Humbug is the third studio album by English rock band Arctic Monkeys, first released on 19 August 2009 through the Domino Recording Company. The band started to write songs for the album towards the end of summer 2008, and finished it entirely in spring 2009. Like their previous release, Favourite Worst Nightmare, Humbug was released first in Japan, on 19 August 2009, followed by Australia, Brazil, Ireland and Germany, on 21 August 2009. It was then released in the UK on 24 August 2009, in the US the following day and in Greece on 31 August. The release preceded the band's headline performances at the Reading and Leeds Festivals at the end of that week.
Writing and recording
The band started writing songs for the album towards the end of summer 2008, with lead singer Alex Turner suggesting that the inspiration for the first few guitar riffs came while the band were attending the Latitude Festival in Suffolk. Tracks were written through the end of 2008, with recording taking place around the band's touring schedule towards late 2008 and early 2009. Alex Turner wrote all the album. Co-written by Josh Homme, the album was wholly recorded in the United States. Homme-produced tracks recorded in Los Angeles and the Mojave Desert alongside New York City recordings produced – as per the second album – by James Ford, who also produced the album The Age of the Understatement by Turner's side-project The Last Shadow Puppets. While recording the album, the band incorporated a wide variety of instruments that they had not used previously. Baritone and slide guitars can be heard throughout the album, as well as new guitar effects. The presence of a variety of keyboards on almost every track was something new for the band, with lead singer Alex Turner recording all of them himself with the exception of the album's singles, which were handled by session and touring keyboardist John Ashton. The presence of new percussion instruments was also evident, as the band used xylophones, glockenspiels and shakers. Early soundbites of tracks from the album appeared in the band's periodical video diary on YouTube. While being interviewed for the BBC's The Culture Show, Turner and Matt Helders cited Jimi Hendrix, Cream, Jake Thackray, John Cale, Nick Cave, Roky Erickson and The Beatles as influences on the recording of the album.
Release
The first single of the album was "Crying Lightning". It was released on 6 July, when it was played on BBC Radio 1 and was available for download from iTunes after midnight that day. On 4 October 2009 the band's official website announced the second single from the album would be "Cornerstone". "Cornerstone"s B-sides were announced as "Catapult", "Sketchead" and "Fright Lined Dining Room". On 1 February 2010, the third single from the album was announced to be "My Propeller", which similar to other singles from the album, was released on 7" and as an exclusive 10" vinyl available only in Oxfam shops. The B-sides on the 10" vinyl were "Joining the Dots", "The Afternoon's Hat" and "Don't Forget Whose Legs You're On", with just "Joining the Dots" available as a B-side on the 7" version. By September 2013 the album had sold 320,921 copies in the UK.
Critical reception
Humbug received generally positive reviews from critics. Jason Lipshutz of Billboard stated that the band "justif the hype by shifting its best qualities into different, equally dazzling shapes." John Mulvey of Uncut felt that "Homme's role as producer, perhaps, has been to nurture the soundscaping that was attempted on Humbugs predecessor, and, critically, to encourage a sense of space and stealth." In his positive review of the album, Joe Tangari of Pitchfork noted that "Humbug isn't better than either of its predecessors, but it expands the group's range and makes me curious where it might go next. It also demonstrates a great deal of staying power for a band that could have imploded before it ever got this far." While overall response was positive, the album was criticised by some for not containing the same hooks that the band had become known for, with Spins Sean Fennessey calling the album "accomplished, but not particularly infectious."
Retrospective commentary
In retrospect, Humbug has been considered a very important piece in Arctic Monkeys' catalogue, having introduced a variety of new styles and themes, both lyrically and musically, to the band, that they have expanded on since its release. It marked the first time they recorded material under Queens of the Stone Age frontman, Josh Homme's, influence. In an NME article, Mike Williams writes, "If Arctic Monkeys had never walked into the desert with Josh Homme to record ‘'Humbug'’ in 2009, they could never have made ‘'AM'’. ‘'Humbug'’ was as much about subverting people's impressions of who the band were as it was an album in its own right."
