REVIEW: Arctic Monkeys Live at Arena Birmingham 15/09/2018

When Arctic Monkeys announced their  Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino album, fans, of course, waited with baited breath as to whether Sheffield's finest will shortly announce a tour. Well, a couple of weeks later, that wish came true, with the Arctics announcing a string of dates, including dates in the UK. If you were lucky enough to be at the concert, you would have seen that the tickets had sold out.

As soon as the Arctic Monkeys entered on stage, it was clear that they had not lost the Rock and Roll credibility that they had managed to develop over the years. Also, it was clear they knew what the fans wanted: a load of classics, with a sprinkling of Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino songs in between. The best thing? They managed to squeeze tracks from all 5 of their other albums; Whatever People Say I am, That's What I'm Not (e.g. I Bet You Look Good On the Dancefloor and From the Ritz to the Rubble),  Favourite Worst Nightmare (e.g. Brianstorm and 505), Humbug (e.g Crying Lightning and Pretty Visitors), Suck it and See, (Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair) and AM (e.g. Arabella, Knee Socks, and Do I Wanna Know?).

Of course, this tour was also a chance to showcase Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino songs live and for those who were worried that the album was too slow to sound good live, no need to be worried. In fact, the live version of songs such as Star Treatment, American Sports and Four Out of Five gave them a whole new lease of life.

The other great thing about this tour, apart from managing to find space for songs from all their albums, is that it allows the band to prove that they haven't forgotten their roots, with people often accusing Alex Turner of going all American and losing his Sheffield accent. How? By bringing The View From the Afternoon and From the Ritz to the Rubble back into the setlist, with them hardly being brought out during their AM tour, which was met with sheer joy by the sold out arena.

Overall, whether you're a fan of rock music or not, Arctic Monkeys are definitely a band that you should try and go and see live and if we have to wait a long time like we had to between this tour and the last, then so be it. Why? Because the wait will definitely be worth it!

Setlist (Please note they have slightly changed the setlist of this tour for different dates. This is for this Birmingham date):

Star Treatment
Brianstorm
Snap Out of It
Crying Lightning
The View From the Afternoon
505
Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino
From the Ritz to the Rubble
Cornerstone
Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High
One Point Perspective
American Sports
Do Me a Favour
Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair
Knee Socks
Do I Wanna Know?
Pretty Visitors
Four Out of Five

Encore

Arabella
I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor
R U Mine?

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