Coming back from a four-year hiatus, indie group Arctic Monkeys has given the music industry just what it needed with their new album “The Car.” From jazzy vocals to insane guitar riffs, the group has never released a disappointing album and their lucky streak continues on.
After their revival on the music scene from the covers of their hit song, “Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?” Arctic Monkeys has been one of the most anticipated artists to release music since their 2018 album “Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino.” Releases by the band since 2013 album “AM” have been seen as sub-par compared to songs like “Knee Socks” or “505,” but now the band has raised the bar for what’s expected in the indie scene.
“The Car,” the band’s seventh studio album, was first announced on Aug. 24, and with the release date of Oct. 21. Before the album announcement, they previewed “I Ain’t Quite Where I Think I Am” live at the Zurich Openair festival in Switzerland, where it was also revealed that it would be the second track on the album.
Before the album’s release, the two lead singles were “There’d Better Be A Mirrorball” and “Body Paint.” Both songs sound very similar to one another with their jazz-like feel and smooth vocals. Out of the two, I would say that I prefer “There’d Better Be A Mirrorball” because it’s a song that older fans like me can relate to and it would fit in well on their previous album. It’s meant to almost soak up the song in its entirety before making any quick assumptions about it.
“Sculptures of Anything Goes” has to be one of my favorite songs off the album because it has this super rough feeling to it, and you can practically hear the emotion in lead singer Alex Turner’s voice. The vocals are the kind that brought me back to their earlier music where they let themselves get lost in the music they’re making. Starting with this song does set the precedent that the Arctic Monkeys have evolved their sound and are still experimenting with it, no longer grasping onto their older grunge sound.
Another favorite of mine was “Big Ideas” because of how slow the band is in this song. The entire album has a very similar sound to it and doesn’t deviate from the low guitar riffs and strong bass presence that fills the whole album, which is something to keep in mind. “Big Ideas” reflects on the things that could’ve been in our lives and the ideas that kept our dreams going and while it may appear as a sad song, the band takes a different approach.
What I admire the most about the song is that we hear Turner talk about how all these big ideas they had during the early stages of the band kept them going, but now they don’t remember them because the band has achieved so much in their career and is happy with just making music.
Other songs off the album like “Mr. Schwartz” and “Perfect Sense” add life and new meaning to the band as they ask for a second chance in life and the difficulties that come with a large request like that.
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the album. The entire record flows together nicely and the singles only scratched the surface of the band’s potential going forward. I think that from here on out, we’ll be seeing a new Arctic Monkeys that many fans will be hesitant to embrace. I’ve enjoyed the new jazzy and slow sound from their singles recently because it’s unexpected from them.
“The Car” is such a standout album that I would highly recommend to anyone willing to listen! Even if I wasn’t a big Arctic Monkeys fan, I would give it a listen and hear the band develop and explore its sound even further.
5/5 stars
rarchibe@ramapo.edu
Photo courtesy of Bill Ebbesen, Wikipedia.
