artists and bands ?

BTS

Artist

Record-breaking South Korean boy band BTS (aka Bangtan Boys) balance an energetic blend of dance-pop and hip-hop with deeply introspective lyrics, which helped them build a devoted global following while also becoming the most successful K-pop act in U.S. chart history. Debuting in the early 2010s with their Skool trilogy, they steadily expanded their audience until breaking into the mainstream consciousness with the Love Yourself series. In May 2018, their third official full-length, Love Yourself: Tear, topped the Billboard 200, becoming the first K-pop to hit number one in the U.S. and the highest-charting album by an Asian act to date. Formed by producer Bang Si Hyuk, the septet's lineup includes RM (Kim Namjoon), team leader and rapper; Jin (Kim Seokjin), singer; Suga (Min Yoongi), rapper; J-Hope (Jung Hoseok), rapper and choreographer; Jimin Park, singer and choreographer; V (Kim Taehyung), singer; and Jungkook Jeon, singer, rapper, and choreographer. In addition to production and composition, the members of BTS also write their own lyrics, which tackle topics like mental health, self-acceptance, and empowerment. With their youthful blend of club-worthy dance anthems, stirring love ballads, and aggressive rapping, BTS connected with a devoted fan base (dubbed "ARMY") and set themselves apart from the K-pop industrial machine when they debuted in 2013 with the first installment of their "School Trilogy" series, 2 Cool 4 Skool. A few months later, they released the second EP of the saga, O!RUL8,2? The trilogy was completed with Skool Luv Affair, which was released around Valentine's Day in 2014. Later that year, BTS released their full-length debut album, Dark & Wild, featuring the single "Danger." As their fan base grew and international tours sold out, they released The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt. 1 in April 2015 and the follow-up, Pt. 2, some months later in November. They embarked on a massive world tour as The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt. 2 topped a record-setting six international music charts, including Billboard's World Albums chart. After four weeks, they set a record as the first K-pop act to achieve such a feat. The group continued to break records with the release of their sophomore LP, Wings. Released in late 2016, Wings not only became the first BTS effort to debut atop both the Korean album and song charts, but they were the third K-pop act to land in the Canadian Hot 100. However, the album's impact was most apparent on the Billboard charts. The best showing to date for a K-pop act, Wings debuted in the Top 30 of the Billboard 200 -- both their highest U.S. chart debut and most sales to date -- becoming the first K-pop artists with three albums to enter the main album charts (Wings became their sixth Top Three hit -- and second number one -- on the World Albums chart). They also became the first K-pop act to spend four weeks on the charts. Wings continued the artistic and creative growth for the septet, featuring seven solo tracks that showcased the personality of each member. Four months later, BTS re-released the album as You Never Walk Alone. The updated version added four new songs to the original Wings track listing, including the singles "Spring Day" and "Not Today." With their presence in the United States continuing to expand, the group went on to win the Top Social Artist Award at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards. Their fifth EP, Love Yourself: Her, arrived that September and became the first K-pop album to debut in the Billboard 200's Top Ten, entering the chart at number seven. In early 2018, BTS received their first double-platinum certifications in Japan and became the first Korean act to receive two gold certifications in the U.S. That spring, they issued their third Japanese LP, Face Yourself, which featured Japanese versions of tracks from Wings and Love Yourself: Her. The set -- which included just two previously unreleased songs -- debuted just outside the Top 40 on the Billboard 200. The next month, BTS released their third official full-length, Love Yourself: Tear, which included the single "Fake Love." Days later, they returned to the Billboard Music Awards, performing and winning Top Social Artist for the second year in a row. Their Billboard success continued when Love Yourself: Tear soared to the top of the Billboard 200, becoming the first foreign-language chart-topper on the U.S. chart in over a decade. BTS repeated the feat that summer with the conclusion to the trilogy, Love Yourself: Answer. The chart-topping compilation featured a handful of new tracks, including lead single "Idol," packaged with previously released songs from Her and Tear, as well as some remixes and a Nicki Minaj-assisted version of "Idol." Riding the international success of the Love Yourself series, the boys closed the era with a sold-out global stadium tour, which primed them for the start of the next BTS wave: Map of the Soul. The first single from the album, "Persona," showcased a solo RM referencing both Carl Jung and BTS' own 2014 track "Intro: Skool Luv Affair," while the follow-up "Boy With Luv" recruited American singer Halsey. ~ Neil Z. Yeung

