Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare

Rating: 8.8/10

Sound: 9
Lyrics: 8
Sound/Production Quality: 9
Impression: 9
Replay Value: 8
Tilt: 10

Release Date: April 24th, 2007
Genre: Rock, Alternative Rock
Key Tracks: Brianstorm, Fluorescent Adolescent, Do Me a Favour, The Bad Thing, 505

The Arctic Monkeys are back at it again. After debuting on the scene as one of Britain's most hyped bands ever, releasing "Whatever People Say I Am, That Is What I'm Not" last February to massive sales (and by massive, I mean they sold more albums on the first week their album came out than any Beatles album ever has) and instant critical acclaim, the quartet have returned with Favourite Worst Nightmare, a less hyped sophomore effort but, in many ways, a better one. You can easily hear a massive musical evolution with the opening track, Brianstorm. This track is darker than anything they've released: a fast, pulsating drumbeat, followed by an explosive guitar riff that hooks you instantly to a jealous thrashing of the common lady's man. And this is only the beginning. The Monkeys then plunge you into Teddy Picker, a song about misconceptions on sex, drugs and alcohol; D is for Dangerous, a song of obssession; and Balaclava, disrobing why stupidity is fun for teenagers.

And finally, we arrive at the real progression: Fluorescent Adolescent. I can't say enough about this song. It's catchy, it's interesting, it's heartfelt, a perfect 10 in my book. It's the monologue of a married woman who used to be a sex fiend and booze hound, but gave it all up for her idea of a perfect, storybook wedding. Yet now, a few years down the road from her magical day, she finds herself bored with her new serenity and misses those old night of drinking, dancing and letting herself go. Her dilemma is she can't have both and finds it impossible to decide. This song really is fantastic. If anything, download this track.

The final 6 tracks are ups and downs (more ups than downs, however). Only Ones Who Know is a romantic ballad that turns things way down for the Monkeys. It's passionate, but a once-in-a-while type song. Do Me a Favour is fantastic. It starts slow, picking up from the slowly moving previous track, into a shattering crescendo fitting only for this break-up song backdrop. This House is a Circus is just classic AM, a song about a broken home and the people connected to it, alright but forgettable. The Bad Thing is another fun song about stealing girlfriends, drinking and having sex-capades. Old Yellow Bricks barely caught my attention. It's in the home stretch to the end of the album, but it's almost forgettable compared to the other tracks. 505 is the most fitting conclusion they could have come up with. Similar in composition to Do Me a Favour, it starts quietly with only synths playing in the background, but as the song progresses the guitar and drums come in before the song blasts off into an all-out attack. It's a song about old memories and how, even though we evolve and change, the best memories are always with us. I think there's no better way to cap off a great album than that.

All in all, the Arctic Monkeys are here to stay. Whatever People Say was no fluke, they genuinely are fantastic musicians. Finally, as the average age of the band is 22 years old, these Monkeys'll be rockin' the jungle for years to come.