"Four Out of Five" is a song by English
indie rock
Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
band
Arctic Monkeys
Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. The group consists of Alex Turner (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Jamie Cook (guitar, keyboards), Nick O'Malley (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Matt Helders (drums, back ...
. It was released as the lead single from their sixth studio album, ''
Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino
''Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino'' is the sixth studio album by English rock band Arctic Monkeys, released on 11 May 2018 by Domino Recording Company. It was written by band frontman Alex Turner in 2016 on a Steinway Vertegrand piano in his ...
'' (2018), on 13 May 2018, with an accompanying music video.
Composition and lyrics
Musically "Four Out of Five" has been described as
glam rock
Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was performed by musicians who wore outrageous costumes, makeup, and hairstyles, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists drew on diver ...
,
being compared to the works of
David Bowie
David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
.
The song is one of few on the album to feature a traditional chorus,
and has been likened to the band's ''
Suck It and See'' as well as ''
Everything You've Come to Expect
''Everything You've Come to Expect'' is the second album by English supergroup The Last Shadow Puppets, released on 1 April 2016 by Domino Recording Company. It was written by band co-frontmen Alex Turner and Miles Kane in 2015. It was produc ...
'' by Turner's side-project
The Last Shadow Puppets
The Last Shadow Puppets are an English supergroup consisting of Alex Turner (Arctic Monkeys), Miles Kane ( The Rascals, solo artist), James Ford (Simian, Simian Mobile Disco, music producer), and Zach Dawes ( Mini Mansions). The band releas ...
.
The track has also been compared to stylistic subversions by
King Crimson
King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...
,
Jim O'Rourke and
Billy Joel
William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, pianist and songwriter. Commonly nicknamed the "Piano Man (song), Piano Man" after his album and signature song of the same name, he has led a commercially successful career as a solo ...
, "stomping with an eerie, psychedelic whimsy that seems to come naturally".
The song's absurdist lyrics describe a
taqueria
A taco stand or taquería is a food stall, food cart or restaurant that specializes in tacos and other Mexican dishes. The food is typically prepared quickly and tends to be inexpensive. Many various ingredients may be used, and various taco s ...
on the roof of the album's titular hotel that has been ironically receiving "rave reviews, four stars out of five".
In an interview with
Zane Lowe
Alexander Zane Reid Lowe (born 7 August 1973) is a New Zealand radio DJ, live DJ, record producer, and television presenter.
After an early career in music creation, production and DJing, he moved to the UK in 1997. He came to prominence thro ...
for
Beats 1, Alex Turner explained the track's ironic jokes are about critics who "never give a perfect 100".
Thematically the song alludes to a variety of topics including war, natural disasters, space colonisation, and gentrification. The song's narrator has been described as "the self-aggrandizing narcissist anticipating a big reaction, now tasked with filling up the silence", with the "mocking and self-aware" Turner's vocals "sung in a grizzly, demonic croon that's vaguely unstable, like he's either about to break into tears or hysterical laughter".
Music video
The music video was directed by Ben Chappell and Aaron Brown and was released on 13 May 2018 through the band's official
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
account.
The video features Alex Turner taking up the directorial chair and channeling several film influences, producing "video lifestyle packages" seemingly for the Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino. Among the packages being filmed, an alternative version of Turner without a beard is seen traversing tunnels, as well as the band playing at a country estate and assistants dressed in red overalls dressing the sets and taming a horse. Many of the scenes and shots were highly inspired by
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...
movies. The video was filmed at
Castle Howard
Castle Howard is a stately home in North Yorkshire, England, within the civil parish of Henderskelfe, located north of York. It is a private residence and has been the home of the Carlisle branch of the Howard family for more than 300 years ...
in the band's native county of
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
with the underground scenes being filmed at
Munich Marienplatz station in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
, Germany.
Critical reception
Sam Sodomsky of ''
Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...
'' praised the track, referring to it as "in a peculiar spot as both ''
Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino's'' most immediate song and one of its oddest". He described the track as one of the album's highlights, in which its "risks build to something extraordinary". He noted that the track was "an escape, an invitation to forget everything you know about this wildly popular band and take them on their own terms", comparing it positively to less successful "rock reinventions" by
Arcade Fire
Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band's current touring line-up also includes former core member S ...
and
Jack White
John Anthony White (; born July 9, 1975), commonly known as Jack White, is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the duo the White Stripes. White has enjoyed consistent critical and popular success and is widely c ...
, with the track instead displaying "a striking, recharged imagination". He concludes that the track "makes the future – as bleak as it may be – seem a lot more fun".
Track listing
Personnel
Credits adapted from ''Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino'' liner notes.
*
Alex Turner
Alexander David Turner (born 6 January 1986) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is well known as the frontman and principal songwriter of the rock band Arctic Monkeys, with whom he has released seven albums. He ...
– vocals, backing vocals, piano, bass, organ, guitar, acoustic guitar
*
Jamie Cook
Jamie Robert Cook (born 8 July 1985) is an English guitarist and songwriter. He is best known as the guitarist and a founding member of the indie rock band Arctic Monkeys, with whom he has recorded seven studio albums.
Arctic Monkeys
Jamie Coo ...
– guitar
*
Tom Rowley – electric guitar / solo
*
Matt Helders
Matthew Helders (born 7 May 1986) is an English drummer, vocalist and songwriter. He is best known as a founding member of the indie rock band Arctic Monkeys, with whom he has recorded seven studio albums.
In 2015, Helders collaborated with Ig ...
– drums
*Loren Humphrey – drums
*
James Righton
James Nicholas Righton (born 25 August 1983) is a British musician. As well as singing, he was the keyboard-player of the London-based new rave band Klaxons, which disbanded in 2015. In March 2016, Righton announced his new project Shock Mac ...
–
Wurlitzer
The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...
*
Josephine Stephenson – piano
*
James Ford – percussion, synthesiser,
Orchestron
The Vako Orchestron is a keyboard instrument made in the 1970s, that produces its sound through electronic amplification of sounds pre-recorded on an optical disc. It is the professional version of the Mattel Optigan, an earlier and lower-priced ...
, acoustic guitar, rotary timpani
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
References
{{authority control
2018 songs
2018 singles
Arctic Monkeys songs
Domino Recording Company singles
Songs written by Alex Turner (musician)
Glam rock songs