Radiohead

Artist

Radiohead are a touchstone for all that is fearless and adventurous in rock, evolving from self-loathing anthems to moody prog rock suites to weathered, if shimmering ballads. Inheritors of a throne previously occupied by <a href="spotify:artist:0oSGxfWSnnOXhD2fKuz2Gy">David Bowie</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0k17h0D3J5VfsdmQ1iZtE9">Pink Floyd</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:2x9SpqnPi8rlE9pjHBwmSC">Talking Heads</a> (from whom they took their name), the British band spliced <a href="spotify:artist:0k17h0D3J5VfsdmQ1iZtE9">Floyd</a>'s spaciness with <a href="spotify:artist:51Blml2LZPmy7TTiAg47vQ">U2</a>'s messianic arena rock heft and bridged the gap with guitar skronk borrowed from the '80s American underground. The jagged interjections on "Creep," the band's Top Ten U.K., Top 40 U.S. breakthrough from their debut album Pablo Honey (1993), recalled <a href="spotify:artist:6zvul52xwTWzilBZl6BUbT">Pixies</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a>, but in the throes of the alternative rock explosion, Radiohead were the odd band out, seen as dour art-rock students at home and as one-hit wonders in the States. During the peak of Brit-pop, Radiohead released The Bends (1995), a leap forward that gained them some traction, but it was OK Computer (1997), a bold set fueled by film music, Krautrock, and electronica, that broke down doors for the band upon its entry at the top of the U.K. and U.S. charts. Soon, whenever rock bands dabbled in electronics, it was derived not from tightly sequenced rhythms, but rather, from glassy textures and introspection, a sensibility pioneered by the quintet. Radiohead doubled down on this aesthetic with Kid A (2000) and Amnesiac (2001), favoring minimal arrangements and elements of avant-garde jazz over concise hooks. From that point on, Radiohead have occasionally worked with conventional song structures but have been drawn toward unusual paths heard on Hail to the Thief (2003) and In Rainbows (a surprise, pay-what-you-want 2007 release), followed the next decade by The King of Limbs (2011) and A Moon Shaped Pool (2016). Inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2019, Radiohead have focused primarily on catalog releases, side projects, and solo pursuits during the 2020s. Every member of Radiohead was a pupil at Oxfordshire's Abingdon School. <a href="spotify:artist:3E7aH1Yv84NoaP9JWcrMpE">Ed O'Brien</a> (guitar) and <a href="spotify:artist:2A59wav3PGiJij2rK7HQYH">Phil Selway</a> (drums) were the eldest, followed by a year by <a href="spotify:artist:4CvTDPKA6W06DRfBnZKrau">Thom Yorke</a> (vocals, guitar, piano) and <a href="spotify:artist:6bdotkIeFswBydfQqzHnKS">Colin Greenwood</a> (bass). These four musicians began playing in 1985, dubbing themselves On a Friday, and before long they added <a href="spotify:artist:6bdotkIeFswBydfQqzHnKS">Colin</a>'s younger brother <a href="spotify:artist:0z9s3P5vCzKcUBSxgBDyLU">Jonny</a>, who'd previously played in Illiterate Hands with <a href="spotify:artist:4CvTDPKA6W06DRfBnZKrau">Yorke</a>'s brother <a href="spotify:artist:6CbjCavKWLrR6J3FzUwwJI">Andy</a> and Nigel Powell. <a href="spotify:artist:0z9s3P5vCzKcUBSxgBDyLU">Jonny</a> started on keyboards but moved to guitar, yet this incarnation proved short-lived. By 1987, everyone but <a href="spotify:artist:0z9s3P5vCzKcUBSxgBDyLU">Jonny</a> left for university, where many members pursued music, but it wasn't until 1991 that the quintet regrouped and started gigging regularly in Oxford. Eventually, they came to the attention of Chris Hufford -- then best-known as the producer of shoegaze stars <a href="spotify:artist:72X6FHxaShda0XeQw3vbeF">Slowdive</a> -- who offered the group the chance to record a demo along with his partner Bryce Edge; the two soon became the band's managers. <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22EMI%22">EMI</a> bit at the group's demo, signing them in 1991 and suggesting they change their name. On a Friday became Radiohead and they recorded their debut EP, Drill, with Hufford and Edge, releasing the record in May 1992. Next, the group entered the studio with producers Paul Kolderie and <a href="spotify:artist:1pYe8ZSmmg4LJDdLDlVh9b">Sean Slade</a> to record their full-length debut. The first fruit from these sessions was "Creep," a single released in the U.K. in September of 1992. "Creep" didn't go anywhere at first. The British music weeklies slagged it, radio didn't play it, and it limped to number 78 on the charts. Pablo Honey, the band's full-length debut, appeared in February 1993, supported by the single "Anyone Can Play Guitar," but neither release gained much traction in their native U.K. and that May's non-LP single, "Pop Is Dead," didn't help matters much, either. By that point, however, "Creep" started to gain attention in other territories. First, the song became a hit in Israel, but the bigger waves came from the United States, which was in the throes of the alternative rock revolution. Influential San Francisco radio station KITS added "Creep" to their playlist and it spread along the west coast and onto MTV as it became a genuine hit, nearly topping Billboard's Modern Rock chart and reaching 34 on the Hot 100, a big achievement for a British guitar band. A re-released "Creep" turned into a British Top Ten hit, peaking at number seven in the autumn of 1993. The band who'd had no success suddenly had more than it could handle. Radiohead kept touring Pablo Honey into 1994, but no subsequent hits were forthcoming, raising the specter of the band as a possible one-hit wonder -- a criticism that weighed heavily on the group, who were anxious to record their new songs. They received the opportunity early in 1994, entering the studio to work with producer John Leckie -- then best-known for his work with <a href="spotify:artist:1lYT0A0LV5DUfxr6doRP3d">the Stone Roses</a> -- with My Iron Lung, an EP released in late 1994, being the first music released from the sessions. Muscular and ambitious, the EP provided a good indication of what would come on 1995's The Bends. Released in March 1995, The Bends not only found Radiohead growing musically -- it was dense and expansive, without skimping on songs -- but also in reputation, as critics in the U.K. embraced the band with the audience eventually following: none of the first three singles ("High and Dry," "Fake Plastic Trees," "Just") rose above 17 on the U.K. charts but the final single, "Street Spirit (Fade Out)," wound up reaching five in early 1996. Radiohead's rise may have been assisted by the mania cultivated by Brit-pop, a term that didn't quite suit the band -- they were far artier and rock-oriented -- but nevertheless stoked interest in indie guitar bands, which the quintet certainly was. Over in the U.S., The Bends stalled out at 88 on the Billboard charts but the record gained a cult following among listeners and the band never stopped touring, taking North American opening slots for <a href="spotify:artist:4KWTAlx2RvbpseOGMEmROg">R.E.M.