AM
is the fifth studio release in seven years by the Arctic
Monkeys, a pretty impressive feat for a band these days, while as an album it is
their most diverse yet if not being the most un-Arctic Monkeys of their
releases. On this new album the band have moved head first into a completely new
area of music far removed from the indie rock sound which made them one of the
best British bands of the 21st century so far. The music on AM is heavily influenced by hard rock,
contemporary R&B and even hip-hop which ensured the listening experience for
me was in many ways one of confusion. At times I could have been mistaken for
thinking this was the new Queens of the Stone Age album, with a strong current
of heavy guitars, pounding riffs and high falsetto vocals scattered throughout
the album. Interestingly enough Josh Homme does in fact make an appearance on
this album as a guest backing vocalist, and of course helped to produce the
bands third album Humbug.
The album stars in a very heavy fashion with opening track “Do
I Wanna Know?” a guitar driven psychedelic rock track and “R U Mine?” a fast
paced song reminiscent of classic Black Sabbath. The influence of Sabbath and
hard rock continues on “Arabella”, a song that includes a seismic-like guitar
riff during the chorus that thunders through the speakers at you. At this point
I found myself thinking since when were the Arctic Monkeys influenced by heavy
metal, an influence that continues on “I Want It All” which contains a very
heavy guitar riff in the vein of early Metallica. After an incredibly fierce
start to the album, the middle section is much softer and melodic. “No. 1 Party
Anthem” is a John Lennon (circa 1974) sounding song that features acoustic
guitar and piano accompanying what is quite a beautiful soulful vocal delivery
from Alex Turner. I would bet my bottom dollar this will be a cigarette lighter
in the air song during concerts. This song is followed by “Mad Sounds” which is
the softest song on the album a midst a haze of heavy rock and R&B styled
tracks. This song to me felt like it could have come from David Bowie’s “Young
Americans” and has an underlying Philly soul feel to it complete with a chorus
full of ooh-la-la’s. The final section of the album begins with my favourite
track the poppy psychedelic stomp “Snap Out of It” with its hand claps and
incredibly catchy chorus, “Knee Socks” which as a song has a new wave feel to
it with echoey guitars and yet more falsetto vocals, and finally album closer
the R&B laced “I Wanna Be Yours” which is my least favourite song on the
album and where I had a what were they thinking moment.
As far as criticisms go, there are a few aspects of this
album which did not do it for me namely the R&B/hip-hop influences which in
my opinion did not suit them and hopefully will not be seen again on future
albums. I also found myself at times getting annoyed by the falsetto vocals
which are dotted across the album. Yes they work well on several tracks, but I
do feel they ended up overdoing this a bit across the album as a whole. Finally,
I also think this album is over-produced especially with the layers and layers
of heavy guitars and multi-tracked vocals, which together at times feel like
they are battling with each for supremacy on a particular song. There is a lot
going on, on most of these songs and I feel many of them could have sounded
better had they been a little less busy in places, and if the band had focussed
more on getting the timbre right rather than the production.
So far AM has been
well received by the critics on its release and has garnered plenty of positive
reviews and ratings, with many in the music press commenting on the albums musically
diverse nature and incorporation of styles that you wouldn’t usually associate
with the Arctic Monkeys. Some have even gone on to say it is the bands best
album, something I would not agree with as I still think their last release Suck It and See was better. However I do
applaud the band for trying to evolve their sound and attempt new things on
this release, even if the results are not always perfect. There are some very good
songs on here and a lot of interesting things going on in what is by in large a
consistent album, but all in all I am yet to be completely sold on the bands
new sound. Despite this, I still think overall AM was an interesting listen and I would still recommend it if at
least to see where the Arctic Monkeys are at after five albums, and what
direction they could potentially be heading in the future. B
- Sam
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