r/arcticmonkeys

I’ve been thinking about this for a while and I’m not sure if anyone else might have also noticed, but in the bridge of Opening Night when Alex sings “Please don’t fall in love with everything on opening night” it sounds a lot more like “Please don’t fall in love with everything I know I’m not”.

Thought that was particularly heartbreaking but I could just be delusional — I’d love to hear what everyone else thinks!! What he’s singing could be interpreted very differently by different people, but what I know for a fact is that he’s definitely not just saying “opening night” 😭

That's it. That's the post. Their B-side catalog is unmatched, I feel like it'd have to be a double LP just to get all the good ones. Which ones would you want to see on it?

I'm sure by now everyone's seen the pic of Alex in London with the red bag, and when it was first released I saw so many people trashing the bag on TikTok and shaming the poor little bag. I think it works perfectly with his outfit thought and I think we need to collectively start praising the comically large red bag.

https://preview.redd.it/g5cpijep72wg1.jpg?width=1178&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6d3311de2d1a5833090f7a7c95383b5016363365

It's one of their best shows ever. Sadly can't find any mp3s of it as well. At least I have Glasto 23.

I get the hype. I think my feeling on Arctic Monkeys is “they're not my style, but I recognise them.” This is one of their albums I'd be more interested to go back to, but I'm not in a rush to relisten to any. It's mad to me that this is the same band that made Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not and Favourite Worst Nightmare because the styles are so different, but that alone is the mark of a good band. I'm sure fans all across the board have different feelings about whether they prefer this style or their old one, but neither is really better, they just appeal for different reasons.

Once again, I would find it hard to isolate songs to talk about, for now, but where other albums have had lots of distinct but samey songs, this one had a very consistent sound, and clean enough transitions that I could have been listening to a medley. If I couldn't see the tracks changing, I wouldn't know where one ends and one begins. Maybe that says something about my listening, but I think it's intentional, and one of the strengths of the album.

The piece was very atmospheric, and seemed to focus on creating the sense that you are in the lounge of the titular hotel. That's what I imagined, anyway. As smooth as most of it was, I loved the deeper, heavier notes on certain tracks. It had a very consistent flow and an almost 60s futuristic vibe. I couldn't always tell what instrument was playing and I don't know if I liked that or not.

Overall, this is one of my favourites for a potential relisten, but I would probably prioritise AM. After that, it would be a toss up between this and their first two, depending on mood. I'm really anticipating The Car. When the album released, I asked some of my friends what they thought, and the answers would either be really positive or really negative. I'm generally interested in the type of art that people either love or hate, and even though I suspect I will not like it, due to my reaction to the rest of their catalogue, I'm very curious what all the fuss is about.

I've heard the band broke up, but since Opening Night dropped, I don't think that's the case. But it's been a while since The Car.

Do you guys think they have a project in the works?

Hello! I have an odd request that I'm hoping won't get me razed too badly

Basically- Favourite Worst Nightmare is one of my favorite albums of all time. No skips, the energy on it is just absolutely insane with that beautiful break in the middle with 'Only Ones Who Know' into the single hardest track ever with 'Do Me A Favour'. It's SO good. Balaclava, D is for Dangerous, This House Is a Circus, If You Were There Beware, like holy fuck.

My intention isn't too complain about their other albums, as I know and respect that musicians will change their sound. But they just... don't do it for me like Favourite Worst Nightmare does. Not even close! It's driving me crazy!!

So I have twoish questions that I'm hoping someone with a better understanding of the band's history, as well as a broader music library, might be able to help me with.

1. I'm not a musician so I don't really know how to describe ~what~ in FWN does it for me, but I'd loosely say it's how high energy it is. ESPECIALLY on the drums.

So I'm curious- were there line-up changes in the band that influenced the sound? Am I correct in feeling that the drums are a lot different than their other works? There's also something about the guitar work that scratches my brain just right- the sequencing of the notes just feels a bit more dynamic maybe? Like it jumps around a bit more? I'm hoping someone a bit more musically literate can help me understand what sonically sets FWN apart from the rest of their albums.

2. I'd love some suggestions for other songs in their catalogue that you feel are most aligned with FWN. Or- if you know other artists that have a similar sound to that album, I'd love to hear some recommendations so I can get my fix!