Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
by Arctic Monkeys
  • Record Label: Domino
  • Release Date: Feb 21, 2006
User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 907 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 763 out of 907
  2. Mixed: 64 out of 907
  3. Negative: 80 out of 907

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  1. wilhelmf
    Jan 30, 2006
    0
    the most overrated band of the last 50 years. they've got a catchy single and a lot of boring songs, but nme needs a new idol every year.
  2. MartinW
    Jan 29, 2006
    0
    As Johnny says above: "This CD is boring and just rips off oasis" ... who ripped off The Beatles and everybody else! Warning: "Don't Believe The Hype" (as somebody else once said). We'll see how well The Monkeys fare in a few years' time. Will they go the same way as Hear'Say (the previous best-selling debut album) or The Stone Roses (arguably the BEST debut album). As Johnny says above: "This CD is boring and just rips off oasis" ... who ripped off The Beatles and everybody else! Warning: "Don't Believe The Hype" (as somebody else once said). We'll see how well The Monkeys fare in a few years' time. Will they go the same way as Hear'Say (the previous best-selling debut album) or The Stone Roses (arguably the BEST debut album). Either way, I hope they disband soon, then we can have the next round of "Best-Group-Since-The-Beatles". [I was panicking that I was going to have to give this 1/10. Mighty relieved there was a '0'!]… Collapse
  3. RobR
    Feb 2, 2006
    0
    "Style" over substance wins again. Hype hype hype, and nothing else. Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian, Editors, Bloc Party et al - get over yourselves, all of you.
  4. MartinM
    Jan 30, 2006
    1
    This album is about as original as a Joan Rivers joke
  5. silvergellar
    Feb 23, 2006
    0
    Awful. Just plain awful. All been done before with Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine and Pop Will Eat Itself, both who are fantastic. Arctic Monkeys are niot gonna save Bristish music, they are gonna finish it off!! No more!!
  6. oliveri
    Mar 1, 2006
    2
    the stupidly immature album title only rings true if they're referring to people lavishing them with praise.
  7. davidm.
    Mar 3, 2006
    1
    maybe we should take the album title to heart, right? all these reviews are praising how wonderful the record is. but, you know what they say... whatever they say you are, that's what you're not. BOOYAH
  8. ak
    Apr 10, 2006
    0
    They suck lol
  9. KristenB
    Apr 10, 2006
    3
    Trite drivel that lacks substance. It's a thoroughly immature effort. The lyrics are empty and the music sounds recycled. Don't believe the hype. If you want better indie music, I recommend the following bands: Wolf Parade, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Metric, Shout Out Louds or Grandaddy.
  10. johnseth
    Apr 4, 2006
    1
    CRAP!!!
  11. NiallP
    Mar 21, 2007
    0
    These gus are amazingly overhyped!! There is nothing inspired or beautiful about this. A barage of noise and commercial garbage. Stay clear if you are a fan of indie.
  12. JamesM.
    Sep 1, 2007
    1
    Just can't stand his voice and the wannabee working class attitude.
  13. BenJ
    Jan 27, 2006
    3
    I thought the Libertines disbanded?
  14. MikeM
    Jan 28, 2006
    2
    this is complete hype. bands such as Art Brut and Franz Ferdinand still sound even more original. the industry must be severely lacking for this so-called band to get the exposure they're recieving.
  15. simonc
    Jan 31, 2006
    2
    I thought Britrock was dead in 1997
  16. TheGarfie
    Jan 30, 2006
    2
    A vacuous pointless exercise in hype so succesful in its execution that I suspect its a government conspiracy. How many more albums must we have based on the chavy antics of middle class boys pretending their fathers are miners? All the wit of an episode of '2 Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps', the musical excitement of a block of lard and the fact that they look frankly A vacuous pointless exercise in hype so succesful in its execution that I suspect its a government conspiracy. How many more albums must we have based on the chavy antics of middle class boys pretending their fathers are miners? All the wit of an episode of '2 Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps', the musical excitement of a block of lard and the fact that they look frankly RUBBISH make for a band whos success will go down as one of the great mysteries of the 21st century. Pathetic.… Expand
  17. mickismcna
    Feb 16, 2006
    2
    this album has a couple of decent songs but everyone now loves to run around talking about the arctic monkeys as if it was them who discovered them first and that they are a member of a rare cult following. their lyrics are pretty fucking dodgy when you look below the surface and they are incomparable with the libertines. they havent a fucking chance of a half decent secound album.