</a> in 1995 and <a href="spotify:artist:6ogn9necmbUdCppmNnGOdi">Alanis Morissette</a> in 1996. During 1995 and 1996, the group recorded new material with <a href="spotify:artist:0g7gHEXKEHU4snTwOZSxNO">Nigel Godrich</a> -- an engineer on The Bends sessions who was now the band's producer -- with songs slowly creeping out during the course of the year. "Lucky" showed up on War Child's 1995 charity LP The Help Album, "Talk Show Host" appeared on a B-side, and "Exit Music (For a Film)" showed up on the soundtrack to <a href="spotify:artist:7HhTERkBV4Ot14KphgBfSh">Baz Luhrmann</a>'s Romeo & Juliet. The latter showed up on OK Computer, the June 1997 album that proved pivotal in Radiohead's career. "Paranoid Android," a twitchy suite released as a single in May of that year, suggested the ambition of OK Computer -- and by reaching number three, it was the band's biggest hit to date in the U.K., placing them on the cusp of a breakthrough. A breakthrough is precisely what OK Computer turned out to be, a record that proved pivotal not just for Radiohead but for the direction of '90s rock. Greeted with enthusiastic reviews and corresponding strong sales, OK Computer closed the doors on the hedonism of Brit-pop and the dour after-effects of grunge while opening a new path to sober, adventurous art-rock where electronics co-existed with guitars. Over the next few years, the band's influence would become readily apparent, but the album made a sizable impact upon its release, too, debuting at number one in the U.K. and earning a Grammy for Best Alternative Album. Radiohead supported it with an international tour, documented in Meeting People Is Easy. By the time Meeting People Is Easy showed up in theaters, the group began work on their fourth album, once again reuniting with producer <a href="spotify:artist:0g7gHEXKEHU4snTwOZSxNO">Godrich</a>. The resulting Kid A doubled down on the experimentalism of OK Computer, embracing electronics and threading in jazz. Appearing in October in 2000, Kid A was one of the first major albums to be pirated through file-sharing services, but this bootlegging had no apparent effect on the sales of the record: it debuted at number one in the U.K. and the U.S., becoming their first American chart-topper. Once again, the album took home the prize for Best Alternative Album at the Grammys and although it didn't produce any hit singles -- indeed, no singles were released from the record -- it was certified platinum in several territories. Amnesiac, a collection of new material initiated during the Kid A sessions, appeared in June of 2001, topping the U.K. charts and reaching two in the U.S. Two singles were pulled from the album -- "Pyramid Song" and "Knives Out" -- a signal that the album was more commercially accessible than its predecessor. At the end of the year, the band issued I Might Be Wrong: Live Recordings, and by the summer of 2002, they turned their attention to recording a new album with <a href="spotify:artist:0g7gHEXKEHU4snTwOZSxNO">Godrich</a>. The resulting Hail to the Thief appeared in June of 2003, once again debuting in the upper reaches of the international charts -- number one in the U.K. and number three in the U.S. -- and the group supported the album with live dates culminating in a headlining appearance at the 2004 Coachella Festival that coincided with the release of the B-sides and remix collection COM LAG, a record that helped close out their contract with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22EMI%22">EMI</a>. Over the next couple of years, Radiohead entered a hiatus as individual members pursued solo projects. <a href="spotify:artist:4CvTDPKA6W06DRfBnZKrau">Yorke</a> released the heavily electronic solo collection The Eraser in 2006, and <a href="spotify:artist:0z9s3P5vCzKcUBSxgBDyLU">Jonny Greenwood</a> embarked on a side career as a composer, beginning with 2004's Bodysong and then striking a fruitful collaboration with Paul Thomas Anderson for 2007's There Will Be Blood; <a href="spotify:artist:0z9s3P5vCzKcUBSxgBDyLU">Greenwood</a> would also work on Anderson's subsequent films The Master and Inherent Vice. During all this, the group tentatively chipped away at their first post-<a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22EMI%22">EMI</a> album. Some unsuccessful sessions with Spike Stent led the band back to <a href="spotify:artist:0g7gHEXKEHU4snTwOZSxNO">Godrich</a> by the end of 2006, and the group completed recording in June of 2007. Still without a record label, they decided to release the album digitally through their official website, letting users pay whatever they wanted for a download of the album. This novel strategy acted as the album's own promotion -- most of the articles about the release claimed it was revolutionary -- and In Rainbows allegedly moved over a million downloads on the first day of its release in October 2007. In December, the album received a physical release in the U.K., followed by a January 2008 physical release in the U.S.; the record sold well, debuting at number one in the U.K., and it earned Grammys for Best Alternative Music Album and Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package. Radiohead toured in support of In Rainbows into 2009, during which time <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22EMI%22">EMI</a> released Radiohead: The Best Of in June of 2008. The band took time off in 2010, which allowed <a href="spotify:artist:4CvTDPKA6W06DRfBnZKrau">Yorke</a> to form a band called <a href="spotify:artist:7tA9Eeeb68kkiG9Nrvuzmi">Atoms for Peace</a> with producer <a href="spotify:artist:0g7gHEXKEHU4snTwOZSxNO">Godrich</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:0Xl5J6iOgiQHFqgri7TF8j">Flea</a> from the <a href="spotify:artist:0L8ExT028jH3ddEcZwqJJ5">Red Hot Chili Peppers</a>. During this time, drummer <a href="spotify:artist:2A59wav3PGiJij2rK7HQYH">Phil Selway</a> released his debut solo album, Familial. By early 2011, the group finished a new album and, like In Rainbows before it, Radiohead initially released The King of Limbs digitally through their website. The downloads appeared in February, with the physical copies appearing in March; the album reportedly shifted upwards of 400,000 digital copies upon its release. That autumn brought the release of the remix album TKOL RMX 1234567, and the band continued to tour The King of Limbs material into 2012. Once the tour wrapped up, the group took some quiet time as a new round of solo projects appeared. <a href="spotify:artist:7tA9Eeeb68kkiG9Nrvuzmi">Atoms for Peace</a> released Amok in February 2013 and <a href="spotify:artist:4CvTDPKA6W06DRfBnZKrau">Yorke</a> put out Tomorrow's Modern Boxes in September 2014, just a month before <a href="spotify:artist:2A59wav3PGiJij2rK7HQYH">Selway</a> issued his second album, Weatherhouse. In the autumn of 2014, the band began work on a new album and continued to record throughout 2015, releasing only "Spectre" -- a proposed James Bond theme rejected by the filmmakers -- that year. The ninth Radiohead album, A Moon Shaped Pool, appeared on May 8, 2016, preceded earlier in the week by the singles "Burn the Witch" and "Daydreaming." Radiohead supported A Moon Shaped Pool with an international tour, and in June 2017 they celebrated the 20th anniversary of OK Computer with a double-disc reissue dubbed OK Computer: OKNOTOK 1997 2017. Featuring a host of bonus cuts and previously unreleased material, its number two showing on the U.K. chart was bolstered by a major televised live performance at Glastonbury. Over the next year, <a href="spotify:artist:2A59wav3PGiJij2rK7HQYH">Selway</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4CvTDPKA6W06DRfBnZKrau">Yorke</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:0z9s3P5vCzKcUBSxgBDyLU">Greenwood</a> each issued film soundtracks with the latter earning an Oscar nomination for his score to Phantom Thread. Radiohead were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2019, honored with a speech from <a href="spotify:artist:2x9SpqnPi8rlE9pjHBwmSC">Talking Heads</a>' <a href="spotify:artist:20vuBdFblWUo2FCOvUzusB">David Byrne</a>. <a href="spotify:artist:4CvTDPKA6W06DRfBnZKrau">Yorke</a> released his third solo album, Anima, that June. Two years later, Radiohead issued Kid A Mnesia, a collection of previously unreleased material from the Kid A and Amnesiac sessions. It was promoted with the singles "If You Say the Word" and "Follow Me Around." All bandmembers were active during the first half the 2020s. <a href="spotify:artist:3E7aH1Yv84NoaP9JWcrMpE">Ed O'Brien</a> released Earth under the alias <a href="spotify:artist:4CX6yOoTFQeiwL5yxuFuIG">EOB</a> in 2020. <a href="spotify:artist:4CvTDPKA6W06DRfBnZKrau">Yorke</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:0z9s3P5vCzKcUBSxgBDyLU">Jonny Greenwood</a> performed and recorded (with drummer <a href="spotify:artist:6U9Bsog9PLNE5hrw45ecDm">Tom Skinner</a>) as <a href="spotify:artist:6styCzc1Ej4NxISL0LiigM">the Smile</a> and continued separate soundtrack work. <a href="spotify:artist:6bdotkIeFswBydfQqzHnKS">Colin Greenwood</a> toured with <a href="spotify:artist:1RM5gp0RFfjpJhCYFPB30p">Nick Cave</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:0A8tch4LePxVn1Cn60wGXu">Warren Ellis</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:2A59wav3PGiJij2rK7HQYH">Phil Selway</a> released Strange Dance, his third solo album. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

