Is this going to be an unbiased, objective review based on irrefutable, well-researched facts? Fuck, no! I love the goddamn Arctic Monkeys!
But if it’s any consolation, I know every album this band has ever recorded like the village drunk knows the sidewalk outside his favourite tavern so I can at least assess their latest offering having done my homework 
The Down Lizzo:
Arctic Monkeys made a name for themselves by perfecting the art of writing gigantic, energetic hooks and hammering them home effortlessly.
Then came Humbug, one of the first albums I ever reviewed on this site and with it, a complete departure from the sound they had carved out for themselves in their first two albums.
They enlisted Josh Homme from Queens Of The Stone Age to produce Humbug and with his help their sound changed almost completely from infectious indie to dark, moody desert rock and God knows! I fucking love desert rock
Did they like the direction Homme guided them in? As dark and compelling as it was, were they happy with Humbug?
Give Suck It And See a listen and it’s pretty damn obvious that the answer to those questions is undoubtedly “yesâ€.
Sick Tracks
The first time around “Brick By Brick†with its simple chord structure, dirty guitar licks and harmonious chorous is a winner, but after repeated listens the lyrics and Turner’s vocal lines get a little weak.
“I wanna steal your soul / Brick by brick / I wanna rock and roll / Brick by brick / I wanna rock and roll / Brick by brick / I wanna rock and roll†are definitely not his best lines which is a pity because it’s a great song otherwise.
“All My Own Stunts†on the other hand, though it’s strikingly similar to “Potion Approaching†off Humbug is a great track. It has a cowboy twang to its chorous and a bassline that moves insidiously beneath the surface lending the song a powerful menace that Turner’s vocals compliment perfectly.
“Don’t Sit Down Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair†is the most powerful desert rock anthem on the album, a great and wasted track that comes on like a bad peyote trip and peaks like the cleanest MDMA you ever tasted.
There is more, much more. This album has a lot of meat to it, plenty to sink your teeth into and it gets better with every listen.
Should You Give A Shit?
Give a shit my friends, give more than a shit. Give two shits because while I have yet to decide if this is their best album to date (Humbug will always have a soft spot for me) it’s a spectacular effort from a band that I have the utmost respect for.
Here’s “All My Own Stunts†to play us out. Take it away boys.
Final Verdict: 8/10
Don’t you just love it when a band makes it huge with some cathy tunes for the first few albums,
Then starts making the music they really want to, whilst keeping their fanbase and expanding their audiences musical perception.
I love this band.
Great tune, i’ll get the album now now.
Thanks, Slick.
Anytime GJ!
And yeah, Arctic Monkeys are an extremely rare example of a band that cares more about their music than the money. They could have cranked out another 2 or 3 albums like the first two quite easily and cashed that shit in, but instead they got a little weirder, a little darker, a little more twisted.
Lemme know what you think about the album. There’s so much more I could have included in this review that I ended up cutting for brevity’s sake (kinda regretting that actually…)
-ST
Had “Suck it and See” in my car since “Jack Sparrowing” it on Tuesday thanks to your suggestion. And it fucking KICKS ASS!!! I had the pleasure of seeing these guys live at Reading in 2006 – when they were mere pups – and even then you could tell they were destined for things far greater than the hype. That Alex Turner is a rare find and his lyrics and wit far surpass his 25 years. But we already knew that. So I’ll leave you with this: “If you’re going to walk on water, make sure you wear comfortable shoes”. GENIUS.
thank you Slick.
Definitely genius! Glad you dug the review and the album Merv, watch out for the review I’m dropping next week. The album’s probably at least three months old by now, but I owe it to my readers to give it a sick write-up.
Thanks for the comment and watch this space, next one’s also gonna be a goodie…
-ST