  18. ErwinK
    Feb 2, 2006
    3
    yawn. hype hype hype. zero originality
  19. JohnnyW
    Feb 2, 2006
    2
    The most hyped band ever. The music? Tedious Brit-rock crapola. Utterly average in all respects. This year's Franz Ferdinand.
  20. prostitute_finger
    May 26, 2008
    3
    Too primitive and boring commercial shit. Only few interesting and fun moments exist.
  21. AaronS
    Jan 27, 2006
    2
    All hype and nothing else. Yet more proof the British indie scene is stagnant. I rank it lower than I should only because of the massive hype surrounding it.
  22. KeithW
    Feb 12, 2006
    0
    This isn't painful to the ears, but it is bland. The hype here earns this release a zero because it steals time from listeners that could be spent listening to superior album.
  23. mckludge
    Feb 13, 2006
    0
    The Greatest Album in the History of Humanity. Period. No question about it. You will *never* hear anything better ii your lifetime!!! Go and buy it now!!!!! No score can truly do it justice. Therefore I'm giving it a 0. Ok?
  24. CatM
    Apr 15, 2006
    3
    I found the album dull, monotonous, and lacking in musical creativity. Loads more room for expansion though.
  25. Coniseuer
    Apr 20, 2006
    3
    Don't bother with this. Reviewers are way off with their scores.
  26. antoniop
    Jun 23, 2006
    3
    I really don't understand why the music media talk so much about these guys. Their sound is so previsible and boring.
  27. AndyS
    Dec 18, 2006
    3
    Extremely overrated.
  28. johnnybgoode
    Jan 26, 2006
    3
    this CD is boring and just rips off oasis.
  29. VikS
    Feb 11, 2006
    2
    Ouch. You Europeans have some weird taste in music if you're claiming the the Arctic Monkeys are the "it" sound of 2006... Remember folks, these are the same people that brought us the Spice Girls.
  30. oliez
    Feb 22, 2006
    1
    What a rubbish, boring piece of shit. Anyone giving a rating over 4 probably hasn't even listened to it.
  31. laxNSnaxK
    May 31, 2006
    3
    Well, this album is not as good as anything put out by the White Stripes, or Franz Ferdinand, or Super Furry Animals, or Flaming Lips, or Kaiser Chiefs. While it may be about as good as the highly overated The Strokes, that's nothing to be overly proud of. All the songs sound the same and the singing is terrible, in fact it's hard to find anything good about the album, but I Well, this album is not as good as anything put out by the White Stripes, or Franz Ferdinand, or Super Furry Animals, or Flaming Lips, or Kaiser Chiefs. While it may be about as good as the highly overated The Strokes, that's nothing to be overly proud of. All the songs sound the same and the singing is terrible, in fact it's hard to find anything good about the album, but I have to admit I have heard much worse, so I'll give it a 3.… Expand
  32. Constant
    Feb 24, 2006
    3
    Come on people, don't fall in for the hype, ask yourself would you really buy this album without having read about it? This is only very immature rock, with really weak lyrics delivered with a Midlands accent (though this can sound exotic & charming to American ears, go figure). It does certainly please 20-year old girls with half a musical culture. I can't blame them for that, Come on people, don't fall in for the hype, ask yourself would you really buy this album without having read about it? This is only very immature rock, with really weak lyrics delivered with a Midlands accent (though this can sound exotic & charming to American ears, go figure). It does certainly please 20-year old girls with half a musical culture. I can't blame them for that, only there's so much better around... get over yourself.… Expand
  33. danielb
    Feb 22, 2006
    3
    A confused debut. An even more confusing reception. I think The UK is playing a joke on us.
