Alternative rock group Arctic Monkeys released their newest album “The Car” on Oct. 21.
Arctic Monkeys have returned with a stylistic and moody album perfect for a nighttime ride. The 10-track record “The Car” continues the band’s stylistic trajectory over the past 17 years, while establishing a new sound for the British rock group.
Lead single and opening track “There’d Better Be A Mirrorball” offers a fitting introduction to the dreamy album and era for the band, capturing the final moment of a fleeting relationship.
“So if you wanna walk me to the car / You oughta know I’ll have a heavy heart / So can we please be absolutely sure / That there’s a mirrorball?” lead singer Alex Turner sings.
The ultraspecific lyrics are paired with a sonic evolution for the band. A jazz swing drum beat from Matt Helders is met with momentous orchestral strings.
“I Ain’t Quite Where I Think I Am,” the second track, opens with a punchy drum beat and steady bassline from Nick O’Malley, reminiscent of songs from their 2013 album “AM” like “R U Mine?” and “Do I Wanna Know?”
Worthy of a spot on a Stanley Kubrick soundtrack, “Sculptures Of Anything Goes” opens with a cacophonous and heavy sound. Futuristic undertones and introspective questions about Turner’s past and present relationships help the song succeed as the album’s most experimental track.
“Jet Skis On The Moat” starts with a strikingly groovy guitar from Jamie Cook, taking the intriguing sound introduced in “I Ain’t Quite Where I Think I Am” and putting it in the forefront.
Thinking about jet skis on a moat is a ridiculous proposition, but Turner uses the confusion to ponder how he and his partner are supposed to know their connection has faltered. And, if they know, should they acknowledge it?
“Is therе something on your mind / Or are you just happy to sit there and watch while the paint job dries? / When it’s over, you’re supposed to know,” Turner laments.
“Body Paint,” the album’s second single, pairs a light piano with the high-pitched vocalizations of Turner to create one of the work’s most intense songs.
The record’s title track sounds like Arctic Monkeys met Simon & Garfunkel inside a spaghetti Western film. “The Car” integrates a wistful piano, slowly building percussion and a plucky guitar. The tune utilizes Turner’s typical vague lyricism to recount apathetically trudging through a relationship.
“But it ain’t a holiday until / You go to fetch something from the car,” Turner croons.
The somber “Big Ideas” feels like the beginning of the record’s end. The song provides a meta analysis of the music industry and their near-two decades as a band, alluding to a difficulty playing songs from their earlier, more youthful years.
From the first to last track, a string section slowly permeated the band’s sound and is just as prominent in track eight “Hello You.”
“There’s just enough time left to swing by / And re-address the start / If you call and have them pull around the car / And stop specialising in stories from the road,” Turner eerily sings.
The penultimate and quaint “Mr Schwartz” is about a film director “staying strong for the crew,” despite struggling with uncertainty. The final song “Perfect Sense” serves as a short and sweet conclusion to the album. With very few lyrics accompanying the grand instrumentals, the album ends on a satisfying note.
“Keep reminding me that it ain’t a race / When my invincible streak turns onto the final straight / If that’s what it takes to say goodnight / Then that’s what it takes,” Turner sings.
The entire album is a natural progression from Arctic Monkeys’ last work “Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino,” a ‘70s-inspired concept album that introduced heavy piano to the band’s repertoire in 2018.
With each of their seven albums, Arctic Monkeys have slowly grown since 2005 from a garage-like band from Sheffield, England to producing musically and lyrically intricate works of art.
With “The Car,” Arctic Monkeys has put the artistic chemistry of all bandmates on full display while Turner continues to prove himself as one of the standout songwriters of this generation.
“The Car” is available to stream on all major platforms.
