Fluorescent Adolescent

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“Fluorescent Adolescent”
“Fluorescent Adolescent” cover
Single by Arctic Monkeys
from the album Favourite Worst Nightmare
Released 4 July 2007 (Japan)
9 July 2007 (UK)
Format 7", 10", CD
Recorded December 2006
at Miloco Studios
London, England Flag of England
Genre Post-punk revival
Length 2:57
Label Domino
Writer(s) Alex Turner, Johanna Bennett
Producer James Ford, Mike Crossey
Arctic Monkeys singles chronology
"Matador"
(2007)		 "Fluorescent Adolescent"
(2007)		 "Death Ramps"
(2007)
Favourite Worst Nightmare track listing
  1. "Brianstorm"
  2. "Teddy Picker"
  3. "D Is for Dangerous"
  4. "Balaclava"
  5. "Fluorescent Adolescent"
  6. "Only Ones Who Know"
  7. "Do Me a Favour"
  8. "This House Is a Circus"
  9. "If You Were There, Beware"
  10. "The Bad Thing"
  11. "Old Yellow Bricks"
  12. "505"

"Fluorescent Adolescent" is a song by the Arctic Monkeys and the second single from their second album Favourite Worst Nightmare.[1] It was released on 4 July 2007 in Japan and 9 July 2007 in the United Kingdom.


Contents

[edit] Meaning

The song discusses a faltering sex life, the attempts to rekindle it and memories of previous sexual experiences.

[edit] Chart performance

On downloads alone, "Fluorescent Adolescent" charted in the UK Singles Chart at #55, #32 and #23 in the respective weeks commencing 25 June, 2 July and 9 July 2007. The song charted at #5 when released on CD the week commencing 16 July 2007. Since 27 June 2007, "Fluorescent Adolescent" has received significant BBC Radio 1 airplay as the first song on "The A List" Playlist.[2] The songs three B-sides - "Plastic Tramp", "The Bakery" and "Too Much to Ask" appeared on the UK Singles Chart the week of the single's physical release at #153, #161 and #178 respectively.

It received a 9/10 rating from Planet Sound, their first single to do so since "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor".[3]

[edit] Music video

Filmed in late April 2007, the music video was directed by Richard Ayoade (The IT Crowd/Nathan Barley) and features Stephen Graham (who previously appeared on the "Scummy Man" DVD and the "When the Sun Goes Down" video) as a clown.[4][5][6] The music video premiered in the UK at 23:40, 5 June 2007 on Channel 4, and was available online the next day.[7]

The music video is based around a fight between a group of clowns and a group of non-clowns at an abandoned warehouse. The presumed leaders of the two groups have a flashback showing that they were friends when they were young children. During the flashback, photos of the band as young children are shown. Throughout the fight, each group leader attempts to kill the other. As the music video climaxes, the non-clown leader tries to run over the clown leader. However the clown leader notices the non-clown leader's car (with the non-clown leader inside) has been leaking fuel and drops his cigarette lighter. The car quickly catches fire and the clown leader looks on as his former friend burns and the music video ends. The car used is a Morris Marina.[7] This scene is similar to the ending of Radiohead's "Karma Police" video. A mistake in the video is when a non-clown member takes a chain out of the trunk and breaks the windshield. Later the non-clown leader jumps into the car and the windshield is fixed.

The video is loosely inspired from the John Cooper Clarke (who Turner admits he's a fan of and takes lyrical inspiration from) poem "Out of Control Circus" which is also printed inside the CD release of "Fluorescent Adolescent". The lines such as "out of control fairground" and "homicidal clowns" support this.

The video was preceded by a warning of violent images.[8] In an MTV interview, Turner stated that the music video "is the best thing we've ever done" while Jamie Cook hailed it as "...probably one of the best videos in the last, like, 10 years".[9]

[edit] Track listing

Lyrics written by Alex Turner, except where noted; music by Arctic Monkeys.

  • CD RUG261CD
  1. "Fluorescent Adolescent" (Turner/Bennett) – 3:03
  2. "The Bakery" – 2:56 (Additional guitar by Miles Kane)
  3. "Plastic Tramp" – 2:53 (Additional guitar by Miles Kane)
  4. "Too Much to Ask" – 3:05 [10]
  • 7" RUG261
    • Side A "Fluorescent Adolescent" (Turner/Bennett) – 2:57
    • Side B "The Bakery" – 2:56 (Addional guitar by Miles Kane) [10]
  • 10" RUG261T
    • Side A "Fluorescent Adolescent" (Turner/Bennett) – 3:03
    • Side A "The Bakery" – 2:56 (Addional guitar by Miles Kane)
    • Side B "Plastic Tramp" – 2:53 (Additional guitar by Miles Kane)
    • Side B "Too Much to Ask" – 3:05 [10]

[edit] References

  1. ^ XFM
  2. ^ BBC Radio 1
  3. ^ Planet Sound
  4. ^ Domino Records
  5. ^ Arctic-Monkeys
  6. ^ MTV
  7. ^ a b Arctic-Monkeys
  8. ^ Arctic-Monkeys
  9. ^ MTV
  10. ^ a b c NME

[edit] External links

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