Review: Arctic Monkeys put their headline status on the line (Lowlands 2022)

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‘Why is the audience so silent, damn it!!’ Two tall guys yell it at Alex Turner, leap forward, determined to change that. It is pressing in the first box before the show in the Alpha. Fans remember wild nights with the Arctic Monkeys. At Pinkpop, for example, in 2014, when someone broke his leg. That will not happen with the Arctic Monkeys in 2022. The band sells t-shirts with a disco ball. That disco ball, larger-than-life, also spins above the stage, while the band continues to play imperturbably. Lowlands was counting on a new album, which is ready, but not yet out. We might even get to hear one new song.

Photos Arend Jan Hermsen

Oh no, it’s a deep cut from Suck It And See. Even the diehards recognize That’s Where You’re Wrong not for a while. An exemplary moment. At Lowlands, the band plays all the favorites in a cross-section of their interesting career – and yet they don’t fit as well as Alex Turner’s suit. Everything has to go through the mixing console of the new style. The sound is fully turned on by three extra guest musicians. These musicians sound like a slick cover band. The Arctic Monkeys want people to shuffle, not jump. At least part of the band.

Drummer Matt Helders guards the rough side of the band from Sheffield. He also drives the band. When a number ends, he immediately enters another. Somewhere he has nothing to do for three seconds, throws a stick in the air and catches it just in time to tap the next bar. The start is promising. Immediately there is a jump, because the band fires explosively The View From The Afternoon and Brianstorm towards Lowlands. Helders looks more energetic than during the previous tour, which caused some friction between the band members about the future of the Arctic Monkeys. This show is a kind of compromise: slightly faster than Tranquility Base Hotel, combined with the great Alex Turner show.

Sunglasses off, sunglasses on. Turner acts like a Hollywood actor who takes on the role of James Dean. He milks his image as an unattainable sex symbol, and that includes a certain way of singing. Turner sounds older than the 36 he is. During the pandemic, he took a good look at Elvis Presley. At home, on the couch in Los Angeles. Feet up, cigar in corner of mouth. And you bet he put on Frank Sinatra’s records afterwards. Cornerstone he sings like a song from the Great American Songbook. And that is not appreciated by everyone. Turner irritates some visitors who have flown over from England especially for the band. They therefore leave the Alpha halfway through the performance. Fatima Yamaha, is that what?

Alex Turner, meanwhile, is slowing down the pace. Like with Potion Approaching, that Helders bets too quickly and is whistled back by Turner with a wave of his hand. Down a few notches, Helders, or Turner won’t be able to do his crooning. Something like this also happens Teddy Picker. Each time he alienates himself from more fans. At the front, a boy with the cap backwards checks the block diagram. He secures a desirable spot at the front, sings along passionately and falls silent after a few songs. Was this the band that fueled his passion for music? You’d think the Arctic Monkeys are risking their headliner status.

It is the fourth time that Turner and his associates play at Lowlands and although the band seems to be losing the audience, the band is also more popular than ever. It’s now AM, a modern classic that defines the band. At the time, a daring turn that led to a new future. Now there are many young people — including many teenagers — who want to see the band. AM forms the center of gravity of the set with a third. The audience sings along to every note of that record and sounds like the second voice of the band. These Arctic Monkeys excel in midtempo. It’s a band that gets tighter, but the playfulness is gone. The Arctic Monkeys trade raw for elegant. Turner acts like a man in his fifties on a reunion tour. And the visitors who are determined to start a mosh pit? They are shuffling in front of the podium.

Seen: Lowlands 2022, Saturday 22:30 in the Alpha. read here all our reviews of Lowlands.

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Tags: Review Arctic Monkeys put headline status line Lowlands

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