SIDE BLOG

The debut Arctic Monkeys album, “Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not” (Domino), has been instantly — and accurately — hailed as a modern classic, even though it was only released a week ago. The British music magazine NME ranked it at No. 5 on a recent list of the greatest British albums ever. It sold over 360,000 copies in the last week, making it the fastest-selling debut album in British history.

But despite this whirlwind, Mr. Turner seemed unusually self-aware but not at all worried as he sat backstage at the Carling Academy Glasgow before playing yet another sold-out show.

“My granddad said to me, ‘I think you’ve overdoon it,’” he said, acknowledging with his Yorkshire pronunciation the huge fuss about the little band. “And I said, 'I think you’re right.’” - The New York Times, January 30, 2006