Arctic Monkeys @ Phones 4 U Arena, Manchester

Expectations were incredibly high for their return this year and it could all have easily been a massive flop….no-one could have pre-empted how utterly spectacular their assault on the charts and hearts of the nation would be. Arctic Monkeys fever well and truly hit following the release of ‘Do I Wanna Know?’ and their dazzling headline slot at Glastonbury.

AM (stream on spotify below), their 5th album, made for one of the most hotly anticipated releases of the year, and boy did it deliver; no mean feat given how things have changed in the charts since they first burst on to the scene just shy of a decade ago. Back at their best, they’ve reinforced why we fell for those scruffy teenage boys all those years ago. They might look at bit suaver but the grit and energy is back in bucket loads.

Ashamedly, this Phones 4 U date was to provide our first personal foray into witnessing the quartet live. Having been a devoted fan ever since the early demos, they provided accompaniment to our university days and many fond memories were made spasmodically dancing and screeching along to their anthems on dirty dancefloors. A nostalgic sentiment blatantly shared by many of the 23,000 strong crowd; the feeling that these boys somehow sound tracked a very decisive time in our lives. 

Endowed with so many arena-perfect juggernauts; inevitably they couldn’t play them all but what ensued was a cavorting 21 song full blown assailment that would see stopping for breath the most unfathomable notion. With, arguably, the most infectious guitar riff of the year piercing through the laudation, as anticipated they began with ‘Do I Wanna Know?. The creeping dusty strings and pervading drums coupled with Alex’s reassuringly still Yorkshire “summat in your teeth” drawl igniting a fervour that lasted until the very last strum of the night.

Hot blooded, rip roaring renditions followed of ‘Brainstorm’, ‘Dancing Shoes’, ‘Don’t Sit Down ‘Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair’, ‘Teddy Picker’ and ‘Crying Lightning followed with Mr Turner, much to the delight of his female fan club, treating us to a few thrusts of his snaky hips for his take on Kung-Fu fighting and the Macarena. 

The set was disarmingly simple, with surprisingly little bravado; every track packing a visceral punch without the need for gimmicks or corny interactions. Alex comes in for a fair share of flack when it comes to his persona and a sold out arena tour could have provided the perfect opportunity for him to over egg the pudding so to speak, but he didn’t. He let the music do the talking.

Strikingly apparent when new material from AM came to the forefront was how they’ve become a far more polished act, less urgent and frantic with more sense of groove. There seems to be more depth and tone in there. ‘One For the Road’, ‘Fireside’ (with the addition of Bill Ryder Jones on guitar) and ‘No. 1 Party Song’ added a sonorous depth to proceedings and triumphantly nestled between their more frenzied odes. 

‘Pretty Visitors’ saw the rammed to the rafters arena remodelled into to a sea of swaying arms, whilst ‘I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor’ predictably sent everyone, for want of a better word, apeshit. However, it was the climactic ‘I Wanna Be Yours’ that provided the biggest highlight of the evening. Complete with ticker tape cannons, the track inspired by John Cooper Clarke’s poem of the same name, sublimely rocketed. With swathing guitars, epical lyrics shimmered under a shower of silver confetti and aroused the hairs on the back of our necks. 

But of course, this is the Arctic Monkeys we’re talking about, there was no way they were leaving us on a swooning romantic note, they were leaving us with hooks and fire (and tinnitus). Back they came to coax us into another aberration. ‘Snap Out Of It’ with its snazzy earworming claps and clicks brought the vivacity and a semi-acoustic ‘Mardy Bum’ delivered the anthemic sing along, and with a “ just before we go I wanna ask you something….”, ‘R U Mine’ brought the ear orgasm.  

Quite simply amazing.