A nostalgic blending of instruments and a signature voice 

The newly released album, “The Car” from Arctic Monkeys flashes its listeners to the past. The album from the alternative-indie-rock band is full of nostalgic grooves that carry a similar chord progression in each of the songs. It was released on Friday, Oct. 21.

The signature vocals from their singer, Alex Turner gives each tune a similar mellow groove. Some pieces are more upbeat and funky while others are more lyrical. The album really gives the listener a taste of everything. 

When I listened to it all in one sitting it became increasingly difficult to hang onto each of the lyrics that Turner was using. His voice has a classic-similar sound in each of the compositions of the album. Although, through my first listen I did focus more on the backtrack which has a really nice combination of instruments.

The differences in each song was a pleasure to focus on, yet I found that the way that the music vibrates was enough to give me a headache. Regardless, the album is still good, I just recommend taking it all in smaller bite sized chunks. Each of the songs has its own unique texture, as it should, yet they still blend together and are similar in nature. That was probably just a stylistic choice.

I’d say if you enjoy indie music, this album is awesome for studying. It’s cohesive and not very distracting. As a rule of thumb I love listening to indie music when I’m doing my homework and this album was no exception.

The entire album just had a very nostalgic feel.

In each song of “The Car” the band interchangeably switches between a larger guitar balance or a larger string-piano balance. In exchange they either create something far more funky or lyrical.

Each piece is personal. Sometimes they’re speaking to an outside lover or auditing their inner voice. 

For three of the songs, the band created music videos. In the process, they display a fantastic showcase of both music and imagery. Utilizing older mediums to convey their older themes. 

In the first song of the album titled, “There’d Better Be a Mirror Ball,” the entire backtrack is really similar to that of elevator music. On top of its dreamlike melody, It’s also one of three songs in the album that has a music video.

For 55 seconds the band opens the album as completely instrumental with strings, piano, bass, guitar and drums. The instrumental bit is genius and builds suspense as the audience stares at 80 different reflections as if we’re looking into a mirror ball.

On the other hand, the “Body Paint” music video depicts a place where old film is made. There is flashing between black and white symbols to a scene where the old film is spun. It’s a far less obvious connection between the music and visual components. 

Each song has its own musical quirk to set it apart, whether that’s the lyrics or the composition choices. Yet every song is still similar enough to brand itself as a signature Arctic Monkeys piece.

The album is a cohesive piece, each song building up more as they go on. It’s a great collection of their work that shows just how much Arctic Monkeys’ style has evolved with time. Overall, it’s worth giving “The Car” a listen. I think that their songs “Sculptures Of Anything Goes”, “Body Paint”, and “Hello You” are worthwhile gems if you like this type of genre.