By Sean Raleigh
Round Table editor
Artist: Arctic Monkeys
Album: Humbug
Year: 2009
Producer: Josh Homme and James Ford
After a two year wait, Arctic Monkeys are finally back with their third studio album, Humbug.
If their first album “Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not”, was the sound of Sheffield, England, then Humbug is the sound of the Californian desert.
The majority of the album was recorded and produced with Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme in the Mojave Desert and it has definitely rubbed off on their sound.
The most obvious example of their new Western sound is showcased on the albums opener, “My Propeller”. A slow Spaghetti Western riff winds its way through the song. Lead singer Alex Turner now croons with the best of the 40s singers.
“Crying Lightning” floods your eardrums with distorted bass and a heavy drum beat. As the song goes on, it builds up until a distinctly un-Monkeyish solo brings in the final chorus.
Until now Arctic Monkeys have never delved into long, heavy solos. This, and the heavier parts of the album can be credited to Josh Homme’s input on the album and his influence on them.
“Dangerous Animals” is loud, dark and orthographically correct. Turner spells out D-A-N-G-E-R-O-U-S A-N-I-M-A-L-S for an interesting change from the norm.
“Secret Door” is a 60’s pop inspired song similar to Alex’s work in The Last Shadow Puppets, a side project which mixed Scott Walker, the Beatles, and a James Bond film.
“Potion Approaching” could be a Strokes song, with a simple but hooking riff.
“Fire and the Thud” is a slow yet driving song but is definitely not the best song they have ever put out.
“Cornerstone” is the highlight of the album. This song has a real possibility to become regarded as a classic. It’s simple chord progression but complicated melodies make this song perfect. Buying the entire album just for this song would be worth it.
The song “Dance Little Liar” takes some time to get used to. The tempo is reasonably slow and the music itself is good but the lyrics are a little bit lacking; “There’s dirt beneath the dirt,” are not some of Turner’s strongest.
“Pretty Visitors” is a fast, aggressive, twisting and turning attack with guitar, organs, and drums. This is chap rock, the new genre Alex Turner says they have invented with this song.
“The Jeweler’s Hands” is a strange song that, like “Dance Little Liar”, takes some time to get used. After a couple listens, the eerie song has many levels that can be dissected, the organ, guitar, and of course the lyrics.
Even though the album was supposed to be the Monkeys’ heaviest album, most of the songs are pretty soft. However, the heavier points of this album are the heaviest they’ve ever gone.
Overall, Humbug is a really good album but a lot of the Arctic Monkeys’ monkiness has been lost. The lyrics are no longer about real life and much of the guitar twang is gone, which were two things that separated the Monkeys from the pack.
7/10
