. You Probably Couldn't See for the Lights But You Were Staring Straight at Me
6. Still Take You Home
7. Riot Van
8. Red Light Indicates Doors Are Secured
9. Mardy Bum
10. Perhaps Vampires Is a Bit Strong But...
11. When the Sun Goes Down
12. From the Ritz to the Rubble
13. Certain Romance, A

Listen To Samples

Top 3 Tracks:
1. You Couldn't See For The Lights...
2. From The Ritx To The Rubble
3. Fake Tales of San Francisco

FINAL RATING:
3.75 out of 5 stars

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