Posted September 11, 200717 yr Renaissance man Arctic Monkeys frontman considers a role in the “Wizard of Oz”—or possibly the circus By Matt Pais When a band calls its debut "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not," and everything people say about them is positive, do they have any regrets? Not Arctic Monkeys. "I think we've got this tendency to want to wriggle and kind of keep moving," says 21-year-old frontman Alex Turner. "And so in that sense it still kind of makes sense." The English quartet has moved forward from that first album, the fastest-selling debut in British history and winner of Europe's prestigious Mercury Prize. And the Monkeys show no signs of slowing down on their follow-up, "Favourite Worst Nightmare," a more varied but similarly energetic assortment of punchy, unforgettable hooks and wickedly funny lyrics. From Toronto, Turner told us about his songwriting style and dreams of joining the circus. Your song "Old Yellow Bricks" is inspired by "The Wizard of Oz." Are you more like the Scarecrow, Tin Man or Cowardly Lion? Well, I've got a lot of heart, so we'll leave [the Tin Man out]. I'm kidding. I would have the most in common with [the Scarecrow] because I have no brain. And [i'm] very indecisive. He seems like an indecisive scarecrow. You would be if you were lacking a mind. What are you trying to accomplish with your lyrics? Sometimes to make people snigger is an objective, in a way, but without it being comedy. It's very much in my consciousness that you have to sing this particular lyric night after night and [you've got to] make it something that you're not going to get sick of singing. How does one celebrate having the fastest-selling debut in British history? You could surely [rent] a bouncy castle that you sometimes have at outdoor events in the summer ... or maybe you could even buy a bouncy castle. It's good to know there's a band that doesn't think there's anything wrong with four guys bouncing around in a castle together. Why only make it four? You could get a couple of castles. Maybe invite some friends. Make sure they take their shoes off, though. You don't want shoes in it, cuz then it'll get torn, damaged. Maybe you could open an Arctic Monkeys amusement park? Maybe. I hadn't thought of that. Probably we'd do a circus before we'd do a fairground. I'm not too keen on waltzers--you know, the ride where the cars spin around. They always make me sick. If you were a circus performer, what would you be? Juggler, with the ambition of trapeze artist. Cuz I feel like juggling's quite down in the ranks. ... But then an ambitious juggler, I think, probably is a good place to start. It always helps to have a goal. Yeah, give yourself something to aim for. Maybe you do a stint on the trapeze and then go back to jugglin' in your old age because it's less physically taxing. But then everyone in the circus will know, "Oh, it's Alex. A couple of years ago, if you had seen him up on the trapeze …" Matt Pais is the Metromix music and movies producer. Matt + Nick interview at V Festival: http://www.dose.ca/music/story.html?id=821...69-4e4ae577cc28
