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Arctic Monkeys · S1 E5
Fake Tales of San Francisco
The NME hype machine kicks in and the music press loses its mind
October 29, 2005. Four teenagers from High Green stare at their own faces on the cover of NME under a headline that reads: "We'll Be Dropped Within a Year."
Arctic Monkeys, When the Sun Goes Down (2006). Originally demoed as "Scummy," this was one of the most shared tracks from Beneath the Boardwalk. The video is shot in Neepsend, Sheffield, telling a story about street-level life that no other band in the NME hype cycle was writing about.
When the Sun Goes Down, Arctic Monkeys (2006)
When the Sun Goes Down starts as a slow, almost tender observation of a woman on a Sheffield street corner, then detonates into one of the angriest riffs on the debut album. Turner wrote it from what he saw while working behind the bar at the Boardwalk, watching the streets of Neepsend after dark. The song was originally called "Scummy" on the demos and renamed for the album. Listen for the gear change: the moment the acoustic intro gets swallowed by distortion is the moment Turner stops observing and starts judging.
Sources
Sound on Sound, 'Classic Tracks: Arctic Monkeys'
Wikipedia, 'When the Sun Goes Down'
The Tent That Couldn't Hold Them
Reading Festival, August 27, 2005. Arctic Monkeys are booked on the Carling Stage, a small tent for new bands. By the time they walk on, the tent is at double capacity with hundreds more outside trying to see in. NME editor Conor McNicholas strolls up five minutes before and finds the crowd eight-deep outside the entrance. Inside, 50 crowd surfers go over the top during the opening song alone.
Sources
NME, 'Arctic Monkey mania hits the Carling Weekend'
NME, '10 legend-making Arctic Monkeys festival sets'
“Once in a while, there comes along a band who unite a generation, a band who sum up what it is to be young, lost, broke and British. The Smiths, The Stone Roses, Oasis, The Libertines... Arctic Monkeys might tremble at the prospect, but they're that kind of band.”
— Tim Jonze, NME cover feature, October 2005
TAP TO REVEAL: What did the NME editor later call Arctic Monkeys?
Whatever People Say I Am
Turner picks the album title from a 1958 novel by Alan Sillitoe: "Whatever people say I am, that's what I'm not, because they don't know a bloody thing about me." It is a direct response to the press writing about a band they've barely spoken to. When the Observer calls him the voice of a generation, Turner shuts it down: "I'm just not equipped to soundtrack the times. There might be someone out there who can do that, but I haven't cracked it."
Sources
Radio X, 'Who came up with the title of Arctic Monkeys' debut album?'
NME, 'Arctic Monkeys' Alex Turner: I'm not the voice of a generation'
Reading Festival, Richfield Avenue
The festival where Arctic Monkeys broke out of Sheffield and into the national consciousness. The Carling Stage tent was at double capacity, with hundreds more stranded outside, and half the audience knew every word to songs that didn't officially exist yet.
What historic first did Arctic Monkeys achieve at the 2006 NME Awards?
Perhaps Vampires Is a Bit Strong But..., Arctic Monkeys
From Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006). Turner's most direct attack on media parasites: journalists, photographers, and industry people feeding off the band's energy. The title alone tells you everything about Turner's attitude toward the press at this point. He thought calling them vampires was a bit much. But only a bit.
Perhaps Vampires Is a Bit Strong But..., Arctic Monkeys (2006)
"What came first, the chicken or the dickhead?" Turner asks, watching the industry scramble to take credit for something they had nothing to do with. This is the anti-hype anthem, buried on track nine of the debut where only real listeners would find it.
Hype Machine Speed Round
The hype is deafening, the press is obsessed, and the labels are circling. But four boys from Sheffield still need to choose who gets to release their record. Next: how Domino Records won the biggest bidding war in indie history.
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