The Singles Jukebox

Arctic Stripes, more like.

[Video][Website]
[6.14]

Sally O’Rourke: The frustrating thing about post-Whatever Arctic Monkeys is hearing Alex Turner undermine his own talent at every turn. “R U Mine?” is tighter, hookier and more cleverly phrased than most everything else on modern rock radio. Having cleared this low bar, the band is content to call it a day – never mind the intricate lyrical pile-ups and brash energy that made their best material so exciting. “Suck It and See” suggested an intriguing detour (or post-Monkeys career path) for Turner as a sludgier Richard Hawley. “R U Mine?” just suggests Humbug had more outtakes than anyone could have ever wanted.
[6]

Iain Mew: “R U Mine?’ offers an excellent combination of the Homme-assisted chunky riffing of the last couple of albums and the dexterous directness of the first two. I particularly love the bit where different riffs  explode around from side to side like a long show-off solo compressed into seconds. Sadly, the song also gives me cause once again to lament the disappearance of Alex Turner’s once observation-based lyrics. Instead we get a bit of Thunderbirds hashtagging.
[6]

Brad Shoup: I was giddily girded for Arctic Monkeys’ Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain phase, but based on this museum piece, it’s gonna be a bit longer. The riffing is impeccable, fantastic string bending and start-stop dynamics and all that, but everything makes a disheartening amount of sense. Still, you could slot this on a particularly aggressive mixtape with no problem. Extra points will be awarded for the Lee-and-Nancy reference. (Not here, however.)
[6]

Alfred Soto: We — critics but listeners too — are responsible for forcing Alex Turner’s syllable count to exceed his chordal by a factor of five. Suck It and See was actually a terrific record. Now even his titles embarrass him.
[4]

Michaela Drapes: Refinement and essentialism suit the Arctic Monkeys. The sparse production (a single take live recording?) decisions were wise. But does anyone care about white boy blues anymore?
[7]

Jake Cleland: Despite a bad first impression – it’s never, ever a good idea, EVER, to use SMS slang in a song title – this sounds ferocious. Leaning in the general direction of The Black Keys, the booziness of the guitars and Turner’s voice is beautifully off-set by Matt Helders’s shrieking backing vocals. I’ve been away from Arctic Monkeys for a while but if this non-album track is indicative of where they’re at, I might have to hear Suck It and See.
[7]

Andrew Ryce: I am such a sucker for Alex Turner’s voice, his accent, his lyrics, and the noir-ish aesthetic the Monkeys seemed to have acquired since their second album. It’s embarrassing, and it extends to this. This is pretty muscular, bluesy classic-rock stuff — are they trying to be Zeppelin? or god forbid, the White Stripes? — but with Turner bleating all over it it’s hard to dislike. Plus: the drumming. Throw in a killer middle eight and the wanky riffery is easier to forgive. This is Just Another Arctic Monkeys  Song, and that’s A-OK with me.
[7]