  34. AllanG
    Feb 28, 2006
    1
    Ruuuubish. It's all hype hype hype. As obnoxious as Oasis, but at least Oasis could write a few classic songs. This is pure redundant turgid music. Makes Jet seem like the Beatles. Music reviewers should stay off the coke, because I can't believe the reviews this band is getting.
  35. TiagoR.
    Oct 19, 2007
    0
    Bad really bad.
  36. tristant
    Mar 17, 2007
    1
    Every couple of years the british press and media like to hype a new amazing britishband. So this time its the Arctic Monkeys. Well, dont believe the hype!!! If you find music with absolutely no depth, imagination and generally lacking in talent youll like the arctic monkeys. If however you want depth, melody, writings skills and half decent vocals, youll hate them!!! So dont be a like a Every couple of years the british press and media like to hype a new amazing britishband. So this time its the Arctic Monkeys. Well, dont believe the hype!!! If you find music with absolutely no depth, imagination and generally lacking in talent youll like the arctic monkeys. If however you want depth, melody, writings skills and half decent vocals, youll hate them!!! So dont be a like a bunch of sheep, have a mind of your own. Arctic monkeys are for spotty teenagers who havnt quite yet understood what good music is. In other words they are british press overhyped shit who probably wont be around in a year. Very forgettable!!!!!… Expand
  37. JimK
    Apr 8, 2007
    1
    All youth culture and no music, Oasis could write melodies and had taste. England apologises for this music
  38. Victoria
    Nov 15, 2006
    0
    SHIT
  39. GarfieldC
    Feb 17, 2006
    0
    Really awful. Concrete proof that the NME no longer has a clue. Buy this and you are a total dork.
  40. JoeD
    Feb 21, 2006
    1
    Incredibly overrated. Listened to it once over and wouldn't go threw that again. I dont understand the big deal. Sounds like everything else. Some critics dont have a clue.
  41. DrewK
    Feb 21, 2006
    1
    Damn...this album sucks shit. Terrible. How could anyone in their right mind give this a fucking "10"? I want my $15 back!!!
  42. jason
    Feb 21, 2006
    2
    I'm glad to know that 15yrs later, the UK finally got its own version of Sublime. With bands as generic & boring as the Strokes, why laud cut-rate imitators? This is just another crappy garage band feeding off the hype of the continually tone-deaf UK criitcs.
  43. TylerD
    Feb 23, 2006
    0
    Horribly pretentious album
  44. AdamL.
    Feb 25, 2006
    2
    NME's heralding this as one of the best albums you'll ever hear. Rolling Stone's calling them the new Oasis. Play "Definitely Maybe" next to this and join my hysterical laughter.
  45. EarlV
    Feb 9, 2006
    0
    Horrid cack. The hype surrounding this high school level band of jerks would be funny if it wasn't so sad and desperate. One of the greatest bands ever? Sure, and The Knack were the new Beatles, too. A year or so from now you won't be able to find anyone who admits they ever liked these chumps. Proof that rock music in the 00s is in sad shape indeed.
  46. MarkN
    Mar 1, 2006
    3
    I compleatly agree with Allan G. The album is only hype, and the only reason people like them is because people seem to think that this band is underground, and people try to like them in a "daring attempt to be different."
  47. TomH
    Mar 20, 2006
    0
    A band that does nothing new and fills us once more with shallow meaningless lyrics about getting drunk. They even try to be different by devizing an unfeasibly long album name.
  48. Jess
    Mar 2, 2006
    1
    What a bucket of hype this is. Come on people , seriously, think for yourselves and don't let the NME tell you what is what.
  49. jnjgas.gn
    Apr 14, 2006
    0
    great
  50. JDWilliams
    Apr 26, 2006
    0
    Horrible overhyped shit!
