Arctic Monkeys

Arctic Monkeys are a Mercury Prize winning, English indie rock band from High Green, a suburb of Sheffield. Formed in 2002, the band currently consists of Alex Turner on lead vocals and guitar, Jamie Cook on guitar, Matt Helders on drums and backing vocals, and Nick O'Malley on bass guitar, a position formerly held by Andy Nicholson.

Arctic Monkeys achieved chart success with their singles, "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" and "When the Sun Goes Down", reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart. Their debut album Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, released on 23 January 2006, became the fastest-selling debut album in British music history and received critical acclaim, winning the 2006 Mercury Prize. The band's second album, Favourite Worst Nightmare, was released on 23 April 2007 and sold over 225,000 copies in its debut week and has recently been nominated for the 2007 Mercury Prize.

Arctic Monkeys are generally considered part of the indie rock scene, alongside similar contemporary guitar bands such as The Libertines, The Futureheads and Franz Ferdinand. Arctic Monkeys achieved their success through fan-made demo tapes and online file-sharing. They were heralded as one of the first acts to come to the public attention via the Internet, with commentators suggesting they represented the possibility of a change in the way in which new bands are promoted and marketed. The band eventually signed to independent record label Domino.