Arctic Monkeys

Artist

With their nervy and literate indie rock sound, Arctic Monkeys are a respected, adventurous, and successful group that could easily be called Britain's biggest band of the early 21st century. The band arrived with a blast in 2005, assisted by rave reviews and online word of mouth (they were one of the first bands to benefit from social media). They quickly became a sensation in the United Kingdom, where they were seen as the heir apparent to the throne left vacant by <a href="spotify:artist:2DaxqgrOhkeH0fpeiQq2f4">Oasis</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:4fSPtBgFPZzygkY6MehwQ7">the Libertines</a>. Buoyed by the single "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor," their 2006 debut Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not briefly grabbed the title of fastest-selling album in British history. It landed on top of both the U.K. and U.S. rock album charts and took home the Mercury Prize. What set the group apart was <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Alex Turner</a>, a singer/songwriter with a biting wit and grasp of English vernacular (not dissimilar to <a href="spotify:artist:7Lf3LOZp3U3u2f6cWMd3AH">Paul Weller</a>, the godfather of modern British rock). However, driven by their maverick creative spirit, Arctic Monkeys have proven highly unpredictable, reworking classic rock traditions on 2007's Favourite Worst Nightmare and beefing up their guitars with the assistance of <a href="spotify:artist:4pejUc4iciQfgdX6OKulQn">Queens of the Stone Age</a>'s <a href="spotify:artist:03xb2BUdIFzuRQ6o88yfCB">Josh Homme</a> on 2009's Humbug. Eventually, they also laced in some of the louche lounge aspects of <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Turner</a>'s swinging side project <a href="spotify:artist:2Z7UcsdweVlRbAk5wH5fsf">the Last Shadow Puppets</a>, an evolution that began on 2018's arty Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino and deepened on its 2022 follow-up The Car. By that point, the band was a staple throughout the world. <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Alex Turner</a> and guitarist Jamie Cook began their music careers in 2001, when the friends both received guitars for Christmas. Two years later, they began performing shows around their native Sheffield with drummer Matt Helders and bassist Andy Nicholson, two fellow students at Stocksbridge High School. A series of demo recordings followed, and Arctic Monkeys' audience swelled as fans circulated those recordings via the Internet. The musicians soon found themselves at the center of a growing media circus, with such outlets as BBC Radio examining the band's music and mounting hype. By distributing their homemade material on the Internet, Arctic Monkeys were able to build a sizable fan base without the help of a record label, effectively circumventing the usual road to superstardom. They continued to buck tradition by signing with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Domino+Records%22">Domino Records</a> in 2005, eschewing a major-label's budget for <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Domino%22">Domino</a>'s D.I.Y. cred and hip roster (which also included <a href="spotify:artist:0XNa1vTidXlvJ2gHSsRi4A">Franz Ferdinand</a>, a touchstone for the band's sound). The smart moves paid off as Arctic Monkeys' first two singles -- "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" and "When the Sun Goes Down" -- both topped the U.K. charts. Critical reception was similarly favorable, but few could have predicted the whirlwind success of the band's debut album, which ousted <a href="spotify:artist:2DaxqgrOhkeH0fpeiQq2f4">Oasis</a>' Definitely Maybe as the fastest-selling debut in British history (a record that was broken one year later by <a href="spotify:artist:5lKZWd6HiSCLfnDGrq9RAm">Leona Lewis</a>' Spirit). Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not sold 363,735 copies during its first week alone, transforming Arctic Monkeys from underground stars into mainstream figures. Arctic Monkeys' debut sold approximately 300,000 total copies in America -- enough to warrant more media coverage. Their success continued as they released a spring EP, Who the F**k Are Arctic Monkeys, and prepared for a stateside tour. Temporary bassist Nick O'Malley was brought aboard for the band's American shows, while a fatigued Nicholson stayed at home. Nicholson then announced his official departure when the band returned home in June 2006, and O'Malley remained with Arctic Monkeys as a permanent member. That fall, the guys received the 2006 Mercury Prize and donated the accompanying money to an undisclosed charity. Additional accolades included Best British Breakthrough Act at the BRIT Awards and Best New Band at the NME Awards. NME also made a bold assertion by deeming the group's debut one of the Top Five British albums ever released. Released in April 2007, Favourite Worst Nightmare updated Arctic Monkeys' sound with louder instruments and faster tempos. The bandmates had recorded the sophomore album quickly, wishing to return to the road as soon as possible, and the speedy turnaround between records helped maintain the group's popularity at home. Favourite Worst Nightmare sold 85,000 copies during its first day of release, and all 12 tracks entered the Top 200 of the U.K. singles charts. As <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Alex Turner</a> briefly turned his attention to a side project, <a href="spotify:artist:2Z7UcsdweVlRbAk5wH5fsf">the Last Shadow Puppets</a>, Arctic Monkeys received another Mercury Prize nomination and took home two titles at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Recording sessions for a third album commenced in early 2008 and lasted throughout the year, with producers James Ford (who previously worked with <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Turner</a> on <a href="spotify:artist:2Z7UcsdweVlRbAk5wH5fsf">the Last Shadow Puppets</a>' album) and <a href="spotify:artist:03xb2BUdIFzuRQ6o88yfCB">Josh Homme</a> (frontman of <a href="spotify:artist:4pejUc4iciQfgdX6OKulQn">Queens of the Stone Age</a>) adding some newfound heft to the band's sound. Meanwhile, Arctic Monkeys released a concert album entitled At the Apollo -- with accompanying video footage captured on 35mm film -- before unveiling Humbug in August 2009. Humbug went platinum in the U.K. with the singles "Crying Lightning" peaking at number 12 and "Cornerstone" topping out at 94. The band hit the road that February, kicking off a multi-leg tour that ran through the rest of the year. After playing another handful of shows in early 2010, the guys took a short hiatus before reconvening with James Ford for their fourth album. Sessions began that fall, and the resulting Suck It and See arrived in spring 2011, topping the U.K. album chart and landing at number 14 on the Billboard 200. Meanwhile, <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Turner</a> also wrote music for a Richard Ayoade film, Submarine, whose soundtrack doubled as the frontman's first solo release. In February 2012, Arctic Monkeys released a song entitled "R U Mine?" on their YouTube channel, which indicated that an album was on the way. A few months later, the band played at the London Summer Olympics opening ceremony, performing "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" and <a href="spotify:artist:3WrFJ7ztbogyGnTHbHJFl2">the Beatles</a>' "Come Together," but it wasn't until the summer of 2013 that the group's fifth album was to be revealed. Entitled AM, the record was released in September, a few months after a triumphant headlining performance at Glastonbury 2013, which was opened with the new song "Do I Wanna Know?" Both a critical and commercial success, AM topped the British charts and reached number six on the Billboard 200. It also earned the group a Mercury Prize nomination and won British Album of the Year at the BRIT Awards. Following the end of their tour in 2014, the band entered an extended hiatus, during which time the individual members pursued solo projects. In 2016, <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Turner</a> released his second album with <a href="spotify:artist:2Z7UcsdweVlRbAk5wH5fsf">the Last Shadow Puppets</a> and toured. Arctic Monkeys resurfaced in April 2018 with the loungey Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, a softer affair than their previous albums. Along with topping the U.K. album chart and Billboard Top Rock Albums chart, the LP became the group's fourth to earn a Mercury Prize nomination. Later that year, the band issued the TBH&C B-side "Anyways" as a single. A concert album, Live at the Royal Albert Hall, recorded during the Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino tour arrived in November 2020, with all proceeds going to benefit the War Child U.K. charity organization. Arctic Monkeys began their seventh album cycle by releasing the single "There’d Better Be a Mirrorball" in August 2022, delivering the full-length The Car in October. Continuing the slow, stylish vibe of Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino, the album was cut in a monastery on the coast of Suffolk. It hit number six on the Billboard 200, number two in the U.K., and picked up three Grammy nominations, including for Best Alternative Music Album. ~ Andrew Leahey & Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

