The English rock band Arctic Monkeys finally made their phenomenal debut in the Philippine concert scene as they performed at the Filinvest Events Grounds in Alabang on March 6. Filipino fans had been dreaming of a Manila stop for more than a decade, and now that their wish had been granted, they did not fail to turn up and party like it wasn’t Monday evening.

That day, the 2014 Tumblr indie aesthetic was suddenly everywhere. We saw droves of thousands of millennials and Gen Zs, clad in their chic indie sleazecore attire – black shirts, leather jackets, fishnets, combat boots and smudged eyeliners. 

Composed of Alex Turner, Jamie Cook, Matt Helders and Nick Malley, Arctic Monkeys played each song with surreal precision. At around 8:30 PM, they made their entrance with the darkly foreboding crawl of “Sculptures of Anything Goes”. This heavy mood was immediately flipped when “Brianstorm”, “Snap Out of It” and “Crying Lightning” burst into the air. 

Interestingly, the twenty-one song setlist was a well-blended amalgamation of Arctic Monkeys’ discography. It’s a known fact that there’s this contrasting difference between their older songs in the early 2010s and their recent releases. From the raunchy, tremulous punk/garage rock that defined their first five albums, their new music has progressed to a slower and more refined jazz-infused lounge sound. Their setlist presented this divergence profoundly.  One minute, we were grooving silently to “Four Out of Five”, the next we were jumping and screaming the words to “Arabella”. It was this kind of turbulent energy that sustained their concert, quite unlike any other we’ve seen, to be frank.

Frontman Alex Turner was not one for chitchat. The most I could remember from the evening, save for the occasional “thank you”, was when he said “Arabella in Manila” before actually playing the song. In his signature chic look – sunglasses, coat, little neck scarf – he had this mesmerizing persona onstage as he stared down the crowd, lifted the mic stand and sang the songs in his impeccable Sheffield accent.

Their seven albums were also represented in their setlist: “Don’t Sit Down ‘Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair” from Suck It and See, “Teddy Picker” and “Do Me a Favour” from Favourite Worst Nightmare, “Pretty Visitors” and “Cornerstone” from Humbug, “From the Ritz to the Rubble” from Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, “Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino” from their 2018 album, “Body Paint” from The Car. Some undeniable crowd favorites were “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor” “Do I Wanna Know?” and  “Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?”.

The encore gave a satisfying finish to a marvelous show. When the light finally illuminated the mysterious mirrorball hanging on top of the stage, we knew it was time for that song. It was an enthralling experience to hear the languid wistfulness of “There’d Better Be a Mirrorball” as the broken mirror lights seemed to dance all over the stage. This was followed by a snazzy rearranged version of “505”, reminiscent of the vibe of The Car. For the real finale, the audience sang word-for-word to the anthemic “R U Mine?”.

Finally seeing Arctic Monkeys live was everything I expected. At some point while listening to them play live, I had a moment when I thought they sounded exactly like they did in their records – from the vocals to the beats – which is something I find fascinating. Even their stoicism seemed like something cut out of their photos which I only used to see in Tumblr reblogs back in the days. The show was a dream come true, a concert bucket list item crossed out. Can’t quite snap out of it, really.

by Sandra Mae Laureano

Special thanks to Karpos Multimedia

Setlist

1. Sculptures of Anything Goes
2. Brianstorm
3. Snap Out of It
4. Crying Lightning
5. Don’t Sit Down ‘Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair
6. The View from the Afternoon
7. Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?
8. Four Out of Five
9. Arabella
10. Pretty Visitors
11. Cornerstone
12. Do I Wanna Know?
13. Do Me a Favour
14. Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino
15. Teddy Picker
16. From the Ritz to the Rubble
17. I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor
18. Body Paint

Encore:

19. There’d Better Be a Mirrorball
20. 505
21. R U Mine?