Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino: Nice, yet a slightly underwhelming stay.

“Right then lads, I’ve got a cracking concept for a new album. It’s literally all me with dry, self-aware witty lyrics and some piano in the background. It’s basically a solo album but if we act like we were all involved we can make a few million bob off it each. So, what do you say then, Lads? ….Lads?” This is how I imagine Alex Turners proposal for Tranquillity base hotel & casino went something like. Even the album title stinks like the work of a self-professed musical genius.

5 years after the release of their all-conquering fifth album, “AM” Arctic Monkeys are back. Well, sort of. Their new album, “Tranquility base hotel &casino” may be credited as an Arctic Monkeys album but do not be fooled, this is the Alex Turner show. Everything is focused around his voice and attempted tongue-in-cheek witty lyrics. At no point does this feel like you’re listening to an Arctic Monkey’s album. Now I’m all for bands evolving and changing their sound, trying something new and fresh. But this isn’t that. It would in no way sound out of place as part of The Last Shadow puppets discography. In fact, Tranquillity base Hotel and & Casino could well be 11 songs written by Turner during the recording of Everything you’ve come to expect that didn’t make the final cut.

By no means is this a bad album, it’s just not ground breaking and it’s certainly not an Arctic Monkeys album. Had it been released as a solo album or as a Shadow Puppets one I would feel very differently about it. But as we know ladies and gentlemen, context is absolutely everything. Anyone who disagrees clearly hasn’t tried telling a joke at a funeral.

Alex Turner’s attempt of tongue in cheek, dry humoured lyrics doesn’t have its desired effect and at times are so self-aware/tongue in cheek they end up being horrifically cringe inducing. Take the opening lines from 'One point perspective.' “Dancing in my underpants,

I'm gonna run for government, I'm gonna start a cover band an’ all”. They lack the finesse and wit for it to really hit home, especially in contrast to the slickness that we've been accustomed to over the past 12 years. This coupled with Turners weak voice coupled with his LA/Sheffield bastard child of an accent throughout means it just comes across as sleazy. Obviously, it would be unrealistic to hope for a Whatever people say I am… part 2 when Alex Turner is 31 and he isn’t writing songs which encapsulated youth in the manner that fake tales from San Francisco and the ilk did; but this is such a nothing record it has no oomph, nothing memorable and very little groove. To me, its elevator music, bloody good elevator music but elevator music nonetheless.

There are some good tracks, “four out of five” comes together nicely and has a strong finish and “she looks like fun” has a dark, heavy garage-like riff driving it home as its backbone and it’s possibly the best Turner’s voice sounds on the album. In fairness there aren’t any really awful tracks but very few natural stand outs either, everything sounds ‘okay’ but not much else. I can’t help but feeling that everything this record, everything Alex Turner is striving to do has already been done 10 times better by Father John Misty and he’s never going to come close.

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard at Brixton Academy 21/2/18

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard at Brixton Academy 21/2/18

Jay Jay Okocha was so good he was named twice, well King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard are so good they play twice… on the same night… at the same show… yet are still able to leave you wanting more. Such is the power of the Australian septet who on Wednesday evening played a mammoth show at London’s Brixton academy on the back of a batshit 2017 which saw the outfit release 5 albums.

The first set exploded into life with ‘Rattlesnake’ sending the crowd into a chaotic fury, the sort of chaotic fury you’d expect from landing at Tilted Towers in Fortnite. All hell broke loose. From then on out it was clear to all present that tonight would not let out. The first half which followed was a purely microtonal set, with the core made up from their first album of 2017 ‘Flying Microtonal Banana’ and the rest being garnished from Gumboot soup and Sketches. But the most highlight of this set was the closer ‘Doom City’, well more specifically the outro. A seamless transition into the final 2 minutes of ‘Crumbling Castle’ sent this well constructed microtonal set into a furious finish fitting considering how proceedings were kicked off.

After a short interval, a second set ensued made up heavily of Polygondwanaland, Nonagon Infinity and Murder of the Universe which saw a somehow even more lively set than its predecessor. Cellophane went down as you’d expect, as did a Nonagon combo breaker of ‘Robot Stop’, ‘Big Fig Wasp’ and ‘Gamma knife’ which had the tenacity to strip the walls of Brixton academy. But it was the trio of tracks from Polygondwanaland which came across the best, the free to download album was showcased through its self-titled track, crumbling castle and the fourth colour.

Everything was executed to perfection, in particular the microtonal set but it felt as if there was something missing. Too many microtones? Perhaps. Two sets laid the foundations for something a bit different, a chance to play some material which seldom gets a live outing, it was crying out for a head on/Pill or a Hot Wax type figure. Or even perhaps some more from Polygondwanaland or Gumboot Soup. The longing for more sums up just how prolific the band were in 2017 if after two sets you can go away disappointed they didn’t play XYZ, but with 13 albums in 5 years this was always going to be the case.

Selling out Brixton, their biggest headline show to date, with ease and already armed with a formidable back catalogue; King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard have shown once again they’re one of the best live outfits around currently. It almost doesn’t matter what they play it’s bound to be biblical.