If only the music weren't so thrilling, there would probably be a serious backlash afoot. The follow-up single, "When the Sun Goes Down," also went to No. Record executives struggled to keep up Domino Records eventually signed the band and released a single, "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor," which topped the British charts. Hype isn't really the right word to describe the Arctic Monkeys phenomenon, which began with sold-out local gigs and homemade CD's passed from old fans to new ones. "My granddad said to me, 'I think you've overdoon it,' " he said, acknowledging with his Yorkshire pronunciation the huge fuss about the little band. Turner seemed unusually self-aware but not at all worried as he sat backstage at the Carling Academy Glasgow before playing yet another sold-out show. It sold over 360,000 copies in the last week, making it the fastest-selling debut album in British history.īut despite this whirlwind, Mr. 5 on a recent list of the greatest British albums ever. The British music magazine NME ranked it at No. The debut Arctic Monkeys album, "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" (Domino), has been instantly and accurately hailed as a modern classic, even though it was only released a week ago. He is Alex Turner of the Arctic Monkeys, a scrappy and brilliant group from Yorkshire that is currently awash in hyperbolic praise. And on Friday night he could be found in a grotty little room in Glasgow, talking about his grandfather. 29 He is one of the biggest rock stars in Britain, leader of one of the most exciting bands on the planet.