Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare

Domino

April 18th, 2007.

How do you follow up the biggest selling debut album in British music history? Do you stay on the same path and hope for the same results, or do you take small risks, expand your sound and take a few steps into new territory? More often than not, a band will take the first route and disappear into obscurity - cashing in on past success and hanging on to old formulas. Those with a fire in their belly will seek new ground wherever possible. Place the up and coming, at the time, Arctic Monkeys into the second house of creatives.

Favorite Worst Nightmare is a more immersive and eclectic experience in comparison with the slightly monotone debut - that's no diss in anyway, it has its place. Here we see the use of instruments reach broader fields. Tracks like '505', and the slow creeping/shimmering use of the organ, show us that the band were already maturing and pushing their envelope to more shiny pastures. It wasn’t all about giving it socks, although 'Brianstorm', the album opener, is arguably the most socks that the band ever gave. You could tell that bigger, brighter days were on the horizon. The subject matter didn't change too much - cheeky, witty lyrics about characters consumed in lifes lessons - but the way the message was presented did.

The tracks that were left off of the album - the singles' B-sides - tell us that the band were at the height of their writing abilities at the time. The material that didn’t find its way onto the full length release are just as well-written and executed as those found on the final release. This tells us that there work ethic was always going to provide a steady stream of success. How you do anything is how you do everything.

The Arctic Monkey's place as THE band was firmly set in place with this record.

Notable Tracks: Fluorescent Adolescent, 505

April 18th, 2007.