Arctic Monkeys – 25 Awesome Photos

Apropos of not much at all, we thought we’d slap together blow-ups of some of our finest photos of the Sheffield gang from throughout their career.

Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME
Back in 2005, NME ran a Radar piece on this brand new band, giving them their first major bit of national press. Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME

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Photo: Andy Willsher/NME
The headline on that first article called them ‘The Most Talked About Band In Britain’ Photo: Andy Willsher/NME

Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME
“We played a gig in Sheffield and as soon as I started singing the entire crowd sang it back to me,” Alex Turner told NME of their early gigs. Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME

Photo: Andy Willsher/NME
“It’s incredible,” a teenage Alex said. “I find myself looking up while I’m playing and just thinking, ‘What the fuck?!’” Photo: Andy Willsher/NME

Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME
The band first began rehearsing at Yellow Arch Studios in Neepsend. Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME

Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME
Arctic Monkeys played their ever first gig in June 2003 at The Grapes in Sheffield. Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME

Photo: Ed Miles/NME
They eventually signed a record deal with Domino in June 2005. Photo: Ed Miles/NME

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Photo: Andy Willsher/NME
The band’s debut album, ‘Whatever People Say I Am’ was finished recording in September 2005 at Chapel Studios in Lincolnshire. Photo: Andy Willsher/NME

Photo: Andy Willsher/NME
Of his songwriting process behind ‘Humbug’, Alex Turner said: “I wrote a lot during the middle of the night. I’d wake up, jot things down, then get back to sleep. And some of them became songs about that time of day, when you’re not as alert.” Photo: Andy Willsher/NME

Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME
;Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not’ won the 2006 Mercury Prize. Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME

Photo: Andy Willsher/NME
Matt Helders has been known to write messages on electrical tape and tape them to his bass drum instead of a band logo. Photo: Andy Willsher/NME

Photo: Andy Willsher/NME
In 2007, they took home the awards for Best Album (‘Favourite Worst Nightmare’) and Best Music DVD at the 2007 NME Awards. Photo: Andy Willsher/NME

Photo: Andy Willsher/NME
That same year, the band joked they wanted Girls Aloud’s Sarah Harding to join the band. “Third album, we’ll get Sarah Harding to front this band,” Matt Helders said at the time. Photo: Andy Willsher/NME

Photo: Andy Willsher/NME
Alex Turner has said that the band were very influenced by The Prodigy’s ‘Music For The Jilted Generation’ album on ‘Favourite Worst Nightmare’. Photo: Andy Willsher/NME

Photo: Tom Oxley/NME
During the following ‘Humbug’ tour, during ‘Fluorescent Adolescent’ the band would add bits of other songs into the middle of it. Photo: Tom Oxley/NME

Photo: Guy Eppel/NME
Matt Helders’ favourite song from ‘Humbug’ is ‘Dance Little Liar’. Photo: Guy Eppel/NME

Photo: Tom Oxley/NME
Alex Turner said of track ‘My Propeller’: “If that was a euphemism, then I wouldn’t be saying that my propeller wouldn’t spin- ‘cos you wouldn’t wanna go shouting that out, would you?” Photo: Tom Oxley/NME

Photo: Andy Whitton/NME
The band’s fourth album ‘Suck It And See’ was recorded in Sound City Studios in Los Angeles from 2010-2011. Photo: Andy Whitton/NME

Photo: Tom Oxley/NME
Influences on that album included country music’s Johnny Cash, George Jones and Patsy Cline. Photo: Tom Oxley/NME

Photo: Guy Eppel/NME
Alex Turner recently said of his Last Shadow Puppets mate: ‘We’d let Miles Kane join the band if he asked’. Photo: Guy Eppel/NME

Photo: Ed Miles/NME
In 2010, Alex Turner was named the 16th ‘Richest Brit Under 30’, with a fortune of £7.5 million, just below Cheryl Cole and Amy Winehouse. Photo: Ed Miles/NME

Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME
Turner also revealed that there was a strong influence from The Smiths on ‘Suck It And See’. Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME

Photo: Ed Miles/NME
Ever thought Arctic Monkeys was an awful band name? Apparently Turner agrees – he recently stated that it’s “a bad name for a band”. Photo: Ed Miles/NME

Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME
Fans pose for a picture with Alex Turner, as he shows off his latest hairdo. Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME

Photo: Andy Whitton/NME
Arctic Monkeys revealed that they’d love to collaborate with Josh Homme again. Photo: Andy Whitton/NME

Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME
Arctic Monkeys will not be returning to the studio until 2017, it’s been speculated. Photo: Dean Chalkley/NME

Arctic Monkeys’ 10 Best Songs:

 

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