Alex Turner has traded in his signature black leather jacket for a suit jacket and matching pants.
The elusive Arctic Monkeys frontman also shaved his head and took on a very hotel lounge-y persona at the Hollywood Bowl Wednesday night, one of the final stops on the band's Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino Tour in support of their latest album.
Fans shouldn't be shocked by the new look; the Arctic Monkeys have never tried to recreate the success of 2013's AM, which proved to be their North American claim to fame. Instead, they've turned themselves inside out with their dreamlike and sci-fi inspired record about a hotel on the moon.
Tranquility, the band's sixth studio effort, received mixed reviews from fans upon its release. The atmospheric concept-driven album focuses on both global and individual crises: mainly capitalism and existential loneliness. Long-time fans from the band's indie-rock days had become a bit estranged, perhaps taken aback by the album's emphasis on the piano over the guitar, but anyone who sees this band live can't help but be drawn back in the second they take the stage. If you peel back some of the album's many layers, you'll find reminants of jazz, soul, pop and a sprinkle of the '60s. Regardless of the sound, one thing's for sure: the Monkeys know how to captivate a live audience.
Mini Mansions kicked the night off around 7 o'clock and set the bar pretty high. Fresh off a new EP, Works Every Time, the LA rockers shared songs like their latest single, "Midnight in Tokyo," and hometown ode, "Honey, I'm Home." I missed most of the Lemon Twigs' set because I got up to grab some kettle corn, but from the concession stand, they sounded pretty good, too.
Around 9:30, the Monkeys finally emerged, taking their places in front of a monolithic visual setup that looked like it could have been a backdrop on the Ed Sullivan Show. Turner and Co. wasted no time, jumping right into "Four Out of Five," one of Tranquility's lead singles. The band played career-spanning cuts like the potent and muscular "Crying Lightening" from 2009's Humbug, to the hard-charging and anthemic "Do I Wanna Know" from 2013's AM.
The guy sitting next to me had never heard of the band, and after the first few songs, asked me to define their genre. I couldn't. We settled on psychedelic rock as the band ascended into the dreaminess of "The Ultracheese."
"Brianstorm" and "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" brought back some early-day nostalgia with their explosiveness, but even in the older material, you could sense a stylistic change. And how couldn't there be? Over the course of a decade of performing, the Monkeys' sound has shifted from indie-rock to blues to stadium-rock to today's lounge room crooning.
The simplicity of the lights and fog machine as well as the visuals on the screens surrounding the stage gave the show a retro vibe that would've made Stanley Kubrick proud.
"I just wanted to be one of The Strokes," Turner sang, opening up the encore with another slinky Tranquility track, "Star Treatment." The band played fan-favorite, "Arabella," before closing out with another song from AM.
"R U Mine" brought all eyes, ears and phones to the stage for the final song. Here's a fan video I found on YouTube of the performance:
The experience was both bizarre and wildly introspective, in the best way possible. The Arctic Monkeys– cool, confident and complacent– proved that reinventing yourself can have an overwhelmingly positive outcome. All it takes is a little self-awareness.
