Upon entrance of the reading festival arena on Saturday the 23rd August 2014, one thing is glaringly obvious; this is a day dominated by one band and one band only.
Confronted by a sea of t-shirts screaming phrases such as “why’d you only call me when you’re high?” and the eponymous “Arctic Monkeys”, the boys have worked up one hell of a vibe an entire twelve hours before they’re even due to grace the stage. In the half hour or so leading up to their set, I spotted more than ten members of the crowd having to be pulled over the barrier and carted off by security, worryingly limp limbed and rolling eyed. There’s a lot to be said about a band that can generate this level of buzz and excitement, it’s verging on out of control but demonstrative of the impact and influence Arctic Monkeys have on their fans.
As the set kicked off with the discernible, thumping beat of Do I Wanna Know there was no need for any grand entrance to work the crowd up, the atmosphere was already way past electric and surging towards an inferno in the crowds impatience for their headliners.
One thing that is abundantly clear is front man Alex Turner’s evolution from awkward, mumbling lead singer to suave and searing show man, expertly addressing and guiding the crowd with no more than a swing of the hips and languid flick of his arms. Gone are his days of urging his audience “don’t believe the hype” and horsing around in his music video in a post box coloured turtle neck, singing into a dicta phone; Turner has morphed into a leather clad, foul mouthed rock n roll star and his fans are loving every aspect of it.
The show being a sizzling salute farewell to the touring of the monkeys latest album AM, the set list was a clear reflection of that, including smooth, anti love song No 1 party anthem, slick lyric Arabella and ending with heavenly heart warmer I wanna be yours.
Nostalgic older tunes such first single I bet you look good on the dance floor and When the sun goes down were ravaged by the crowd, but Arctic Monkeys flourished most with rock n roll tracks My propeller and Crying Lightning from heavy third album Humbug.
There’s a reason that Arctic Monkeys have become such phenomenon’s and it’s largely down to their explosive live performances, as opposed to Turner’s slick quiff and sex appeal. This is a band that put’s on an almighty show, with the crowd quite literally eating out of the palm of their hands. At the end of the set a ten minute long chant of “we want more” eventually coerced the monkeys back on stage to perform an impromptu three song encore. Jamie Cook on lead guitar and Nick O’malley on bass and backing vocals flank Turner with their own testosterone fuelled, assured style with Matt Helders bringing up the rear with furious drumming and occasional soft backing vocals-although for half the show there was so much smoke surrounding Helders that he could barely be deciphered. Although he more than made up for this by ending the show by flinging his drum sticks into the crowd to most likely be fought over in the style of vultures for this most coveted of souvenirs.
With so much anticipation and expectation for this slot, Arctic Monkeys didn’t disappoint in the slightest. Everyone got precisely what they paid for; a send off to the AM tour worthy of the globally successful, number one album. The boys set Reading festival off with not so much a bang as a meteoric explosion and set the bar very high for future headliners…
boundforsound 