  51. Ali/m
    Apr 5, 2006
    3
    Nothing annoys me more than this "ooh we got discovered on the internet so we're indie" crap. Along with the Kaiser Chiefs this is just another post-Oasis re-hashing of the same old guitar rock we've been listening to in the UK for the last 5 years. Dull and derivative, nothing on the likes of the Futureheads, Franz Ferdinand etc.
  52. Victoria
    May 14, 2006
    0
    SHIT
  53. amuror
    Sep 27, 2006
    2
    Don't believe the evaluation of the mass communication. No CD that the rock lover should hear.
  54. GraceLC
    Sep 6, 2006
    0
    Arctic Monkeys? Mo' like the Average Monkeys! Seriously, though. These guys are a bunch of stale Jam rip-offs. Also: "Remember folks, these are the same people that brought us the Spice Girls." ... and Gang of Four, the Fall, the Associates, Joy Division, Jesus and Mary Chain, PiL, The Jam, The Who, Led Zeppelin, the Buzzcocks, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles and the Futureheads, Arctic Monkeys? Mo' like the Average Monkeys! Seriously, though. These guys are a bunch of stale Jam rip-offs. Also: "Remember folks, these are the same people that brought us the Spice Girls." ... and Gang of Four, the Fall, the Associates, Joy Division, Jesus and Mary Chain, PiL, The Jam, The Who, Led Zeppelin, the Buzzcocks, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles and the Futureheads, along with MANY other excellent bands. You were saying?… Expand
  55. MichaelR
    Mar 20, 2007
    0
    Based on the album's title, somebody must have said they were not absolute rubbish.
  56. CarlP
    Mar 21, 2007
    0
    Whoah, I thought that they were meant to be the next Oasis. Ummm... such a massive letdown I have to give it 0!
  57. RyanT
    Mar 21, 2007
    0
    Nothing compared to Oasis, Radiohad, Futureheads etc. These guys are fakers. Torture to listen through!
  58. GaborA
    Feb 21, 2006
    1
    Uninspired talent free rubbish. Naturally its topping charts.
  59. JudStacer
    Feb 23, 2006
    3
    The only SArctic Monkeys do well is imitate all Brit rock groups before them. I'm actually quite depressed I bought the record -- it's so boring. A group of 20-year-olds got lucky with an internet phenomenon.
  60. RH
    Mar 17, 2006
    3
    Boring, overhyped rubbish. Better than most of the mainstream pack, however.
  61. SamX
    Mar 31, 2006
    1
    Everyone at school was ranting about the Arctic Monkeys and this album. So, I ventured out and bought 'Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not'. Frankly, I was disgusted. What do people pass off as music these days? They bring nothing new to the genre, which is being soured by these bands which fill our heads with mind-numbing '70s style wallpaper lyrics... Everyone at school was ranting about the Arctic Monkeys and this album. So, I ventured out and bought 'Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not'. Frankly, I was disgusted. What do people pass off as music these days? They bring nothing new to the genre, which is being soured by these bands which fill our heads with mind-numbing '70s style wallpaper lyrics... They've been hyped unto Heaven, which raised my expectations, how wrong I was. Even the name of the album is shallow and a cliche. And 'Ann', I personally listen to The Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd. Listening to this album now, I recommend that you let music stand the test of time. If people are still listening to the Arctic Monkeys in 10, or even 5 years time, I'll eat my hat.… Expand
  62. FrasierCrane
    Mar 31, 2006
    2
    Music is an objective thing. One sound that I love may be the worst sound for another. Having said that, I warn you that I almost knew that I would not like this album. I am definately a member of Generation Y; I show a great interest in music that predates myself. In fact I hold the opinion that most music post 1990 is not good. Saying all that obviously stipulates that I am not going to Music is an objective thing. One sound that I love may be the worst sound for another. Having said that, I warn you that I almost knew that I would not like this album. I am definately a member of Generation Y; I show a great interest in music that predates myself. In fact I hold the opinion that most music post 1990 is not good. Saying all that obviously stipulates that I am not going to be the most objective reviewer of this album. Scrap that, I am going to be one of the least. I feel that this album represents all that is wrong with modern music and the scene in general. The bands that exist today do not have the