The Cold Cut

A few weeks ago the Arctic Monkeys officially announced that they would be moving back to the studio this summer to record their third album.

With this news came heaps of speculation, and already new songs are starting to appear. The first, 'Sandtrap', is a 2 minute live version, currently used as the introduction to 'This House Is A Circus'. Other new material includes 'The Fire and the Thud' and 'The Lovers' 'Put Me in a Terror Pocket', all of which are available for download below. The songs are either acoustic or live versions.

The third album will be an interesting one. For me, their talent was never in question, but *line removed due to popular demand*. And now, with the confidence issues behind them, the Arctic Monkeys sound as if they want to experiment. The band claim they have 6 demos recorded, all of which will probably find their way on to the new album.

Arctic Monkeys- Sandtrap (Link 2)
Arctic Monkeys- Put Me In A Terror Pocket (Link 2)
Arctic Monkeys- The Lovers (Link 2)
Arctic Monkeys- The Fire And The Thud (Link 2)

Albums by the Arctic Monkeys can be purchased here.

The final 5. How emotional *wipes tear from eye*. These are the five albums that I really connected with this year, and the only advice I can give is to buy them now if you haven't already. As usual, comment, and click the album title to buy it, or the artist name to find out a bit more about them.

Come back tomorrow for a round-up, as well as some more end of year lists.

5. Arcade Fire- Neon Bible
Neon Bible seems to be the epitome of 'bigger is better'. They bought a church, converted it into a recorded studio, learned some new instruments (hurdy-gurdy and organ, for starters) and had loads of fun whilst recording a more rocking second album. Its a slight departure from Funeral, and I wouldn't go so far to say its equal in quality, but Neon Bible is still one of the most complete rock albums this year.

Favourite Track: No Cars Go

Its been around for a long time, but this song has really benefited from being re-recorded. A rollicking tune with some grandiose production.

4. Arctic Monkeys- Favourite Worst Nightmare
How do you build on such a brilliant introduction as Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (WPSIATWIN!)? Take a cue from this band- get better at your instruments, improve production and up the tempo- then the world's your oyster. Okay, Favourite Worst Nightmare isn't as instant as WPSIATWIN, but the quality of songs on this album absolutely trounces their debut in my opinion. Its bigger, faster and more brutal- a high octane beast of an album. Where next? Only time will tell.

Favourite Track: Teddy Picker

Teddy Picker- the bass driven third single- concerns modern society's chase for fame. In the wake of rubbish like Big Brother and X-Factor, you can see how true this is. They also made the brave move of recording using a live audio track in their video. Watch it here

3. M.I.A.- Kala
Kala was definitely the most diverse album of 2007, and M.I.A. continued her party trick of splicing styles and cultures together into an epic musical concoction. First off, the beats are ridiculous; some of the samples on this album would put most rap/hip-hop albums to shame. Lyrics have always been a key part of M.I.A.'s appeal, and thankfully, her style wasn't hugely altered between Arular and Kala, with political verses still featuring strongly:
"Do you know that cost of AK's
Up in Africa
20 dollars ain't shit to you
But thats how much they are"
All in all, its comforting to see Kala high up on many end of year lists, and once you've heard it, its easy to see why.

Favourite Track: World Town

Who would of thought that the sound of a gun cocking was so cool? M.I.A., ever the pioneer.

2. Patrick Wolf- The Magic Position
With the Magic Position, Patrick Wolf was no longer only for those with 'eclectic' musical tastes. Some critics have accused him of taking the easy 'pop' route, but when the results are so encouraging, it really doesn't make a difference. Patrick recieves very little recognition, which may have been the reason he moved in a 'poppier' direction, but even on unfamiliar ground he excels. The title track is the definition of happiness, but halfway in, things turn dark with Bluebells. Other than the confusing Secret Garden, this is a flawless, undervalued album.

Favourite Track: (Let's Go) Get Lost

No explanation required- listen, and you will be swept up by this song. Happiness, wrapped into a 3 minute package.

1. Lupe Fiasco- The Cool
This album was the latest, and best, addition to this list (full review here). Quite simply, Lupe Fiasco is a legendary rapper, and its a massive shame that he will be retiring after LupEND, his next album. Both Food And Liquor and The Cool are both serious contributions to the musical archives, and illustrate that Lupe is not your generic rapper. He really has something to say in every instance, and a lot of his rhymes contain content that is 'now'. He will also go down in history as the only rapper to ever record a succesful concept album, and a rare lyrical talent. Truly revolutionary...

Favourite Track: Little Weapon (I've bought the album, and its now out, so I feel okay about posting one track)

Fallout Boy singer Patrick Stump produces, and in the process creates the best backing track of the year. Lupe pulls a trick, opening with the line:
"I killed another man today
shot him in his back as he ran away"
All is revealed at the end, when we realise that this is, in fact, occuring in a video game.

It was pretty obvious at the end of 'Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not', that the Arctic Monkeys were going to have a really hard time topping the critical acclaim of their debut album. But needless to say, they went away for a year and a few months, and they have released a fantastically different album that defies the common mantra that 'second albums are always rubbish'. I can honestly say that this album is better than the first; Alex Turner's lyrics are as sharp as ever, and the skill of the band on their respective instruments have increased hugely. Matt Helders, the drummer, in particular has obviously been working hard; the drumming on this album is off the map. This is obvious on the excellent single and first track 'Brianstorm', which features the first real contribution from the new bassist, Nick O' Malley. This track is great, and seems to get better with every play: first impressions weren't great, but after a few plays, it matches 'I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor' for a first single, if being a lot heavier, meaner and faster.

The sound of the new album is more varied than their debut; there are much heavier tracks such as 'D Is For Dangerous', which has a rampaging joint vocal and rhythm between Turner and Helders, who has a good voice in his own right. These songs are contrasted by the more low-key songs like 'Only One Who Knows' which has only Turner's Vocal and Jamie Cook's accompanying guitar. The best song of the album, though, is 'Fluorescent Adolescent', a song which may be the 'Mardy Bum' of this album, a quieter song which still steals the album from the more 'exciting' tracks which include 'Teddy Picker' a loud, in your face track which suitably follows 'Brianstorm'. 'Teddy Picker' is about the celebrity of Hollywood; it seems like that this album focusses on the experiences this band has had since they were thrust into stardom. Whereas the first album focussed on the experiences they had in the Sheffield borough of High Green, this album is really the band, and Turner in particular, coming to turns with their new celebrity.

I have to say, I was worried that once all the hype surrounding the first album had died down and the internet distribution fad had died out, that the Arctic Monkeys would struggle to retain their audience. I'm really glad to see that they have written an excellent new album, which whilst different, wont change people's opinion that this is one of the best contemporary guitar bands the UK has ever seen.

Here is one of the great song off this album, Teddy Picker. If you like it, head over to iTunes or Play.com to get the album.

Arctic Monkeys- Teddy Picker