Franz Ferdinand

Artist

With their sharply stylish mix of rock and dance music, Franz Ferdinand have brought a wry sophistication to indie rock while becoming one of the U.K.'s most popular bands. The Glasgow-based group arrived in the wake of the early-2000s rock revival, with bands such as <a href="spotify:artist:0epOFNiUfyON9EYx7Tpr6V">the Strokes</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:4fSPtBgFPZzygkY6MehwQ7">the Libertines</a> reminding listeners just how refreshing -- and evergreen -- hook-driven guitar music could be. While Franz Ferdinand had a kinship with those acts, their lineage also included the arch, angular post-punk of bands such as <a href="spotify:artist:2i8ynmFv4qgRksyDlBgi6d">Wire</a> and the witty, funky jangle of fellow Glaswegians <a href="spotify:artist:2u7xZP39dtED9EuRX9MUwu">Orange Juice</a>. From the beginning, the group had a flair for translating arty, unexpected references into widely appealing music and visuals, whether it was the Russian Constructivism-inspired artwork that graced their early releases or the <a href="spotify:artist:0Wxy5Qka8BN9crcFkiAxSR">Howlin' Wolf</a> homage in the guitar solos of 2004's smash single "Take Me Out." After laying the groundwork for their sound with that year's Mercury Prize-winning, platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated debut album Franz Ferdinand, the band soon branched out. On 2005's You Could Have It So Much Better, they added more nuance to their style, then explored dub on 2009's Tonight and disco on 2018's sleek Always Ascending. Franz Ferdinand further embellished their sound in the 2020s, bringing vintage glam influences on the new songs included on 2022's best-of Hits to the Head and 2025's full-length The Human Fear. Prior to forming Franz Ferdinand, singer/guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:43tffeOxONSbTQ888To7bE">Alex Kapranos</a> played in bands such as the Karelia and <a href="spotify:artist:0EB6K2787E4Vf9TYie1qEI">Yummy Fur</a> (the latter of which also featured drummer Paul Thomson). In late 2001, and bassist Bob Hardy began working on music together when they met Nick McCarthy, a classically trained pianist and double bass player who originally played drums for the group despite no prior experience as a drummer. The trio had rehearsed at McCarthy's house for a while when they started playing with Thomson, who felt like playing guitar instead of drums. Eventually, McCarthy and Thomson switched instruments and the band switched practice spaces, moving to an abandoned warehouse that they named the Chateau. Taking their name from the Austro-Hungarian Archduke whose murder sparked World War I (and hoping they'd have a similarly world-changing effect on music), Franz Ferdinand rehearsed at the Chateau and held rave-like events incorporating music and art (Hardy graduated from the Glasgow School of Art, and Thomson also posed as a life model there). The band needed a new rehearsal space once their illicit art parties were discovered by the police, and they found one in a Victorian courthouse and jail. By mid-2002, Franz Ferdinand had recorded an EP's worth of material that they intended to release themselves, but word of mouth about the band spread and they signed to <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Domino%22">Domino</a> in May 2003. Soon after, the band decamped to Malmö, Sweden to work with producer Tore Johansson at Gula Studios. Their spiky debut single "Darts of Pleasure" arrived that September and reached number 44 on the U.K. Singles chart. Franz Ferdinand spent the rest of the year supporting groups such as <a href="spotify:artist:5UVftEhSsIg0kkXlmfhB6M">Hot Hot Heat</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:3WaJSfKnzc65VDgmj2zU8B">Interpol</a>, and in November the Darts of Pleasure EP became their first U.S. release. The following January, the band's second single Take Me Out became a top five hit in the U.K., propelling them to greater popularity and laying the groundwork for their debut album. Arriving in February 2004, Franz Ferdinand fleshed out the wiry fusion of post-punk and disco of the band's singles. It hit number three on the U.K. Albums chart and spawned the additional hit singles "The Dark of the Matinée" and "Michael." In September 2004, the album won the Mercury Prize over such artists as <a href="spotify:artist:4GvOygVQquMaPm8oAc0vXi">the Streets</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4YrKBkKSVeqDamzBPWVnSJ">Basement Jaxx</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:53A0W3U0s8diEn9RhXQhVz">Keane</a>. Franz Ferdinand also fared well internationally, becoming a top 20 hit in Australia and several European countries. In the U.S., the band's consistent touring and frequent airplay of "Take Me Out" boosted the album to number 32 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart and, ultimately, sales of over a million copies. In 2005, the accolades for the band and their debut album continued to roll in: <a href="spotify:artist:43tffeOxONSbTQ888To7bE">Kapranos</a> and company won the Brit Awards for Best British Group and Best British Rock Act, while Franz Ferdinand earned a Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Album and "Take Me Out" was nominated for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. By that time, Franz Ferdinand was already working on their second album with producer Rich Costey in Glasgow and New York City. Released in September 2005, You Could Have It So Much Better broadened the band's sound with piano ballads and <a href="spotify:artist:3WrFJ7ztbogyGnTHbHJFl2">Beatles</a>que pop. The album was another success, becoming the group's first number one album and notching four top 30 singles in the U.K., and was a top ten hit internationally. In the U.S., it peaked at number eight and was certified gold. You Could Have It So Much Better also received critical acclaim as well as nominations for several Brit Awards and Grammy Awards, including Best Alternative Album and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group for its lead single "Do You Want To." The band rounded out the year by collaborating with <a href="spotify:artist:4XYH5Be5pn1qkxhfaID3J5">Jane Birkin</a> on a cover of <a href="spotify:artist:01C9OoXDvCKkGcf735Tcfo">Serge Gainsbourg</a>'s "Sorry Angel" for the tribute album Monsieur Gainsbourg Revisited. Though Franz Ferdinand began writing songs for their third album in 2005, they scrapped them for a fresh set that they planned to make into a "dirty pop" concept album. Opting for a dance- and pop-influenced direction, the band worked with producer <a href="spotify:artist:1PXStuNqw9YDsim4EhMSq7">Dan Carey</a>, who counted <a href="spotify:artist:4RVnAU35WRWra6OZ3CbbMA">Kylie Minogue</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2K13AVg3bFpHSxDM1vJ0qA">CSS</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:37uLId6Z5ZXCx19vuruvv5">Hot Chip</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:13saZpZnCDWOI9D4IJhp1f">Lily Allen</a> among his clients. Recorded in <a href="spotify:artist:1PXStuNqw9YDsim4EhMSq7">Carey</a>'s London studio as well as the old town hall of Govan, Scotland, February 2009's Tonight traced the ups and downs of a night out with songs that nodded to dub, new wave, and dance music. Featuring the singles "Ulysses" and "No You Girls," the album debuted at number two in the U.K. and number nine in the U.S., and reached the top ten in Japan, Australia, and several other countries. That June, the band released Blood, an album featuring dub-inspired remixes of Tonight's songs. In 2010, Franz Ferdinand contributed a version of "The Lobster Quadrille" to the Alice in Wonderland soundtrack and worked with <a href="spotify:artist:264YmdiSc68XVog9LYQ8na">Marion Cotillard</a> on "The Eyes of Mars," a song that appeared in a Dior advertising campaign. That year, <a href="spotify:artist:43tffeOxONSbTQ888To7bE">Kapranos</a> and McCarthy also appeared on <a href="spotify:artist:5Qlt3zQ63Z99mNhuun0JAT">Edwyn Collins</a>' album Losing Sleep. For 2011's Record Store Day, Franz Ferdinand issued the Covers EP, which featured versions of Tonight songs by artists including <a href="spotify:artist:066X20Nz7iquqkkCW6Jxy6">LCD Soundsystem</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4EF5vIcCYKMM61oYOG2Tqa">ESG</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:1gkSl4XpHIHI4I1WQbfXOE">Peaches</a>. While making their fourth album, Franz Ferdinand took their time, beginning the writing process in 2010 and debuting new songs during a string of 2012 shows. The band worked in studios in Glasgow, London and Stockholm with a large cast of contributors, including <a href="spotify:artist:37uLId6Z5ZXCx19vuruvv5">Hot Chip</a>'s <a href="spotify:artist:380fnmlGnkyueBMqGWx2k5">Joe Goddard</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:6zclVXoEfp3nFq4dOgqgOX">Alexis Taylor</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6u11Qbko2N2hP4lTBYjX86">Peter Björn & John</a>'s Björn Yttling, <a href="spotify:artist:0mgbAj6btHW215UxhLq1AV">Veronica Falls</a>' Roxanne Clifford, and DJ <a href="spotify:artist:49gaZqfow2v8EEQmjGyEIw">Todd Terje</a>. Arriving in August 2013, Right Thoughts Right Words Right Action merged the dance and indie sounds of the band's previous albums with an optimistic outlook. Once again, the album was a top ten hit in many countries -- it reached number two in the band's homeland of Scotland and number six in the U.K. -- and peaked at number 24 in the U.S. Meanwhile, the single "Right Action" hit number 39 on the U.K. Indie chart and number 28 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart in the U.S. Franz Ferdinand then collaborated with <a href="spotify:artist:7pwjGKaqnfkvS7eQbHaqyH">Sparks</a> as <a href="spotify:artist:0OnPrsDBROxkpC3qbFnL6L">FFS</a> and released their self-titled album in June 2015. The following year, McCarthy left the band. Also in 2016, Franz Ferdinand contributed "Demagogue" to the 30 Days, 50 Songs project against the candidacy of Donald Trump in that year's U.S. presidential election, while <a href="spotify:artist:43tffeOxONSbTQ888To7bE">Kapranos</a> appeared in the Glasgow music scene documentary Lost in France. In 2017, Franz Ferdinand added guitarist Dino Bardot (another former member of <a href="spotify:artist:0EB6K2787E4Vf9TYie1qEI">Yummy Fur</a> as well as <a href="spotify:artist:1JEwJAGMlP6JvUkZ5OXkvy">1990s</a>) and <a href="spotify:artist:1WIjei769mW4VVrM9VsauL">Miaoux Miaoux</a> keyboardist Julian Corrie to the fold and made their live debut as a quintet. The band also went into the studio that year with producer Philippe Zdar to record their fifth album, February 2018's Always Ascending. Leaning further into Franz Ferdinand's dance inclinations, it was another Top Ten hit in Scotland and the U.K. and peaked at 59 in the U.S. Thomson left the band in 2021, with Audrey Tait stepping in behind the drumkit. In March 2022, Franz Ferdinand released the best-of Hits to the Head. Inspired by classic greatest-hits collections like Changesbowie, it featured two new songs, "Curious" and "Billy Goodbye." Around the time of the collection's release, the band performed at the fundraising concert Night for Ukraine. For January 2025's The Human Fear, <a href="spotify:artist:43tffeOxONSbTQ888To7bE">Kapranos</a> co-wrote songs with Hardy, Corrie, and Bardot that touched on existential worries about fatherhood, identity, and love. Working with Right Thoughts Right Words Right Action engineer Mark Ralph as producer, Franz Ferdinand added punchy glam rock influences to their bracing style. ~ Heather Phares, Rovi

