Fatigue Setting In For Arctic Monkeys

Walking into the Kool Haus on Saturday night was like walking into MySpace come to life.

Everywhere you looked, there were kids with skinny jeans, asymmetrical haircuts and T-shirts of bands from before they were born. This was a fitting crowd, then, given that the sold-out turnout was for the Arctic Monkeys, who first became a phenomenon on the internet.

Opening band We Are Scientists really aren't (even though bassist Chris Cain kind of resembles a math teacher), but that's a given. What they are, though, is one damn fine live band. They got their mosh pit started early with a wild performance of "Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt," which featured frontman Keith Murray swinging both his guitar and microphone around like deadly weapons.

Cain confessed that the band were "hanging on by a thread," but that edge gave the Scientists the power to rise above their technical problems. The humourous banter between the three bandmates almost reached the point where it sounded like a comedy routine.

Add in cameos during "Can't Lose" and "This Scene Is Dead" by a few of the Arctic Monkeys — Alex Turner ran out to take over on guitar, while Matt Helders donned a wig and oversized clown glasses to drum on his own kit in the background — and the rollicking circus vibe was complete.

As for Sheffield's stars, blame end-of-the-tour fatigue. Blame the "we've done this a million times already" routine. Blame the still-fresh memory of We Are Scientists' cavalier zaniness.

For some reason, the Arctic Monkeys just didn't seem all that thrilled to be performing. The consistent lack of facial expressions from all band members got to be a bit creepy, like watching rock 'n' roll robots going through the motions. There was a bit of movement from the band in the second half of the show, mostly during undeniably high-energy tunes like "Dancing Shoes" and "I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor" (which is basically impossible not to dance to). There was even a glimmer of a grin on frontman Turner's face as he jokingly returned the V sign to somebody in the crowd.

That's not to say the band's lacklustre energy mellowed the crowd out at all. Even for non-singles "Riot Van" and "Perhaps Vampires Is A Bit Strong, But...," those in attendance were in full-on clap-along-and-body-surf mode, howling every word back to their humble heroes. There's definitely no questioning the whip-smart lyrical quality of the Monkeys' songs, and Turner's biting vocals are well suited to the sullenly self-deferential "Who The Fuck Are Arctic Monkeys" ("Bring on the backlash!").

The Monkeys saved the best for last, hitting their adoring audience with the double-punch of "Fake Tales Of San Francisco" (in which Keith Murray returned the guesting favour by taking over on guitar) and "A Certain Romance." It finally seemed like the band was warming up to the stage. A pity that the gig was just about over by then. Go home and have a rest, lads. You've earned it.