Arctic Monkeys - AM: 12 Tracks Reviewed & Analysed

3. One For The Road

At first listen, you may actually be surprised. The band have gained more swagger and grace with pop hooks than you may have thought. Featuring back-up vocals from now frequent collaborator Josh Homme (of Queens of the Stone Age), this track sets the stage for the next ten tracks. With a walking bassline and a simplistic guitar riff, the album's entire focus has shifted radically - from rocking out and losing yourself in a heavy melody to kicking back and singing a hell of a chorus. This radical shift only perfectly explains the side of Arctic Monkeys that have been there the whole time, but never fully explored. AM does that dwelling a lot. RATING: 3/5

4. Arabella

Stepping around and meandering with a meager verse, the chorus kicks things up 58 notches and gives us one of the last heavy sides of things we'll see on this album. Echoing 70's rock, the charging, massive-sounding riff channels 'War Pigs.' Outside of this incredible riff, the rest of the song truly fails to do anything interesting or even remotely worth listening to. Find that harsh as you want, but 'Arabella's' main problem is its stagnant verses. The chorus saves it from being one of the worst tracks the band has ever written. RATING: 3/5