Foo Fighters

Artist

With alt-rock anthems heavy on melody and personality, Foo Fighters have grown from <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Dave Grohl</a>'s humble solo project into one of the biggest -- and most enduring -- acts in modern rock. Once his self-recorded debut became a hit in 1995, the former <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a> drummer turned Foo Fighters into a full-fledged band whose lineup coalesced after the 1997 release of The Colour and the Shape. With 1999's There Is Nothing Left to Lose, the group's sound gelled into a recognizable signature built upon the hooky loud-quiet-loud dynamics of <a href="spotify:artist:6zvul52xwTWzilBZl6BUbT">Pixies</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a>, a modern rock sound anchored by <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a>'s love of classic guitar rock. Alone among their peers, Foo Fighters displayed a rigorous work ethic, recording and touring relentlessly into the 2020s, racking up hit albums, multiple Grammy wins and, eventually, a 2021 induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. All this activity allowed the Foos to experiment, whether it was on 2005's double-album In Your Honor, the travelogue of 2014's Sonic Highways, or the danceable, feel-good anthems on 2021's Medicine at Midnight. The dedication to work also carried Foo Fighters through tragedy when their drummer <a href="spotify:artist:6bI8H2TnlKYGJSo52wcTP4">Taylor Hawkins</a> unexpectedly died in 2022. <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> rallied the group to deliver the Grammy-nominated But Here We Are, a cathartic tribute to their colleague, the following year. All of this industriousness stems from <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Dave Grohl</a>, who had been playing guitar and writing songs long before he began drumming. Throughout his early teens he performed in a variety of hardcore punk bands and in the late '80s he joined the Washington, D.C.-area hardcore band <a href="spotify:artist:0wIhCBrT02x0GG5bKqcSAh">Scream</a> as their drummer. During <a href="spotify:artist:0wIhCBrT02x0GG5bKqcSAh">Scream</a>'s final days, <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> began recording his own material in the basement studio of his friend Barrett Jones. Some of <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a>'s songs appeared on <a href="spotify:artist:0wIhCBrT02x0GG5bKqcSAh">Scream</a>'s final album, Fumble. After the band's 1990 summer tour, <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> joined <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a> and moved cross-country to Seattle. After <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a> recorded Nevermind, <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> went back to the D.C. area and recorded a handful of tracks that would appear on Pocketwatch, a cassette released by <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Simple+Machines%22">Simple Machines</a>. For most of 1992, he was busy with <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a>, but when the band was off the road, he recorded solo material with Jones, who had also moved to Seattle. The pair kept recording throughout early 1993, when <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> returned to <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a> to record In Utero. He had toyed with the idea of releasing another independent cassette in the summer of 1993, but the plans never reached fruition. Following <a href="spotify:artist:6pAuTi6FXi6qFQJ1dzMXQs">Kurt Cobain</a>'s suicide in 1994, the drummer kept quiet for several months. In the fall of 1994, <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> and Jones decamped to a professional studio, where in the space of a week, they recorded the songs that comprised Foo Fighters' debut album. Boiling down his backlog of songs to about 15 tracks, <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> played all the instruments on the album. He made 100 copies of the tape, passing it out to friends and associates. In no time, <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a>'s solo project became the object of a fierce record company bidding war. Instead of embarking on a full-fledged solo career, <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> decided to form a band. Through his wife he met Nate Mendel, the bassist for <a href="spotify:artist:2lZkXWxkZsZzBocxMjN1or">Sunny Day Real Estate</a>. Shortly before the pair met, <a href="spotify:artist:6jUpCAtHPCEowkiAo4bpWK">Jeremy Enigk</a>, the leader of <a href="spotify:artist:2lZkXWxkZsZzBocxMjN1or">Sunny Day Real Estate</a>, had converted to Christianity and quit the band, effectively ending the group's career. Not only did Mendel join <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a>'s band, but so did <a href="spotify:artist:2lZkXWxkZsZzBocxMjN1or">Sunny Day</a>'s drummer, William Goldsmith. Former <a href="spotify:artist:39zgKjGWsiZzJ9h6gbrPFY">Germs</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a> guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:36AOO7vOYRSjm2nVgvu63E">Pat Smear</a> rounded out the lineup. The band, named Foo Fighters after a World War II secret force that allegedly researched UFOs, signed a contract with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Capitol+Records%22">Capitol Records</a>. The band's self-titled debut, consisting solely of <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Dave Grohl</a>'s solo recordings, was released in July of 1995. It became an instant success in America, as "This Is a Call" garnered heavy alternative and album rock airplay. By early 1996, the album was certified platinum in the U.S. Throughout 1996, Foo Fighters supported the album with an extensive tour, enjoying a crossover hit with "Big Me." Late in the year, the group began recording its second album with producer Gil Norton. During the sessions, William Goldsmith left the band due to creative tensions, leaving <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> to drum on the majority of the album. Before the record's release, Goldsmith was replaced by <a href="spotify:artist:6bI8H2TnlKYGJSo52wcTP4">Taylor Hawkins</a>, who had previously drummed with <a href="spotify:artist:6ogn9necmbUdCppmNnGOdi">Alanis Morissette</a>. The Colour and the Shape, Foo Fighters' second album and the first they recorded as a band, was issued in May of 1997. <a href="spotify:artist:36AOO7vOYRSjm2nVgvu63E">Smear</a> left the group in the wake of the album's completion and was replaced by guitarist Franz Stahl, whose stay proved short-lived; 1999's There Is Nothing Left to Lose was recorded as a three-piece, with ex-<a