Date: August 5, 2009
Venue: Paradise Rock Club (Boston)

Introduction
2:30 PM, August 5. eBay. 2:35 PM. Free Arctic Monkeys tickets. It’s funny how things work. You know, going from about to spend $100 for a pair of tickets to spending absolutely nothing. Lucky me I won two tickets through a Boston Music Spotlight giveaway that I learned about on Tuesday.

Modey Lemon
Unfortunately, unlike normal, I was not able to do much research on this band before hand. I was really impressed by their hard rock/garage ways during their 45 minute set. Their last song (no clue on its name) featured a lengthy guitar solo/jam that was perhaps the best of its kind that I’ve seen live.

Arctic Monkeys
Great! They started off with “Pretty Visitors” and “This House is a Circus,” both of which I haven’t heard much of. But the crowd immediately connected with Alex Turner and crew. “Brianstorm” really got every one going, myself included, as it was a flawless performance of an amazing track. The next noteworthy track in my opinion was a new one off Humbug, “Dangerous Animals,” that has Turner spelling out a catchy D-A-N-G-E-R-O-U-S. The group ended up playing four more spectacular songs off the new record: “Crying Lightning,” “My Propeller,” “Cornerstone,” and “Secret Door,” the first song during the encore. The best song of the night I thought was “Fluorescent Adolescent.” I’ve been a very big fan of this one for over two years primarily because of its heavy, post-punk flare and its great lyrics. The Arctic Monkeys added a light light part right in the middle of the song that was essentially a perfect fit. I was awe-stricken by the end of the song. “The View from the Afternoon” was another highlight! “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor” obviously received the best crowd reception. That’s in large part because it’s better live than on record. “If You Were There, Beware” got the people around me to sing along and rock out. After that they played a “Red Right Hand,” a Nick Cave cover. I never heard the original, but this one sounded naturally fit to be an Arctic Monkeys tune. Turner’s ultra-British voice really came through on “Only Ones Who Know,”  sounding quite like the man himself Pete Doherty. The set ended with the fitting “Do Yourself A Favor.” The men came back on stage a few minutes later after constant applause. Turner humored us by saying that he had his car key in the ignition, but just couldn’t leave. He seemed naturally interested in performing for “Bous–tin.” “Secret Door” with its warm and fuzzy opening segued into pounding drums and sweet guitar licks. The infectious “505” finished their 1 hour and 20 minute set off.

Conclusion: This concert will go down in my life’s history as the best free show of all time. Even if I did shell out $50 bucks a ticket, I still would have been just as pleased. It will also be placed amongst the best sounding and best performed shows I’ve seen. Unfortunately since I arrived a little late I had to settle for a side view instead of front and center, but that’s just what happens and you gotta deal! Overall, I give it a A/A+ rating.

“Crying Lightning”