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CDs:
· Arctic Monkeys
(We liked it and you will too!)

· The Band
· Bonnie 'Prince' Billy
· The Castanets
· Kompis
· The Matt Winter Band
· Santana
· Soulfly
· Thumbsucker Soundtrack

Live:
· Lagwagon
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· Tegan & Sara

Arctic Monkeys
Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
Domino/EMI

Sheffield's Arctic Monkeys (yes, it's an awfully shit name, but just deal with it now and it'll make your life easier) have revolutionised the music industry by - gasp! - playing shows and making their music available to people. This blindingly obvious approach saw them sell out London's Astoria with no official release, catch the UK music press off guard, and eventually score the biggest-selling debut in history. Heart-warming though that is, it wouldn't matter if 'Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not' (yes, it's an awfully shit title, see above) was rubbish.

Instead, it's a blast from start to finish. Arctic Monkeys play with so much energy its difficult to not like them. For all the record's qualities - a sharp wit, songs hovering around the three minute mark and hooks galore - it's the sheer exuberance of the delivery that renders it so inescapably very, very good.

Each song is beautifully crafted and topped with Alex Turner's wonderful lyrics and oh-so-Northern delivery. Comparisons to The Streets are warranted as there are plenty of parallels; these are cleverly observed tales of everyday life and a natural, gentle humour flows through them. Equally strong in narrative or conversational form (the superb Mardy Bum, in particular) the lyrics are just as important as the music carrying them.

Inspired partly by classic British guitar pop, spy movie themes and white-boy reggae the album hurtles from start to finish. Fake Tales Of San Francisco is the best moment here, a lurching groove leading to its totally addictive climax, but there's not a dud to be found. Single I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor is a great taster, but the less-immediate tracks are even better. Changing the way the music business operates? Bollocks. Through Arctic Monkeys the natural order has simply had a chance to re-assert itself. Listen to this record - despite your inevitable and justified cynicism - and you'll discover an album you'll keep returning to. Because it really is very, very good.

Wade Howland

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