Album: Humbug
Artist: Arctic Monkeys
Singles: Crying Lightning
The long-awaited third album from Arctic Monkeys has finally landed. And it is not a disappointment. Some fantastic dark, brooding rock mixed in with some lighter elements, with some odd but interesting ideas here and there.
My Propeller
The album kicks off with an innunedo-filled dark-sounding rock song. It's the way an opening track should be, drawing you in to the wonders of the rest of the album. The first half of the album seems to follow this heavier sound that what we have heard from the Monkeys in the past. But no worries, it's great.
Crying Lightning
The first single fits in well here, with its odd lyrics - first sexual innuendos, now Pic 'n' Mix? What the hell inspired this? (Please note: The lyrics are great, just... odd.) It was a well deserved choice for first single; it seems to show the better parts of the album.
Dangerous Animals
A creepy start with the words "Pinned down by the dark..." as we are led into another heavy-ish new track. The guitar parts are great, the chorus is great, the song is great. And just as a note for those who think he's singing dangerous without the E, listen carefully after the G. The song turns into the first example of some fantastic drumming from Matt Helders. More of which to come.
Secret Door
A quieter start here, but soon settles in with a great rhythm and a heartfelt chorus, reminiscent of the brilliant closer 505 from their second album. It shows a far more mature Arctic Monkeys.
Potion Approaching
This song is not them at their best, and is the weakest on the album. It sounds juddering, and features a rather uneventful first couple of minutes before it gets into a slow, bouncy rhythm, before ending with some more juddering guitar and the line "Would you like me to build you a go-kart?"
Fire And The Thud
A beautiful song, with some eerie voices going "oooh..." before Alex Turner comes in with some of his best lyrics yet. The ending is amazing, with some brilliant supporting vocals that makes it sound so epic.
Cornerstone
You can tell this went with Secret Door when it was recorded. It's another slower track, and it builds up very slowly and subtly, before launching into a brilliant finale: "I saw your sister in a cornerstone...." before fading out, leaving you wanting more.
Dance Little Liar
A slow, eerie beginning, the darkest on the album, but equally as brilliant. It sounds like a song for the desert (whatever the hell that is - I just can't really describe it) and features some great guitar riffs at the end.
Pretty Visitors
My favourite. A slow organ intro can fool you into thinking that's the premise of the whole song, but then it bursts into some super-fast rock, with lyrics spat out at lightning speed (I'm surprised he could remember all those) before launching into the best chorus of the album, as it slows down the speed and Alex sings "All the pretty visitors came and waved their arms and cast the shadow of a snake pit on the wall" while Matt smashes the hell out of the drums (it's him by far at his best), establishing him firmly as one of the greatest rock drummers ever.
The Jeweller's Hands
What? Final song already? - my first thoughts on realising where I was on the album. It sounds a bit like a hip-hop track at first before it launches into arguably their best closer yet. (It goes up against A Certain Romance and 505, both great closers themselves). It's brilliant.
This album sounds mature and wonderful. It is a well-conceived departure from their old material. I am only critical of two things. One is "Potion Approaching", which costs the album the full marks, the other is how fast the album goes by! (It shows it's a good album, but it's all over too quickly.) However, this just might be their best one yet, although many fans will disagree.
For the record, their previous albums: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (8/10), Favourite Worst Nightmare (9/10)
No comments:
Post a Comment