Age of the Understatement

The Last Shadow Puppets

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 6, 2008)
• Original Release Date: May 6, 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Domino
• ASIN: B0015UKX7Y
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #16,616 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.co.uk

Famous for demonstrating how less is more when it comes to publicity, it comes as no surprise that The Age of the Understatement, the first side project from Alex Turner of the Arctic Monkeys, should appear to no great fanfare. The Last Shadow Puppets are Turner and Miles Kane, formerly of Monkeys tourmates The Little Flames and now in the Rascals, aided by producer (and here, drummer) James Ford, also of Simian Mobile Disco. Inspired by the widescreen orchestral Sixties pop of Scott Walker and legendary arranger David Axelrod, they enlisted the London Metropolitan Orchestra under the aegis of Canadian Owen Pallett (aka Final Fantasy and an erstwhile member of the Arcade Fire's string section). The result is entirely successful, owing as much to the romanticism of Richard Hawley and the eclectic approach of the Coral as any sixties precursors. The thundering title track is pure Scott though, "I Don't Like You Anymore" is twisted pop in the best Cosmic Scouse tradition and the beautiful "Meeting Place", brilliantly enhanced by Pallett's orchestration, already sounds like an old classic. "Standing Next to Me" is genuinely exciting, "Calm Like You" is a new take on Turner's familiar style while "The Chamber" even sees him crooning. The Age of the Understatement is a fine, convincing album that proves Turner's talent is truly adaptable and marks Kane out as a talented songwriter too. --Steve Jelbert

Product Description

The Last Shadow Puppets are Alex Turner (Arctic Monkeys) and Miles Kane (The Rascals). The pair were so inspired by listening to the likes of Scott Walker, early Bowie, and David Axelrod, that they recorded this album of twelve full-blooded songs, bold and brassy, full of drama, wit, and melody. The orchestration of the tracks was recorded by the 22-piece London Metropolitan Orchestra. Look for this duo on select US dates in September with full band and a large string section.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Scott...Holy Hollies, May 9, 2008

By	J. J Spina (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a rare find: A duo music experience paying virtually NO regard to modern diametrics and demands. The sound of this music is filtered through a haze of 60s influences (the Hollies, The Walker Brothers) distinctly credited, duly noted ...and equally delivered as a ready made classic for anyone interested. I can only hope that those interested will harp on the music's beauty, value and artistry in a way that impacts modern tastemakers.
Huh? Try it. Buy it. And don't "why it" to death for how it is out of time. Make it IN time.
And if that fails to convince just buy it for the cover. I wenmt to see the movie Blow Up because of the movie poster back in the mid-60s. the experience defined my life and my life in relationship to a generation. this music could do the same to any equally impressionable young music mavens looking for the best next thing.

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Symphonic Monkeys!!, May 6, 2008

By	Nse Ette (Lagos, Nigeria) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Last Shadow Puppets is a UK duo comprising Miles Kane of the Rascals, and Alex Turner of The Arctic Monkeys. Their album has already hit #1 in the UK and their lead off single "The age of the understatement" has hit the top 10 so I guess Alex has another band to fall back on should he have to give up the day job.

Their sound is similar to that of the Monkeys (Arctic Monkeys, I mean) but less jagged, more mellow, and more symphonic, thanks to the presence of a 22 piece orchestra, resulting in lush pieces like the horn sprinkled beauty "Meeting place" or the almost jazzy "My mistakes were made for you".

They also do upbeat very well; "The age of the understatement" and the theatrical "Only the truth" (with a horn-filled coda) both have a galloping feel and could fit into a Western epic, while "Seperate and ever deadly" has a marching band feel and raging guitars.

Other standouts are the swinging "The chamber" (with a symphonic coda), the similar "Calm like you", the sunny, retro sounding "Standing next to me" and the closing tender acoustic ballad "The time has come again" with a dreamy sounding chorus.

This is a very lovely album, think of it like a symphonic Arctic Monkeys.

15 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Back to the Past, May 6, 2008

By	William Merrill "eclecticist" (San Antonio, TX United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

(3 & 1/2 stars) This CD has a nice retro feel. There's a lot of the Walker Brothers in there (a stated influence), but I also heard an occasional Moody Blues sound in the songs' orchestral choruses. I thought most of the tunes were semi-fun throwbacks to the '60s (except for such relatively unlistenable cuts as "I Don't Like You Anymore" and "Only The Truth"), but the band & this disc have two major problems. First, the songs are relatively mundane, lacking any real degree of catchiness. It's sort of like a bunch of 2nd-rate Yardbirds or Zombies out-takes or something. Second, it's very hard to imagine this '60s-ish music generating any degree of interest in today's rock-buying public, at least in the USA. There are a few other problems, such as some bad song outros, especially the bizarre, spacey-spooky coda on "The Chamber," which undermines any impact the song may have created. I mildly enjoyed listening to this CD as an historical exercise, but I don't expect it to have any lasting value in the 21st Century.