Aus James Mastertons UK-Top40-Kolummne:
I like the way this feels.
For the first time in a long time you average casual observer will glance at the very top of the singles chart and have a genuine „who the hell are they?“ moment. For the first time in a long time we have a genuine shock, in your face, in from nowhere record sitting pretty at the very top of the singles chart. True, nobody had really heard of the Pussycat Dolls before they hit the top last month but it had at least picked up some mainstream coverage before its release. No, this week is different.
The Arctic Monkeys are perhaps the first ever example of a group shot to stardom thanks to little more than internet word of mouth. Alex, Jamie, Andy and Matt hail from Sheffield and made their first record earlier this year – a limited edition EP entitled ‚Five Minutes With The Arctic Monkeys‘. Of course in the digital age there is no such thing as „limited edition“ and copies of the tracks were shared widely across every p2p network you can think of. The music press began to rave about them in the summer, thanks to a set at the Reading and Leeds festivals and the phenomenon came to a head last month when the boys played the London Astoria to a sell-out crowd who sang along to every single track. Normally that isn’t so weird – but of course this was for a group who had yet to release a full blown official record.
Thus it was that their debut single ‚I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor‘ was released last week and with few big singles from established artists hitting the shops the way was clear for the record to charge to Number One, ensuring at a stroke that a lack of mainstream coverage is unlikely to be a problem any more. Hearing the record you can see just why hey have got people so excited. Their style is reminiscent of early Libertines tracks, music that crackles with an energy that commands you to sit up and pay attention. Cries from the trendy press that they have found the next big thing aren’t always that accurate but we are long overdue for the next big British musical „find“ and for the moment it is entirely possible that the Arctic Monkeys are fit to wear the mantle.
http://uk.launch.yahoo.com/charts/comment.html
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