SOUND BITES

  It took a little longer than usual to get around to this review, for a few reasons; I started a new day job about a week before Arctic Monkeys' seventh album was released, then pretty much immediately caught Covid-19 (aside from a few rough days it wasn't too awful, although there's a lingering cough that still persists every now and then as I write this). Coming out of that, in getting used to the fluctuating hours and lost sleep, I kind of got beaten out of my previous routines. The other reason, however, has nothing to do with my personal commitment levels and everything to do with the record itself. I have found it an incredibly daunting task to listen to this album all the way through, because it just doesn't hold my interest. The head scratching left turn Arctic Monkeys took in 2018 on Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino wasn't a one-off, with the band reprising their roles as a burned out lounge act once again on The Car . To be fair, there are subtle diff...

For many rock bands, following up a breakthrough success can be the source of great stress, and can also yield the most satisfying artistic results. In fact, a good percentage of my favourite albums of all time were made by bands in just that position. Couple these feelings with my longtime adoration of Arctic Monkeys, and the album that followed their breakthrough became one of my highest anticipated albums ever. Granted, they have always been popular overseas, and so already kind of made that post-success statement with Favourite Worst Nightmare in 2007; still, homeland success paled in comparison to the international star-making turn that was 2013's AM . Now, to be clear, Arctic Monkeys have always been fond of changing things up from one record to the next, never content to let their sound truly stagnate; after following up their fast and loose debut with the darker and meaner Favourite Worst Nightmare , they ended up going on a spirit walk in the desert with Josh Homme an...

Over the course of forty days, I've talked and talked about these songs leading up to the moment when one would be singled out to wear the crown as 2013's Song of the Year. The time for talk is over. If, by chance, you missed the write-ups on any of this year's nominees, they're all here . I've also added hyperlinks below for the ten shortlisted nominees. Other than that, let's get the show on the road! The Shortlist: Arctic Monkeys: Do I Wanna Know? Clutch: Crucial Velocity Foals: Inhaler Headstones: Far Away From Here Kings of Leon: Beautiful War Man Man: Head On Pearl Jam: Sirens Queens of the Stone Age: Kalopsia Vampire Weekend: Diane Young J. Roddy Walston & The Business: Heavy Bells AND THE WINNER OF YEAR IN ROCK 2013'S SONG OF THE YEAR AWARD IS...

ARCTIC MONKEYS Do I Wanna Know? From: AM Released: September 10 That Year in Rock 2012's Single of the Year R U Mine? ended up on this album is pleasing, and it fits the motif well enough. But R U Mine? isn't what makes Arctic Monkeys' fifth album an Album of the Year contender. Sweaty, sultry and pulsing with sexual energy, AM is the kind of record that's just as effective whether you're chilling out after a long day, staring into a mirror prepping yourself for a late night clubbing session or setting the mood for some escapades in the boudoir.

As much fun as it is watching a band grow and evolve over the years and through their assorted projects, sometimes it's nice to see them take a step back, shrug their shoulders and try walking in someone else's shoes for four minutes. Whether it's a faithful reconstruction or a sonically shapeshifted alternate vision, it's always fun to hear what an artist can do with a song that's not theirs. Here are ten artists whose interpretations of familiar songs got the biggest smiles from me in 2013:

Click here to stream Arctic Monkeys' AM (watch out, it's an iTunes stream). A week ahead of its release, Arctic Monkeys are streaming their fifth album AM . The album takes its cue from last year's Song of the Year R U Mine? , which is included here in re-recorded form. That song's sultry energy drips all over AM 's dozen tracks, resulting in a fully realized, head-bobbing groovefest. It puts the boots to the manic, frenzied attack that endeared them to many in their blinding hype phase, focused on late night folklore and rump shaking beats. When they do slow it down, as on the glorious 70's pop throwbacks No. 1 Party Anthem and Mad Sounds , you can practically feel the smoke machine's fog hitting your ankles. It's a bit early to pass final judgment (especially considering I haven't actually listened to the whole thing yet), but AM impresses early on, and sure seems to cement Arctic Monkeys' status with this music lover as one of rock...

One of the year's most anticipated releases has to be the upcoming third album from New Yorker art-rockers Vampire Weekend. Their light, unassuming style of indie rock has endeared them to bloggers and TV ad execs alike; their sophomore album, 2010's Contra, actually debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts upon release (not a smash hit as it was released on a quiet January Tuesday, but a #1 nonetheless). Now, as we near the third album's spring release, a few buzzwords are being thrown around in relation to it. Darker. Organic. Nocturnal. Whether this bodes well for the sound of the record is to be determined, but it got me thinking. Throughout modern history, bands have often made bold moves, twists in their artistic story arc that have polarized fans, critics and label heads. For many bands, this act of commercial defiance happens at a certain specific point in their careers. The "difficult" third album.

ARCTIC MONKEYS R U Mine? From: R U Mine? (single) Released: February 27 In a year seemingly dominated by grand, multi-album statement records, leave it to Arctic Monkeys; they could have bled last year's very good yet commercially underperforming Suck It And See for another single, maybe even two. Instead, they went back to the studio and cranked out a new 7” for Record Store Day. What makes R U Mine? so remarkable isn't that it's a non-album track; it's that, even as a standalone single, it trumps just about every other song in the Arctic Monkeys' already impressive catalogue. If its muscular groove is any kind of clue to what we can expect on their fifth album (by rights, due sometime in 2013), I'll have a hard time containing my excitement.

Having scored the #4 position on my personal Top Albums of 2011, Arctic Monkeys earned the year off frontman Alex Turner had been talking up in interviews late in the year.  The single cycle for Suck It And See was starting to wind down, with fourth single Black Treacle released in late January. Well, apparently, they decided to abort the usual three month run that most singles get, because this week they posted up a brand new song that has no apparent ties to Suck It And See at all. R U Mine? , despite its emo and/or Prince leaning title, is a bombastic riff-fest that leaves the smooth rock that dominated much of their last album in its rough and tumble wake.  It's a perfect appetizer for their tour with the Black Keys (which, incidentally, starts tonight), a rambunctious competitor for the Keys' dirty blues and soul. R U Mine? was released on iTunes today as a standalone single; whether or not it sees future release as part of something bigger is something only...

ARCTIC MONKEYS Reckless Serenade From: Suck It and See Released: June 7 The phrase "suck it and see" is British, just like the Arctic Monkeys.  It refers to something you're unsure about, i.e. the flavour of a candy.  The gist being that if you don't know what it's like, try it and you will.  Of course, America isn't allowed to have nice things, and the gutterminds in charge of sheltering the public from anything that may possibly have the slightest hint of something that may be considered by somebody somewhere nay anybody anywhere the tiniest bit offensive decided that Arctic Monkeys were suggesting we suck their dicks and censored their album cover at some retailers.  Yes, that album cover.  The completely blank album cover with just the band's logo on a sticker and just the title.  It's so risqué, n'est pas?