Arctic Monkeys | The Hives
Emirates Stadium, London
June seventeenth 2023

Having matured into one of many classiest and most proficient stadium bands on the planet, it’s completely becoming that The Arctic Monkeys selected the way more raucous storage rock favourites The Hives because the help act for his or her greatest tour up to now.

Solely as I stroll contained in the sun-drenched Emirates Stadium bowl does it strike residence simply how large The Arctic Monkeys have turn into.

There are 50,000 followers contained in the Arsenal floor for this Saturday night time present, the second of three London nights, following on from a spate of similarly-sized reveals at soccer grounds throughout the UK, and forward of a Glastonbury Pyramid Stage headline. It’s odd to consider that the exuberant, barely out-of-school lads from Sheffield who emerged 17 years in the past with perfectly-formed vignettes about youthful nightclub shenanigans at the moment are in the identical bracket as U2 or the Rolling Stones.

However there may be the proof in entrance of me, the entire pitch jam-packed with youngsters, mums, dads and even a number of possible grandparents. They’ve turn into a band that transcends generations.

Warming up for the Monkeys is among the most effervescent, thrilling bands on the planet – The Hives. The Hives by no means go in for half-measures; all of the members of the band, significantly singer Pelle Almqvist, are consummate performers who know precisely what strikes to drag to make a boozy Saturday night crowd go utterly loopy.

Pelle harangues the viewers – “No, that is how a rock ‘n’ roll present works” – he crowd-surfs, he’s hilariously self-aware between songs, and he goes full-throttle into all of their most memorable, raucous anthems as if for the primary time. They’ve been going for some time, however The Hives nonetheless look so cool in matching black-and-white fits, particularly once they freeze mid-song, by some means managing to catch an entire stadium off-guard in a sport of musical statues. Simply because they’ll.

It’s straightforward to know why The Arctic Monkeys selected The Hives as the principle help for this tour. There’s an much more frenzied environment by the point they vacate the stage.

The Arctic Monkeys’ look shortly earlier than 9pm is greeted by rapturous screaming. Tens of 1000’s are bouncing up and all the way down to opener Brianstorm, carefully adopted by certainly one of their greatest, Snap Out of It. They play with easy professionalism, a kind of teams that makes it look really easy to glide sublimely between decrease tempo, reflective numbers like Cornerstone and the fizzier, sleazier, glam-infused, riff-heavy sounds from their 2013 AM album.

The dynamics of the songs are carried alongside by Matt Helders, probably the greatest rock drummers to emerge within the final 20 years. Guitarist Jamie Prepare dinner and Nick O’Malley are extremely tight, locked in for the entire two-hour set, the understated bedrock of this far-reaching band.

Alex Turner is a easy, fully-fledged mature rock god nowadays, nearly caressing his guitar and swaying with the groove like some latter-day Elvis, his hair and shades a world away befitting his standing.

They return for the encore with their cowl of John Cooper Clarke’s I Wanna Be Yours, which Turner delivers like a crooner, with phrases that complement his personal arch observations in closers I Wager You Look Good on the Dancefloor and R U Mine.

Someway, in a setting as impersonal because the Emirates, The Arctic Monkeys delivered a set that felt intimate, a particular gig that each individual on the way in which out appeared to like.

The Arctic Monkeys web site right here Twitter Fb

The Hives web site is right here with extra on Fb Instagram

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All phrases by Tom Parry, yow will discover his creator’s archive right here plus on Twitter and his web site

All phrases and pictures by Simon Reed. His web site Musical Footage is right here and you may go to his creator profile for Louder Than Conflict right here. He tweets as @musicalpix and is on Instagram at musicalpictures.co.uk