href="spotify:artist:5p3WimI9yquAF6Lqhlm4Ol">No Use for a Name</a> guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:5tv5SsSRqR7uLtpKZgcRrg">Chris Shiflett</a> signing on soon after. One by One, the group's most polished production, appeared in late 2002, followed by 2005's In Your Honor, which narrowly missed the top of Billboard's album chart. After releasing a live album titled Skin and Bones in 2006, the band returned to Norton's studio and started constructing a dozen fractured, eclectic rock songs to be released in 2007 under the name Echoes, Silence, Patience, and Grace. Two years later, the group released its first compilation, Greatest Hits, as <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> launched his new supergroup <a href="spotify:artist:4zYQWYmtimAEmI6WWEzGfO">Them Crooked Vultures</a>, which also featured <a href="spotify:artist:03xb2BUdIFzuRQ6o88yfCB">Josh Homme</a> of <a href="spotify:artist:4pejUc4iciQfgdX6OKulQn">Queens of the Stone Age</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Led Zeppelin</a>'s <a href="spotify:artist:6RhcZuUOb20IZvR8BbdnJX">John Paul Jones</a>. Foo Fighters reconvened for 2011's Wasting Light, a <a href="spotify:artist:0gTi2zsOHn6wtlkx66uxXM">Butch Vig</a> production that doubled as the official return of <a href="spotify:artist:36AOO7vOYRSjm2nVgvu63E">Pat Smear</a>, who hadn't played on any of the band's albums since 1997. Wasting Light wound up as a smash success for the Foos, debuting at number one on the Billboard charts, going gold in the U.S. and garnering the band another four Grammy Awards. In the wake of Wasting Light, several other Foo projects emerged -- a limited-edition compilation of covers called Medium Rare released for Record Store Day 2011; a documentary of the band called Back and Forth -- and the group toured the album into 2012. In 2012, Foo Fighters announced they were taking a hiatus and <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Dave Grohl</a> immediately returned to the confines of <a href="spotify:artist:4pejUc4iciQfgdX6OKulQn">Queens of the Stone Age</a>, drumming on their 2013 album, ...Like Clockwork. He also threw himself into directing a documentary about the legendary Los Angeles recording studio Sound City. The film appeared early in 2013 to positive reviews, and it was accompanied by a soundtrack called Sound City: Reel to Real, which featured <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a>-directed jams including a variety of Sound City veterans, plus <a href="spotify:artist:4STHEaNw4mPZ2tzheohgXB">Paul McCartney</a>. Not long after its release, Foo Fighters announced that their hiatus had ended and they were working on a new album. Sonic Highways, released late in 2014, was their most ambitious project yet; each track was recorded in a different city, some with special featured guests, a process documented on an eight-episode documentary series for HBO. Sonic Highways saw international release in early November 2014. During the Sonic Highways world tour, the Foos had the honor of being the final band to perform on The Late Show with David Letterman on May 24, 2015. Soon after, as touring resumed, <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> fell from the stage during a stop in Sweden, breaking his leg. He performed from a throne for the remainder of the tour, which was rechristened the "Broken Leg Tour." In late 2015, both as a gesture of appreciation to fans and a tribute to the victims of the Paris terror attacks, Foo Fighters released the Saint Cecilia EP, a five-song blast that featured <a href="spotify:artist:01aC2ikO4Xgb2LUpf9JfKp">Gary Clark, Jr.</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:7bhMBjjQhgPX0q9S4Ajncn">Ben Kweller</a>. It returned the band to the Billboard charts, peaking in the Top 20 on the Hard Rock, Alternative, Tastemaker, and Vinyl charts. Soon after, the band announced an indefinite hiatus and would not release new music until two years later, when they returned with the single "Run." This was the first taste of their ninth album, Concrete and Gold, which appeared in September 2017. Produced by <a href="spotify:artist:2sWf9Tj6EsTxURcgil3NTG">Greg Kurstin</a>, the album found <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> incorporating some prog rock influences into the group's sound. It also featured a handful of unexpected guest performers, including <a href="spotify:artist:4STHEaNw4mPZ2tzheohgXB">Paul McCartney</a>, who played drums on a track, saxophonist <a href="spotify:artist:0ZcJXldoq09BRIMl0Qh1Vm">Dave Koz</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6O74knDqdv3XaWtkII7Xjp">Boyz II Men</a>'s <a href="spotify:artist:19dyJWLCu4CSuTgZN1l9Zn">Shawn Stockman</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:5BYuBzqmTXwUDw2rYkwExr">the Kills</a>' <a href="spotify:artist:5rexG906fVLfq8H9m8J9P9">Alison Mosshart</a>; the latter two both added backing vocals. Along with topping the rock charts, the album was also the group's second to debut at number one on the Billboard 200. Foo Fighters toured extensively throughout 2017 and 2018, including making an appearance at the Glastonbury Festival. By 2019, they were back at work in the studio, recording in an historic house in Encino, California, and again working with producer <a href="spotify:artist:2sWf9Tj6EsTxURcgil3NTG">Kurstin</a>. Initially scheduled for release in 2020, Medicine at Midnight was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, a lead single, "Shame Shame," did appear in November 2020, topping the mainstream rock chart. Two more songs followed, "No Son of Mine" and "Waiting on a War," paving the way for the album, which ultimately arrived in February 2021. In March 2022, the Foo Fighters traveled to South America to play a handful of concerts, headlining the Lollapalooza festival in Argentina on March 20. On the morning of March 25, 2022, drummer <a href="spotify:artist:6bI8H2TnlKYGJSo52wcTP4">Taylor Hawkins</a> was found dead in his hotel room in Bogotá, Colombia, where the group was scheduled to perform that evening; he was 50 years old. At the end of 2022, Foo Fighters announced they planned to continue as a band following the death of <a href="spotify:artist:6bI8H2TnlKYGJSo52wcTP4">Hawkins</a>. <a href="spotify:artist:7mRVAzlt1fAAR9Cut6Rq8c">Grohl</a> and his bandmates processed the loss of their colleague on But Here We Are, an album that occasionally echoed the spirit of the first Foo Fighters album while also featuring the assured, precise execution of <a href="spotify:artist:2sWf9Tj6EsTxURcgil3NTG">Greg Kurstin</a>, who returned for his third record with the Foos. The LP earned nominations for Best Rock Album and Best Rock Performance at the 66th Grammy Awards. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

