Arctic Monkeys, Smith Westerns
Saturday, October 15 at Rams Head Live, Baltimore MD
This was my third time seeing Arctic Monkeys live. The first time, I was attending as a casual fan. The show was at Baltimore’s Rams Head Live where the Sheffield band was touring their third LP, Humbug. A step away from the bop-along indie rock of their debut Whatever People Say that I Am, That’s What I’m Not and second album Favourite Worst Nightmare, Humbug was full of thumpy guitar chords and moody crooning. The second time, they were promoting their fourth LP, Suck It and See. Released this past June, it has secured a place as one of my favorite albums of the year. Where Humbug and their albums previous mixed brooding and mosh-along-pop-punk, Suck It and See was the result of singer/guitarist Alex Turner, guitarist Jamie Cook, bassist Nick O’Malley and drummer Matt Helders piecing together pretty melodies through even better studio production. The album is blasted with a ray of sunshine and guitar riffs reminiscent of the forgers of Britpop, The La’s. Needless to say, I was stoked on seeing them a third time in Baltimore on Oct 18.
Arctic Monkeys, Smith Westerns
Saturday, October 15 at Rams Head Live, Baltimore MD
This was my third time seeing Arctic Monkeys live. The first time, I was attending as a casual fan. The show was at Baltimore’s Rams Head Live where the Sheffield band was touring their third LP, Humbug. A step away from the bop-along indie rock of their debut Whatever People Say that I Am, That’s What I’m Not and second album Favourite Worst Nightmare, Humbug was full of thumpy guitar chords and moody crooning. The second time, they were promoting their fourth LP, Suck It and See. Released this past June, it has secured a place as one of my favorite albums of the year. Where Humbug and their albums previous mixed brooding and mosh-along-pop-punk, Suck It and See was the result of singer/guitarist Alex Turner, guitarist Jamie Cook, bassist Nick O’Malley and drummer Matt Helders piecing together pretty melodies through even better studio production. The album is blasted with a ray of sunshine and guitar riffs reminiscent of the forgers of Britpop, The La’s. Needless to say, I was stoked on seeing them a third time in Baltimore on Oct 18.
Opening for Arctic Monkeys were their Domino Records labelmates Smith Westerns. Their performance was endearingly low-key, and lead singer Cullen Omori, as well as the rest of the band, kept a mellow stage presence. They tore through songs from both of their albums, with “All Die Young” from their latest album, Dye It Blonde, getting the crowd moving.
By the time Arctic Monkeys rolled on stage, the sold out crowd was buzzing. The show had drawn a mixed audience, which I noted only because a surprising majority of kids who heartily moshed along to early tracks like “Still Take You Home” bore X’s on their hands. The set list, which drew from all of their albums but mainly Suck It And See and Favourite Worst Nightmare, made it clear that Arctic Monkeys have planned their shows out. Rather than turn up on stage, bang out some tunes, and bail, they’ve put a more concentrated effort into a performance.
Onstage, Turner’s thick accent wrapped around his complexly worded metaphors. At just 25, he’s rid himself of the nervous jitters that plagued their earlier performances circa 2006, when most of the band members were acne-covered 20 year olds. His confidence is clear, though he’s never pushy. He charmed the audience with his enigmatic flirting; staring off into space, making eyes at the crowd, and playing with his Teddy Boy coif.
Turner climbed atop Matt Helders’s drum kit, theatrically jumping down as the band tore into their 2005 debut single, “I Bet That You Look Good on the Dancefloor,” a monstrous song that got the 1,200 person venue thundering along. In contrast to the last two times I saw them, the band skipped over stripped down ballads like “Cornerstone” in favor of more energetic material like “Fluorescent Adolescent.” The pièce de résistance came in the latter half of their set, when the band played “That’s Where You’re Wrong.” The last song on Suck It and See, this song has a guitar riff so pretty and melodic that when Turner crooned the chorus and the entire band was shrouded by a yellow backlight, it was as if the sun was setting on a euphoric night.
Arctic Monkeys then left the stage after “When the Sun Goes Down,” before coming back for a three-song encore. The end of the night was marked by “505,” one of a handful of Arctic Monkeys’ break-up songs. “505” is a song they rarely play live, and served as a pleasant surprise to close out the set. The band have wrapped up most of their North American touring for Suck It and See, and are currently playing shows in England until the end of year.
