Arctic Monkeys

It would have been perfectly reasonable to think Arctic Monkeys would fade into oblivion fast during their rise just a few years ago (they have the dubious honor of being the Typhoid Mary of bands notable for blog-hype)—but the band’s still here, five years and four albums later. Joining most of the listening public in its boredom with hip-slipping post-punk, the Monkeys mine a rich vein of 1960s classics for inspiration on the new Suck It And See. It’s all considerably more sedate than older, live-wire standouts like “I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor” or “Brianstorm,” though the droning “Don’t Sit Down ’Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair” suggests a fruitful future full of grimy homage paid to Velvet Underground.

Updated 07/20/2011