The remarkable rise of this UK indie rock outfit can be attributed to the power of the Internet in helping promote unknown bands. The Arctic Monkeys were an underground phenomenon who gained mainstream recognition when their witty, literate post-punk stomper "I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor" reached the top of the UK singles chart in November 2005.
The band was formed in Sheffield, Yorkshire in 2002 by songwriter Alex Turner (b. Alexander David Turner, 6 January 1986, Sheffield, England; guitar/vocals), Jamie Cook (b. 8 July 1985, England; guitar), Andy Nicholson (bass), Matt Helders (b. Matthew Helders, 7 May 1986, England; drums) and Glyn Jones (vocals), although the latter soon left the line-up. The remaining quartet built up a cult following through extensive gigging and early on in their career began releasing demo material on the Internet. They brazenly flouted the conventional methods used by new bands to achieve recognition by encouraging their fans to share these demos through peer-to-peer file-sharing networks, but the tactic paid off by enabling the band to build a large, loyal fanbase in a very short space of time.
The quartet made their London debut in February 2005 and three months later they released their first recordings in a conventional format, the limited edition EP Five Minutes With The Arctic Monkeys (Bang Bang Records). In June they signed a recording contract with Domino Records, home to the highly successful Franz Ferdinand. Their shows at the 2005 Reading and Leeds festivals attracted large crowds despite the band being placed low in the running order, and helped build up the hype around the Arctic Monkeys even further. With the UK music press and mainstream media by now sniffing a good story, the quartet sold out the London Astoria in October and the following month their debut single shot straight to the top of the UK charts. "When The Sun Goes Down', another fine example of Turner's vernacular tales of urban life, followed it to number 1 in January 2006. The single's tale of a desperate prostitute later inspired the shooting of the short film Scummy Man. The Arctic Monkeys" debut album Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not broke the UK first day sales record later in the month, selling a remarkable 118,501 copies. It was then confirmed as the fastest-selling debut album in UK chart history and later in the year won the prestigious Mercury Prize.
Nicholson was sacked from the band in June 2006 and was replaced by Nick O'Malley (b. 5 July 1985). Nicholson did appear on the EP Who The Fuck Are Arctic Monkeys?, released two months previously and featuring "The View From The Afternoon" from the debut and four new tracks. Another non-album track, "Leave Before The Lights Come On", reached the UK Top 5 in August. The single sounded like an outtake from Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, but when the band began premiering new material at the start of 2007 it was evident that they had progressed. The harder, faster tracks that began to pepper the band's live sets were featured on the new album Favourite Worst Nightmare, released worldwide in April.
Always a prolific songwriter, Turner took time out from the Arctic Monkeys at the end of 2007 to work with his friend Miles Kane of the Liverpool band the Rascals on an album as the Scott Walker-inspired Last Shadow Puppets.
