Arctic Monkeys
Lee's Palace
11.14.05

Last Monday, I went down to Lee's to see the newest UK garage punk child, Arctic Monkeys. They're a batch of 19-year old lads from England, playing a high-energy 45-minute set that finished 1 minute before their 11PM curfew (thankfully looks like their dad's were there to supervise). AC is a testiment to a positive outcome of downloading: This band does NOT have a released album; their explosive popularity has stemmed from word-of-mouth and a handful of EP/low demo quality tracks which fans posted online. Great to see 'em at such a small venue when they're huge overseas! Anyway, rather than writing another review, my buddy J. who was with me wrote about the show. Enjoy!

***
The hype descended on Toronto Monday night as Sheffield's own Arctic Monkeys took the stage at Lee's Palace. Having already assaulted the UK music charts in ways the Beatles only dreamed of, the four screaming faces laid into scorching renditions of their favourite downloadable classics. With an album not on the horizon until January, an elated crowd and a rambunctious pit clapped and stomped along knowingly.

It wasn't long before one nubile groupie attempted the stage - it wouldn't be a British Invasion without a few willing femmes on board. During the second song of the night, Dancing Shoes, she made her presence known to Andy Nicholson via an ill-fated attempt to grind with the surprised bassist. An overly large member of the groups entourage escorted her off the stage, before spending the rest of the set in a highly visible and distracting dialogue with drummer Matt Helders. Like, the stage is for the band, maaan.

A mosh pit (yes) opened up during the band's single "I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor", as bottles kicked and bounced around the audiences feet. Soon the crowd began taunting singer Alex Turner with chants relating to regional rugby rivalries (Sheffield v. Yorkshire?) and references to Turner's wardrobe (Air Jamaica!). Turner politely asked the lager louts to "Stop being silly!" and to "Please stop doing that!", which only made the hecklers heckle and the girls swoon.

Forty-five minutes later, at the stroke of the eleventh hour, the band dropped their instruments and left the stage. Feedback enveloped the room and all hopes of an encore were crushed as the microphones and pedals were packed away instantly. No pictures or cameras were allowed, a rule that remained unenforced. The crowd left feeling fulfilled, all things considered, and at the back of the bar a Geordie picked up two girls from Newcastle - a rare sight, even in Toronto.

J.