Arctic Monkeys

Artist

With their nervy and literate indie rock sound, Arctic Monkeys are a respected, adventurous, and successful group that could easily be called Britain's biggest band of the early 21st century. The band arrived with a blast in 2005, assisted by rave reviews and online word of mouth (they were one of the first bands to benefit from social media). They quickly became a sensation in the United Kingdom, where they were seen as the heir apparent to the throne left vacant by <a href="spotify:artist:2DaxqgrOhkeH0fpeiQq2f4">Oasis</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:4fSPtBgFPZzygkY6MehwQ7">the Libertines</a>. Buoyed by the single "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor," their 2006 debut Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not briefly grabbed the title of fastest-selling album in British history. It landed on top of both the U.K. and U.S. rock album charts and took home the Mercury Prize. What set the group apart was <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Alex Turner</a>, a singer/songwriter with a biting wit and grasp of English vernacular (not dissimilar to <a href="spotify:artist:7Lf3LOZp3U3u2f6cWMd3AH">Paul Weller</a>, the godfather of modern British rock). However, driven by their maverick creative spirit, Arctic Monkeys have proven highly unpredictable, reworking classic rock traditions on 2007's Favourite Worst Nightmare and beefing up their guitars with the assistance of <a href="spotify:artist:4pejUc4iciQfgdX6OKulQn">Queens of the Stone Age</a>'s <a href="spotify:artist:03xb2BUdIFzuRQ6o88yfCB">Josh Homme</a> on 2009's Humbug. Eventually, they also laced in some of the louche lounge aspects of <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Turner</a>'s swinging side project <a href="spotify:artist:2Z7UcsdweVlRbAk5wH5fsf">the Last Shadow Puppets</a>, an evolution that began on 2018's arty Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino and deepened on its 2022 follow-up The Car. By that point, the band was a staple throughout the world. <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Alex Turner</a> and guitarist Jamie Cook began their music careers in 2001, when the friends both received guitars for Christmas. Two years later, they began performing shows around their native Sheffield with drummer Matt Helders and bassist Andy Nicholson, two fellow students at Stocksbridge High School. A series of demo recordings followed, and Arctic Monkeys' audience swelled as fans circulated those recordings via the Internet. The musicians soon found themselves at the center of a growing media circus, with such outlets as BBC Radio examining the band's music and mounting hype. By distributing their homemade material on the Internet, Arctic Monkeys were able to build a sizable fan base without the help of a record label, effectively circumventing the usual road to superstardom. They continued to buck tradition by signing with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Domino+Records%22">Domino Records</a> in 2005, eschewing a major-label's budget for <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Domino%22">Domino</a>'s D.I.Y. cred and hip roster (which also included <a href="spotify:artist:0XNa1vTidXlvJ2gHSsRi4A">Franz Ferdinand</a>, a touchstone for the band's sound). The smart moves paid off as Arctic Monkeys' first two singles -- "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" and "When the Sun Goes Down" -- both topped the U.K. charts. Critical reception was similarly favorable, but few could have predicted the whirlwind success of the band's debut album, which ousted <a href="spotify:artist:2DaxqgrOhkeH0fpeiQq2f4">Oasis</a>' Definitely Maybe as the fastest-selling debut in British history (a record that was broken one year later by <a href="spotify:artist:5lKZWd6HiSCLfnDGrq9RAm">Leona Lewis</a>' Spirit). Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not sold 363,735 copies during its first week alone, transforming Arctic Monkeys from underground stars into mainstream figures. Arctic Monkeys' debut sold approximately 300,000 total copies in America -- enough to warrant more media coverage. Their success continued as they released a spring EP, Who the F**k Are Arctic Monkeys, and prepared for a stateside tour. Temporary bassist Nick O'Malley was brought aboard for the band's American shows, while a fatigued Nicholson stayed at home. Nicholson then announced his official departure when the band returned home in June 2006, and O'Malley remained with Arctic Monkeys as a permanent member. That fall, the guys received the 2006 Mercury Prize and donated the accompanying money to an undisclosed charity. Additional accolades included Best British Breakthrough Act at the BRIT Awards and Best New Band at the NME Awards. NME also made a bold assertion by deeming the group's debut one of the Top Five British albums ever released. Released in April 2007, Favourite Worst Nightmare updated Arctic Monkeys' sound with louder instruments and faster tempos. The bandmates had recorded the sophomore album quickly, wishing to return to the road as soon as possible, and the speedy turnaround between records helped maintain the group's popularity at home. Favourite Worst Nightmare sold 85,000 copies during its first day of release, and all 12 tracks entered the Top 200 of the U.K. singles charts. As <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Alex Turner</a> briefly turned his attention to a side project, <a href="spotify:artist:2Z7UcsdweVlRbAk5wH5fsf">the Last Shadow Puppets</a>, Arctic Monkeys received another Mercury Prize nomination and took home two titles at the 2008 BRIT Awards. Recording sessions for a third album commenced in early 2008 and lasted throughout the year, with producers James Ford (who previously worked with <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Turner</a> on <a href="spotify:artist:2Z7UcsdweVlRbAk5wH5fsf">the Last Shadow Puppets</a>' album) and <a href="spotify:artist:03xb2BUdIFzuRQ6o88yfCB">Josh Homme</a> (frontman of <a href="spotify:artist:4pejUc4iciQfgdX6OKulQn">Queens of the Stone Age</a>) adding some newfound heft to the band's sound. Meanwhile, Arctic Monkeys released a concert album entitled At the Apollo -- with accompanying video footage captured on 35mm film -- before unveiling Humbug in August 2009. Humbug went platinum in the U.K. with the singles "Crying Lightning" peaking at number 12 and "Cornerstone" topping out at 94. The band hit the road that February, kicking off a multi-leg tour that ran through the rest of the year. After playing another handful of shows in early 2010, the guys took a short hiatus before reconvening with James Ford for their fourth album. Sessions began that fall, and the resulting Suck It and See arrived in spring 2011, topping the U.K. album chart and landing at number 14 on the Billboard 200. Meanwhile, <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Turner</a> also wrote music for a Richard Ayoade film, Submarine, whose soundtrack doubled as the frontman's first solo release. In February 2012, Arctic Monkeys released a song entitled "R U Mine?" on their YouTube channel, which indicated that an album was on the way. A few months later, the band played at the London Summer Olympics opening ceremony, performing "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" and <a href="spotify:artist:3WrFJ7ztbogyGnTHbHJFl2">the Beatles</a>' "Come Together," but it wasn't until the summer of 2013 that the group's fifth album was to be revealed. Entitled AM, the record was released in September, a few months after a triumphant headlining performance at Glastonbury 2013, which was opened with the new song "Do I Wanna Know?" Both a critical and commercial success, AM topped the British charts and reached number six on the Billboard 200. It also earned the group a Mercury Prize nomination and won British Album of the Year at the BRIT Awards. Following the end of their tour in 2014, the band entered an extended hiatus, during which time the individual members pursued solo projects. In 2016, <a href="spotify:artist:1ctkBmvz80MGyi72Ix055S">Turner</a> released his second album with <a href="spotify:artist:2Z7UcsdweVlRbAk5wH5fsf">the Last Shadow Puppets</a> and toured. Arctic Monkeys resurfaced in April 2018 with the loungey Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, a softer affair than their previous albums. Along with topping the U.K. album chart and Billboard Top Rock Albums chart, the LP became the group's fourth to earn a Mercury Prize nomination. Later that year, the band issued the TBH&C B-side "Anyways" as a single. A concert album, Live at the Royal Albert Hall, recorded during the Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino tour arrived in November 2020, with all proceeds going to benefit the War Child U.K. charity organization. Arctic Monkeys began their seventh album cycle by releasing the single "There’d Better Be a Mirrorball" in August 2022, delivering the full-length The Car in October. Continuing the slow, stylish vibe of Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino, the album was cut in a monastery on the coast of Suffolk. It hit number six on the Billboard 200, number two in the U.K., and picked up three Grammy nominations, including for Best Alternative Music Album. ~ Andrew Leahey & Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

Lana Del Rey

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Gorillaz

Artist