The Arctic Monkeys' live show has become stagnant, according to their occasional support band The Orwells.
Speaking to Gigwise, the US-based band said that touring with Alex Turner's band had made them understand exactly how routine their live performances had become. Guitarist Matt O'Keefe explained: "When you're playing arenas and everything, it's a huge production, then the show has to become synchronised to work. So every night, no matter how he was feeling, he'd go into that opening riff. It was the exact same ad-libs he was putting between the song, So we were with them for about 50 dates, you saw them once and you'd pretty much seen every date they'd played.
Orwell's singer Mario Cuomo was less understanding, furthering the criticism of the Sheffield band. "You don't have to take that road", he said. "You can get that level of success with those size venues, that sort of thing, but still treat it as a spontaneous show at a small club. So it all just depends on the band, wat they're going for and what they feel comfortable with. I would feel super comfortable [too] if I knew what I was going to say in between songs."
What say you, readers? Can anyone blame a band for falling into routine after a seemingly endless amount of time on the road, or does the entire thing seem somewhat counterfeit if a band are just going through the motions on stage? We'd love to hear your thoughts!
Source: NME
