Arctic Monkeys hoping for the band to turn back to their guitar-heavy previous work will be left disappointed as the band turn into a bold new direction in sound on upcoming album Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino.
The Sheffield band’s upcoming sixth album is due for release on May 11 and, with a hefty tour due to follow, lead singer Alex Turner and his bandmates have begun drip feeding more information about the style of the new record. One of Arctic Monkeys’ running trends is to switch up their sound for each new album and Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino will be no different. In fact, it has been revealed that the new record was once set to be released as a solo album for Turner.
After the runaway success of their last studio album AM, Alex Turner and co have explained how turning to the Piano to write music has heavily influenced the upcoming material: “I’ve tricked myself into writing – by sitting at the piano, doing this thing that I haven’t done before,” said Turner in the latest issue of Mojo. “That gave me permission to go somewhere I’d had trouble getting to before. It allowed me to put across how I feel more, more… broadly than before.”
Guitarist Jamie Cook was the one member of the band who let slip that the new record was very nearly a solo album for turner: “I think at first, because it was quite basic – piano, vocal and no guitar – Al was in two minds about, ‘is this Arctic Monkeys or am I going somewhere else with this’,” said Cook. “And maybe at first I was a bit like that as well. It’s not definitely not a guitar-heavy record, not typically what we’d do. It took a lot more thinking about.”
As Far Out Magazine previously reported, the first line of the new Arctic Monkeys album will be a reference to indie pioneers The Strokes, a fact that Turner was happy to discuss: “Did The Strokes line feel too close to home? Yeah, absolutely. But you can’t let that stop you. That whole thing of ‘Oh my God, what they gonna think this means? You can’t really work like that,” he said before explaining that the new music has taken somewhat of an “autobiographical” tone: “Well, the album sort of all is. I’m having a word with myself, intermittently, throughout all 11 tunes.”
Arctic Monkeys Live in September
Thursday 6th Manchester, Manchester Arena
Friday 7th Manchester, Manchester Arena
Sunday 9th London, The O2
Monday 10th London, The O2
Wednesday 12th London, The O2
Saturday 15th Birmingham, Arena Birmingham
Sunday 16th Birmingham, Arena Birmingham
Tuesday 18th Sheffield, FlyDSA Arena
Wednesday 19th Sheffield, FlyDSA Arena
Friday 21st Sheffield, FlyDSA Arena
Monday 24th Dublin, 3Arena
Tuesday 25th Dublin, 3Arena
Thursday 27th Newcastle upon Tyne, Metro Radio Arena
Friday 28th Newcastle upon Tyne, Metro Radio Arena
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFJgNSnpDRI