Arctic Monkeys’ “Favorite Worst Nightmare”

Featuring songs with both upbeat choruses and melancholic verses, “Favorite Worst Nightmare” is one of English band, Arctic Monkeys most successful releases yet. Exploring many different themes from adultery to heartbreak, the album is thought to be an early success in the Arctic Monkeys lengthy career. Although similar to the band’s first album “Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not,” “Favorite Worst Nightmare” has its own unique feel and is considered to be more ambitious with the themes and ambient sound. 

The album kicks off with a song called “Brianstorm.” Often misread as brainstorm, the title is a nod to a man the band met in their dressing room while in  Japan. The man, named Brian, left a lasting impression on the band, leading them to write a song inspired by the character. Lyrics such as “Well, see you later, innovator” and “With your renditions and jokes, bet there’s hundreds of blokes/That have wept ‘cause you’ve stolen their thunder,” express the band’s admiration for Brian and the long-lasting impression his comedy and confidence left on them. 

Following “Brianstorm,” the track “Teddy Picker” details the insincerity of the music industry and how fake it really is. The phrase teddy picker is in reference to a claw machine picking out teddy bears, much like how the music industry picks out certain artists and promotes them more than others. The song is a playful commentary on how the music industry is unfair and constantly takes advantage of impressionable young artists who are just trying to make it in an industry that will never care for them. 

“D for Dangerous” and “Balaclava” are the next two tracks on the record. Both songs detail an irresistible woman, one who the singer would do anything for. The unavoidable nature of this woman causes the singer to engage in an emotionless relationship and stay in a toxic one just for the sake of being with her. “Balaclava” shares similar themes to the tenth track on the album, “The Bad Thing.” Both songs revolve around infidelity and cheating on someone. The songs differ however in the feelings associated with the concept of cheating. In “The Bad Thing,” the singer seems to feel guilty for helping someone cheat on their partner while in “Balaclava” the singer has no feelings in regard to the act of infidelity. Followed by one of the most popular songs on the album, these songs are all favorites of Arctic Monkeys’ fans. 

“Fluorescent Adolescent” is no doubt one of the Arctic Monkeys most successful releases. In the long list of the many hits the band has had, this song is one of the earliest and most memorable. The lyrics “Everything’s in order in a black hole/Nothing seems as pretty as the past though” tell the story of a once wild young woman settling down and becoming unhappy with her tame life. The song represents how even when someone has everything they could ever want, it’s human nature to reflect on the past and wish nothing had changed. The sad theme of this song goes hand in hand with the next track on the album.

The first and only somber song on the record is called “Only Ones Who Know.” The song details a relationship that was built to fail. The singer spent so long dreaming about being in a relationship, that the reality of falling in love couldn’t have lived up to what he had created in his mind. The song is short but filled with pure heartache. Although the song is slower and feels melancholic, the lyrics remain similar to the writing present on all other songs on the album. Following this song is “Do Me a Favor,” a heavy-feeling breakup song. The song contains lyrics of the singer wishing his partner would do him a favor and make a mistake so he has a reason to end the relationship. As the song goes on, the singer starts to feel a great amount of regret for how the relationship ended and wishes his ex would punish him for ending things the way he did. The track feels like a faster extension of the previous song. 

The next tracks “This House Is a Circus” and “If You Were There, Beware” showcase the two completely different sides of fame. One song glorifies being young and famous, going from one outrageous party to another, and the other exposes the toll that constantly being watched by outsiders can have on a person. The purpose of these songs is to open listeners’ eyes to how difficult dealing with fame can be. 

With similar themes, the second to last track called “Old Yellow Bricks” has lyrics detailing how moving away from the place that one calls home can have terrible effects on a person’s mental health. The person being discussed in the song has always dreamed of moving away and leaving their hometown, but once they do they regret it. This song demonstrates how vital having something or someone to call home is.

The last song on the album is no doubt Arctic Monkeys most popular song. “505” is what the band is known for. The song is about being in love and what it’s like to call a person home. The lyrics “I crumble completely when you cry” show how the singer loves this person so much that it pains him to see the subject in pain. He would do anything for the person he loves. 

“Favorite Worst Nightmare” by Arctic Monkeys is adored by fans and is said to be the best of the band’s earlier works. The album sold over 225,000 copies in its first week and was nominated for a multitude of awards. The already popular band garnered even more attention with the release of this album.