The band is coming up on two decades of existence, going from being one of the first viral phenomenons of the internet age to darlings of the aughts blogosphere to eventually creating cerebral, flamboyant concept albums about gentrification on the moon while experiencing several slumps and comebacks along the way. Their Fort Worth show, both in the quality of their performance and the intensity of fans' enthusiasm, made it abundantly clear why they've stuck around this long.
Irish rockers Fontaines D.C. set the tone for the show with their opening set, bringing a post-punk flare that was reminiscent of the '80s alternative scene and its revival movement, which the Arctic Monkeys originally sprung from. It helped create the perfect state of mind for audience members: nostalgic for the past while excited about something new.
Arctic Monkeys' current tour is technically in support of their 2022 record The Car, but you could make the case that it serves just as much as an anniversary celebration of 2013’s AM. Seven of AM’s twelve songs made the setlist on Saturday, including lesser known tracks “Snap Out of It” and “Fireside.”
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The Irish lads in Fontaine D.C. gave a harsh and heart-wrenching performance.
Vera "Velma" Hernandez
In alignment with The Car and 2018’s Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino's jazzy midcentury lounge vibe, frontman Alex Turner sported a leisure suit and aviators against a sort of retrofuturist backdrop. The show was filmed and projected on what appeared to be vintage TV studio cameras.
The unpredictable mix of new and old songs kept the audience on their toes. While some older hits such as “Fluorescent Adolescent” had slower arrangements and made the set more cohesive (maybe because even Turner can’t keep up with his own rapid fire wordplay anymore), it was not uncommon for the vibe of the show to flip on a dime and create a bit of a tonal dissonance.
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With his retro leisure suit, Alex Turner is serving a different king of sleaze these days.
Vera "Velma" Hernandez
Their first album, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, was a staple of the MySpace generation. AM, in turn, solidified their longevity by becoming the soundtrack of the early 2010s Tumblr scene. The slick, moody greaser aesthetic of the album defined the very last generation of teenagers who thought cigarettes would make them look cool.
Even at Saturday’s show, every woman in attendance seemed to be channeling the titular dream girl from “Arabella'' with their punk chic ensembles. But the scrappy club kids from Sheffield were nowhere to be found this past Saturday, nor was there a leather jacket to be seen. These may be their most enduring sounds and imagery, but Arctic Monkeys have bigger and better things to do these days.
Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino opened with the jarringly funny lyric, “I just wanted to be one of The Strokes / Now look at the mess you’ve made me make.” It’s a humblebrag, but a deserved one. They’re been creatively outpacing The Strokes for years.
What separates Arctic Monkeys from the other buzzy indie bands of yore is that they put in the work to be timeless. By drawing inspiration from the past, the band is making it clear that they won’t be defined by just one era. Their unwavering creative curiosity, fearless experimentation and refusal to rest on their laurels is why they’re selling out arenas in 2023 while even their most fondly remembered contemporaries are considered relics.
After an evening of pulling the audience back and forth, the band finally managed to perfectly consolidate their vision with "505," one of many songs to gain popularity years after its release thanks to TikTok. The fan favorite track was further elevated by the inclusion of a glimmering disco ball casting reflections across the stadium. It was everything fans loved about the band, new and old, condensed into a magical four minutes.
One repeated line in the chorus of “Fluorescent Adolescent” goes, “The best you ever had is just a memory.” While that may apply to whatever girl drama Turner was going through in 2007, the band has made sure it’s not true of their career. We hope they bring their best back to North Texas soon.