Arctic Monkeys onstage at the O2 Brixton Academy

Arctic Monkeys and Them Crooked Vultures @ O2 Brixton Academy
26th August 2009

They will/they won’t/they will/they won’t. Will they? Won’t they? The internet was set alight earlier this week by the rumour that Them Crooked Vultures would make their live debut supporting Arctic Monkeys at the latter’s sold out 5,000 capacity pre-Reading and Leeds festival show. Well, it turned out to be true. Rejoice, clap your hands, say yeah! You’ve got to admit that, regardless of whether you’ll enjoy the music, witnessing the very first performance by Dave Grohl, Josh Homme and John Paul Jones’ new band is pretty damn special for a Wednesday night. For any night, for that matter.

The reception they got supports this – any annoyance felt by the rancid smell of the room and dubiously sticky floor was released in the form of cheers and screams as Dave Grohl made his stage entrance, waving modestly at the grinning room. “Hello”, said Josh Homme, before the band cranked up the volume and pummeled straight through their set, which included songs called ‘Mind Eraser (No Chaser)’, ‘Caligula’ and ‘Nobody Loves Me And Neither Do I’.

Of course, it’s all new material; some people will have heard snippets of ‘Elephant’ and ‘Gunman’ from the band’s Youtube videos but this is the first time we’re hearing the real versions. Real, incredibly loud, incredibly strong songs. It’s not necessarily the rounded sound of the tracks that we focus on though, it’s the atmosphere created by the sheer musicianship. This is the loudest gig I’ve ever been to and it’s not because they’re using good amps, it’s because all three of them are so damn extraordinary at their instruments that they play them with a speed, dexterity, imagination of three people rolled into one. And a band of nine is gonna be a bit loud.

Them Crooked Vultures – ‘Elephant’ (live at O2 Brixton Academy 2009)

There are constant opportunities for all three members, including touring guitarist Alain Johannes, to show off their individual style and ability, there’s so much texture to the songs it’s like looking at the inside of a 200 year old tree while on acid (sorry, that’s probably not my best metaphor). John Paul Jones has style oozing out of him, his hips thrust into his bass and fingers lightly tapping the strings as if, you know, this wasn’t a big deal. But the solos he has underpin the songs, without him they’d deflate, he makes them whole, intriguing, and gives his all to the depth he’s able to produce. All without breaking a sweat, of course.

Grohl looks as comfortable as he did behind drums in ’92 with Nirvana, his hair providing a fan for his face as it nods aggressively fast, up and down, up and down to the speed of the rhythm he’s creating. Constantly pummeling, a driving force, he switches the beat effortlessly and continuously, taking their music through so many unexpected twists and turns that it’s impossible to say, at least, that this could ever sound boring.

The Crooked Vultures onstage at Brixton Academy

Meanwhile Homme’s gravel tones float through the music, chargrilling the sound with an edge, a Californian desert kick so very distinctive to him. He plays guitar, of course, and he plays it well. He’s a born frontman but he has to compete with two other confident personalities, and sometimes he’s lost a little in the sheer iconic status of his bandmates. Having said this, he’s still the blooming singer of Queens of the Stone Age, and that ain’t nothing to joke about.

In summary, they’re huge. Fantastic. Explosive. Mind-blowing. Et cetera. Get excited, because this band, collaborative project, whatever you want to call them, feature three of the most talented musicians in rock. And 5,000 people agree with me.

Following that is a testament to how far the Arctic Monkeys have come. Humbug, their third album, which is so much darker than their previous two records, is out this week and while it’s shifting hundreds of thousands of copies daily, there are whispered concerns that they’ve strayed too far from their path of success. But if you could sense the excitement in this audience you wouldn’t need statistics or charts to tell you that the Arctic Monkeys are, if in any doubt, one of the biggest (and, let’s put it out there, most talented) current British bands to exist. And they’re all under twenty-five.

My favourite song from the new record is ‘My Propeller’ and it’s the opener tonight. Alex Turner’s voice drops very low, his Sheffield accent so distinctive, it sets the mood for the entire album. And it does tonight too. The set is half and half, old and new, peppered with the oldest hits – ‘View From The Afternoon’, ‘I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor’, ‘Brianstorm’, and so on – but always returning to new material. It’s a fantastic record, evocative and intelligent, if the hairs don’t stand up on the back of your neck listening to it then they certainly will if you ever experience it live. Matt Helders, one of the most inventive drummers I’ve ever heard, proves his worth. He’s constantly double-rolling; alongside bassist Nick O’Malley he moulds this crashing, spooky sound that rolls over a far-reaching, ever-expanding, ever-changing landscape. It’s particularly evident in the tracks ‘Potion Approaching’, ‘This House Is A Circus’ and single ‘Crying Lightning’. It’s so inexplicably emotional without being cliché, the sound stretches further than we knew music could. It’s perfect.

Arctic Monkeys – Dangerous Animals (live at O2 Brixton Academy 2009)

Turner’s vocals are impaired ever so slightly by intermittent screeching feedback through the sound system, but it leaves him undeterred. “Have we got time for one more?” he jokes after the second song in the set. He dedicates ‘Pretty Visitors’ to Them Crooked Vultures, having worked closely with Homme on Humbug. The almost skeletal, long-haired boy doesn’t seem fazed or in awe of his success, but he’s not a cocky little Gallagher-a-like either. He’s just here to play.

Shedding his guitar, he moves through the band’s cover of Nick Cave’s ‘Red Right Hand’ and ‘Crying Lightning’ with nothing to wrap his scrawny arms around. You can tell he’s not used to that, but he becomes accustomed to moving about the stage and throwing his body to the music as the set progresses.

They like their slow songs – ‘Cornerstone’ and ‘The Only Ones Who Know’ both feature, a chance for the crowd to wind down before an electric encore of ‘Secret Door’ and the brilliant ’505′. There are no words to describe it. My companion turned to me at the end and said, simply, “that was so big”. She’s right. I hope people remember this night and this band for as long as I’m going to.

Humbug is out now via Domino. Both Them Crooked Vultures and Arctic Monkeys play Reading and Leeds festival this weekend.

By Cathy Reay