The Arctic Monkeys’ AM: Best Listened To After Midnight

Opening for The Black Keys last year did more than remind the U.S. how great the Arctic Monkeys are, it influenced the UK’s indie rock band’s fifth album, AM, for the better.

With falsetto backing vocals and bluesy riffs, the Arctic Monkeys highly resemble the American garage rock duo on AM, particularly on the opening track, “Do I Wanna Know?” in which lead singer Alex Turner suavely sings over the pulsating rhythm, “’Cause there’s this tune I found that makes me think of you somehow and I play it on repeat/Until I fall asleep.” Play this song directly after The Black Keys’ “Everlasting Light”, and you’ve got yourself two aching love songs back to back.

In fact, most of the songs on here are aching love songs. With titles such as “R U Mine” and “Snap Out Of It”, nearly every track is drenched in seduction and wanting what you can’t have —or what you did have, but suddenly lost.

Formed in Sheffield, England in 2002, the Arctic Monkeys consists of Turner, lead and rhythm guitarist Jamie Cook, bassist Nick O’Malley and drummer Matt Helders. The band’s 2006 breakthrough album, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, was the fastest selling debut album in British history. Though this album was technically the U.S’s introduction to the band, AM charted higher in the U.S. than any of their other albums to date.

AM alludes imagery to everything that happens when the sun goes down: wild, rainy Tuesday nights filled with wearing leather jackets and sunglasses indoors while drinking whiskey and making 3 a.m phone calls to lovers. “It’s a really cool, sexy after-midnight record,” said Josh Homme in an interview with New Musical Express. Homme, lead singer of Queens of the Stone Age, who not only contributed vocals to “Knee Socks” and “One for the Road” but also covered an acoustic live version of the single “Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?” for the BBC Radio.

Turner admittedly got the idea for the title of the album from the Velvet Underground, who titled their 1985 album VU. He described the album as having more of a hip-hop feel, which can certainly be heard on tracks such as “Arabella” and “Fireside”, in which the heavy beats accompany the guitar riffs perfectly. In contrast, some songs are much more mellow and swooning, most notably “No. 1 Party Anthem” featuring pianist Tom Noakes.

Those who love AM will also find great pleasure in the secret gem the deluxe LP features, “Stop the World I Wanna Get Off With You”. You’ll find the Arctic Monkeys’ train keeps on rolling.