Arctic Monkeys live at Glastonbury Festival 2023 – in pictures!
Now the dust is settling on Arctic Monkeys’ headline set at Glastonbury Festival 2023, it is becoming apparent that it will most likely go down as their finest showing in Pilton to date. Their third time closing proceedings on the Pyramid Stage, the band played after a period of intense debate about whether they would be able to fulfil the commitment, following frontman Alex Turner suffering with an acute bout of laryngitis. It took such a toll on his health that it forced the band to cancel the Dublin date on their tour on June 20th.
However, after a few days off the road, on the morning of their scheduled set, it was confirmed by co-organiser Emily Eavis that Arctic Monkeys would indeed be headlining later that night. This news was received to the delight of almost everyone, who looked to the evening set with excitement.
Taking to the stage at 22:15 and playing until 23:45, Alex Turner and the band – guitarist Jamie Cook, bassist Nick O’ Malley and drummer Matt Helders – were received by a mass of people to thunderous applause. Returning to the spiritual home of British culture as world-beating heroes, they played a mixture of past, present and even what appeared to be a future tune. Mostly, they were praised for their efforts, despite some wishing that the quartet exclusively played the immediate, treble-heavy indie of their early years.
The Arctic Monkeys that headlined Glastonbury in 2023 were more experienced and versatile than ever after years of creative expansion that’s seen them broaden their horizons and undergo an ever-ongoing metamorphosis where they’ve explored a variety of genres. This was on show last night as the suit-donning outfit took the audience on a career-spanning trip.
The band opened their account with the suave trip-hop leanings of The Car track, ‘Sculptures of Anything Goes’, before counterbalancing this with the 2007 favourite ‘Brianstorm’, from Favourite Worst Nightmare. “Greetings, Somerset,” Alex Turner told the crowd after finishing the guitar-heavy song. “What a night”.
Elsewhere, the band played more recent favourites, such as AM‘s ‘Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High’, which was preceded by the previously mentioned unknown track.
Arctic Monkeys showed at Glastonbury Festival 2023 that they’re not only accomplished songwriters but performers too. They regaled the crowd with their eclectic sounds from a well-crafted stage set, complete with moody lighting, additional instrumentation and their large mirrorball. It was a resounding display of all the elements that have made them such a cultural force.
See the photographs from Arctic Monkeys live at Glastonbury, courtesy of Raph Pour-Hashemi below.
