“I bet that you look good on the dance floor / Dancing to electro-pop like a robot from 1984”
With these lines, Arctic Monkeys burst onto the scene of the mid-2000s garage rock revival. Their debut album, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, is the fastest selling debut in UK history — and on Friday, Jan. 23, it turns 20 years old.
2006 was a bit of a turning point in rock. We had already seen The Strokes rise to meteoric fame with 2001's Is This It, and The White Stripes had released their generational, stadium rousing anthem "Seven Nation Army" in 2003.
The time was ripe for a new band to rise.
Enter: Arctic Monkeys.
They brought the vibe of those previous groups, but added a distinctly British tone that pumped life into the country's rock offerings that the world hadn’t seen since Oasis.
Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, for those who were not paying attention, was an earth-shattering example of what a bunch of teenage dudes from Sheffield, England could do with the power of rock and roll behind them. The riffs are infectious, the drums pounding and Alex Turner's lyrics showed examples of brilliance, which on later albums would become even more apparent.
The one, two, three punch of tracks “The View from the Afternoon," “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" and “Fake Tales of San Francisco” are the kind of album openers that most bands dream of. This proved Arctic Monkeys were not fooling around and were a force to be reckoned with.
Turner and company were only 19 and 20 when Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not was released. That in and of itself is an impressive feat. Ask yourself this: What were you doing when you were 19? Probably not making one of the best debut albums of the 2000s.
What Arctic Monkeys did so well with their debut was establish a status quo for the band, which had the attitude of: We will do what we want and you’re either with us or f*ck you. With some bands, that might come off as pompous. But Arctic Monkeys made it work.
The importance behind this debut lies in the fact that it proved rock was evolving, and Arctic Monkeys were at the forefront of that change. It was hard not to hear “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor” on rock radio and eventually pop radio. Arctic Monkeys brought a crossover appeal that resonated with millions of listeners worldwide — and does to this day.
With Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, Arctic Monkeys never sounded more punk rock. This could be because of their age at the time, and maybe they were just a bunch of British drunkards enjoying being able to buy alcohol legally and rock out (You only have to be 18 the purchase liquor in the UK.)
Regardless, the album introduced the world to what would become one of the most popular rock acts for the next 15 years. During that time, the band has evolved from pub rock punks and released excellent record after excellent record, culminating in 2013s AM which is easily one of the best rock records of the time.
Arctic Monkeys are still going strong, having gotten more experimental with their latest albums, including a concept record about a space hotel. Most recently, they released a new track in support of War Child to help children displaced by conflict.
Who would have thought that a group of teenagers from Sheffield would carry the torch that The Strokes ignited and that the The White Stripes checked out by breaking up? In 2026, it's clear that Arctic Monkeys have truly cemented their place in rock history, and it all started with Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not.
