Friday, January 10, 2014

One Year, 100 Albums: #49 Arctic Monkeys "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not"


Arctic Monkeys Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, 2006

This was the first album I saw really hyped up on Last.fm. Arctic Monkeys released an EP in the Spring and this was coming out in the Summer (Dates and Seasons may not be 100% accurate. Void where prohibited. If swelling persists, consult a doctor.) and people were STOKED. Then they were on SNL (They played "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" and "A Certain Romance") and I very much enjoyed both of their performances on that. So I picked it up.

And man, the hype was well-deserved. I couldn't believe that music this addictive could still be coming from bands that I hadn't ever heard of. Which, in hindsight, is a pretty egotistical thing to think, but I was 23. That's the age for ego.

I love when British or Scottish bands don't mask their accent. So often, you'll hear a band play and think they're American, but then they'll speak and you'll quickly find out that that was only their singing accent. Think the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. And Arctic Monkeys just let their accent hang out all over the place. And I love it.

I never really got into The Strokes or Franz Ferdinand. And I always secretly think it's because I got into this album first. It rocks AND you can dance to it. It's brimming with youthful exuberance and snottiness (hey, a theme this week!) which I love, but it's also smart. I'm really glad these guys have stuck around for a while. Apparently, their most recent album, AM, is also very good. And I'm really happy about that.


Arctic Monkeys - The View From the Afternoon
Arctic Monkeys - A Certain Romance

You can buy Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not at Amazon, Amazon MP3, and iTunes

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