Brianstorm

"Brianstorm"
Single by Arctic Monkeys from the album Favourite Worst Nightmare
Released	2 April 2007
Format	7", 10", CD
Recorded	December 2006
Genre	Indie rock Post-punk revival
Length	2:50
Label	Domino Records
Writer	Alex Turner
Producer	Mike Crossey and James Ford
Arctic Monkeys singles chronology
"Leave Before the Lights Come On" (2006) "Brianstorm" (2007) "Matador" (2007)
Favourite Worst Nightmare track listing
"Brianstorm" "Teddy Picker" "D Is for Dangerous" "Balaclava" "Fluorescent Adolescent" "Only Ones Who Know" "Do Me a Favour" "This House Is a Circus" "If You Were There, Beware" "The Bad Thing" "Old Yellow Bricks" "505"

"Brianstorm" (often mistaken as 'Brainstorm') is a song by Sheffield-based indie rock band Arctic Monkeys and is the opening track on their second album, Favourite Worst Nightmare. The song was released as the first single from that album on 2 April 2007, debuting at #11 in the UK Singles Chart via downloads alone.^[1] The single was released in physical formats on 16 April, the week before the release of the album, and charted at #2 in the UK Singles Chart behind Beyoncé' and Shakira's "Beautiful Liar."^[2] It is the band's fourth single in the United Kingdom, following number ones "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor", and "When the Sun Goes Down", as well as the non-album track "Leave Before the Lights Come On".

Prior to the single, there had been a great deal of media speculation questioning the band's ability to emulate their successes of 2006 and their debut album. ^[3] The single marks a noticeable change in band's logo and cover art, with the "frenetic" cover art seeming to mirror the nature of the track. The track has no chorus, but features an "ascending guitar duel which sounds like a cross between Telstar, Mogwai and the Monkeys' own When the Sun Goes Down". ^[4] The music itself is harder and heavier than previous tracks, with Matt Helders being compared to Dave Grohl. A feature of Arctic Monkeys songs in the past, Alex Turner's Sheffield-accent is again a feature, "singing over rough, relentless bass and surprisingly appropriate guitar triplets." ^[5]

When asked to say a little about the song's protagonist, Alex Turner replied, "I can't remember Brian now... I dunno if he were in me imagination or what... it's a blank spot in me brain... I think that's what he ["Brian"] wanted."^[6] He later explained in NME that Brian had been a guy that they had met backstage in the band's dressing room at a gig at Studio Coast "Ageha" in Tokyo Japan, and that "When he left the room, we were a bit in awe of his presence. So we did a brainstorm for what he was like, drew a little picture and wrote things about him" while guitarist Jamie Cook added "He was right smooth, very LA. He just appeared with like a business card and like a round neck T-shirt and a tie loosely around it, I'd never seen that before. It felt like he was trying to get inside your mind. We were checking out his attire - it inspired us".^[7]

US release

The song was released to US Modern Rock radio airplay on May 1, 2007.^[8] As of mid-May, it was among the 75 most-played alternative rock songs on US radio, receiving support from WWCD (Columbus, Ohio), KDLD (Los Angeles), WEQX (Albany, New York), KBZT (San Diego), and digital radio (S026, S021, and X047).^[9]

Music video

The music video for the song features the band playing in a sparse sepia set, interspersed with clips of female dancers in front of a large computerised display, stock footage from old medical educational programs and brief flashes of images of objects mentioned in the lyrics, such as "Brian", "jacuzzi" and lightning in place of "thunder". The video was recorded on the 14 February 2007, the same day as the 2007 BRIT Awards, leading to them missing the ceremony and instead sending two video acceptance messages^[10] where they dressed as Wizard of Oz characters and The Village People. The video was premiered by MTV2 on the 17 March 2007.

Track listing

• 7" RUG254

1. "Brianstorm" – 2:50
2. "Temptation Greets You Like Your Naughty Friend" – 3:27
   • Features guest vocals by Dizzee Rascal.^[11]

• CD RUG254CD, 10" RUG254T

1. "If You Found This It's Probably Too Late" – 1:32
2. "Brianstorm" – 2:50
3. "Temptation Greets You Like Your Naughty Friend" – 3:27
4. "What If You Were Right The First Time?" – 3:02

Chart positions

It reached number 1 on the UK indie chart^[12]. Also the 3 other tracks from this single charted in the uk single chart on 28.04.2007 : Temptation Greets You Like Your Naughty Friend was number 77, What If You Were Right The First Time was number 114, If You Found This It's Probably Too Late was number 124.

References

External links

• Official Arctic Monkeys website
• Brianstorm music video, YouTube
• Video interview with Alex Turner at the 2007 NME Awards, YouTube

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