Arctic Monkeys

Arctic Monkeys
Favourite Worst Nightmare


If the hype-machine across the pond (Hitsville, U.K.) teaches us anything, it's to tread carefully when listening to post-punk revival bands weaned on fuzzed-out tradition. Killing off more upstart bands than "internal wrangling," British music rags can lay claim to tarnishing--completely ruining, in some cases--the careers of the following bands with worthwhile potential:

The Strokes ("Best Band Ever"= Critical backlash)
The Rapture ("Dancepunk"= Novelty genre)
The Libertines ("Best Band since The Clash"= A decades-worth of non-music tabloid stories)
Bloc Party ("Socially-conscious indie-rock"= Embarrassing when compared to real "socially-conscious" bands like Gang of Four)

Watch out Gnarls Barkley, Klaxons, Lily Allen and Amy Winehouse: Any one of you could be next.

Music would be terribly boring if one band was the best band ever. Why try to "discover" the ultimate band when the very gauge in which you weigh importance (e.g. young, witty observers with guitars and a dream) is flawed by elements of "who said it first" hype and fickle childishness?

My point: Arctic Monkeys' sophomore album, Favourite Worst Nightmare, is a great album.

Before, during and after the critics chime in with their safe reviews--solid sophomore effort, good but not great, not worthy of their "saviors of rock" tag--take a listen for yourself. You may find yourself pleasantly surprised with your own judgment...as long as it's light years away from critical bias and hype upkeep.