same originality that the best of the old classics did. The difference between each Arctic Monkey song is minimal compared to the difference between, for example, Time and Money on the Dark Side of the Moon. And this is the main problem; the album "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" does not have enough difference between songs. There are differences, I do not deny that, but the variety is rather lacklustre to say the least. This is not just the Arctic Monkeys; the entire "Indie" scene, (I use the term to describe alternative rock), is rather too samey, too overtly similar to be as recognisably great as the Hard Rock/ Heavy Metal scene of the 1980s, or the Grunge scene of the 1990s. The album had too many songs which, while being enjoyable enough, were too samey, and therefore the album could never be, in my opinion, one that will be remembered in ten years time. This is another problem; the hype of the album was obviously too much to live up to. Were Led Zeppelin hyped before they released an album? Not really. Did they suffer because of it? 300 million albums says no. What the music scene needs now is something that gets released unknown but turns into a best seller, because it's good, not because of the hype. I believe that while hype doesn't make music sound better or worse, it can be counter productive; people will be disappointed with the product when they discover it is not original or different. "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" is a classic example of what is wrong with the modern music scene; mediocrity is rewarded, talent is supressed. Where's the next Led Zeppelin or the Who, where are the next innovators? I cannot see any anywhere. I just see a sea of the same old, recycled music, first spouted by Oasis and Travis, and nothing else.… Expand
  63. Louise
    Apr 18, 2006
    2
    I really wanted to like this. I am worried about the kids and where they are taking music This is terrible. I listen to bands like the Clash, Bad Brains and even stuff like Guided by Voices and worry when this is the best of today's music cos all those bands just peel this
  64. DustinPrude.
    Apr 26, 2006
    2
    Its a bad experimental Strokes album.
  65. HackTheplanet
    May 22, 2006
    0
    Highly overrated.
  66. KidA
    Mar 19, 2007
    0
    Who listens to this rubbish? There is nothing special here. No originality. No talent. This is why I don't pay attention to hype (excluding Arcade Fire). These monkeys are really bad. If you like pop and dance you will love this.
  67. AaronL
    Mar 23, 2007
    1
    I only give them one, because they are from my hometown os sheffield. This is an uninspired mess of an album. The lead singer cant even sing for gods sake! I dont know where this hype gets generated. I gave this album a huge chance but it is just not worth the money.
  68. Pukki-PukkiWoosabi
    Mar 23, 2007
    2
    I have to wonder about the type of people who rate this so highly. You are fully entitled to your (incorrect) opinion, but this is a terrible album. From start to finish it is devoid of beauty.
  69. EricL
    Dec 17, 2006
    1
    We get it. You go to a club. Every song is absolute filth. The music is not only lackluster but sloppy, the lyrics uninspired. And this is what the Brits think is the 5th best Brit album of all time. Pathetic.
  70. callaway_thiago
    Feb 8, 2021
    0
    It is really a fantastic album. I can't even believe it was their first one. Some tracks, such as "Mardy Bum" and "I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor" are on my all time favourites. I hope that someday I'll be able to listen to it on vinyl.

Awards & Rankings

34
#34 Best Album of 2006
2
#2 Most Discussed Album of 2006
12
#12 Most Shared Album of 2006

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
82

Universal acclaim - based on 33 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 27 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 33
  3. Negative: 0 out of 33
  1. BBC collective
    90
    It’s exciting stuff, simple yet deadly effective.
    Read full review
  2. Dot Music
    90
    Such is the depth and quality of Turner's songwriting, it plays like a best of.
    Read full review
  3. musicOMH.com
    90
    It's not a totally perfect record, for which we should be thankful - remember what happened to The Stone Roses after they'd released their flawless debut? - but it is an excellent first album, and gives notice that Alex Turner is already one of this country's best lyricists.
    Read full review
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