Review: Arctic Monkeys perform two nights at Emirates Old Trafford

Yorkshire four piece – Arctic Monkeys took to the Emirates Old Trafford for two nights of rock in Manchester.

Crossing the Pennines from their hometown of Sheffield, the Monkeys delivered a night of old and new tunes for a crowd of varying demographics.

Arctic Monkeys at Emirates Old Trafford - Image by Natasha Judge

Front man Alex Turner remained cool and collected as he took to lead vocals and guitar, alongside Nick O’Malley on backing vocals and bass guitar, Jamie Cook on guitar and keyboard and Matt Helders on drums.

The shows encapsulated a selection of tunes from their multi-genre discography including tracks 505, Crying Lightning and Brianstorm.

Although the tour itself was in support of the band’s seventh album ‘The Car’, only three songs were played – these being Body Paint, There’d Better Be a Mirrorball and Sculptures of Anything Goes.

Opening with fan favourite Florescent Adolescent, the show delivered hit after hit for just over 90 minutes.

Arctic Monkeys at Emirates Old Trafford - Image by Natasha Judge

Their recent album caused some controversy between fans with some disliking the new musical direction and others favouring the experimental funk, soulful direction from the band.

Although undoubtedly the slow ballad, There’d Better Be a Mirrorball - was met with an atmospheric crowd presence, with people raising flashlights and swaying to the breakup tune of the inevitable failures of relationships.

Mid set Turner addressed the Manchester crowd by saying “I think we have got to know each other now, so I’m going to introduce you to a girl named Arabella”, before playing the AM album hit.

Arctic Monkeys at Emirates Old Trafford - Image by Natasha Judge

The UK leg of The Car tour has seen a return of hit song Mardy Bum, which had not been played live in over a decade. The tune was used to open the Bristol performance, and the 2006 song was equally well received in Manchester with crowds singing along as they were to most of the 21-song long set list.

The stadium opened from 4:30pm and crowds quickly filled the 50,000 capacity, dressed for the different eras Arctic Monkeys have developed over the years - from AM grunge rock to mirrorball sparkles.

Opened by performances from The Mysterines and The Hives, front man – Pelle Almqvist took a hit to the head from a swinging microphone, but in true rock and roll style completed the set with a blooded head.

Arctic Monkeys are still on the UK and Ireland leg of their tour and are playing Middlesbrough, Norwich, Swansea, Southampton, Dublin and Glasgow- as well as two hometown Sheffield gigs and three nights in London.

For further information on the tour, visit their website here.