Four Out of Five

"Four Out of Five"
Promotional CD single cover art
Single by Arctic Monkeys
from the album Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino
Released13 May 2018 (2018-05-13)
Recorded2017–2018
Length5:12
LabelDomino
Songwriter(s)Alex Turner
Producer(s)
Arctic Monkeys singles chronology
"Snap Out of It"
(2014) 		"Four Out of Five"
(2018) 		"Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino"
(2018)
Audio sample
Music video
"Four Out of Five" on YouTube

"Four Out of Five" is a song by English indie rock band Arctic Monkeys. It was released as the lead single from their sixth studio album, Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino (2018), on 13 May 2018, with an accompanying music video.[1][2]

Composition and lyrics

Musically "Four Out of Five" has been described as glam rock,[3] being compared to the works of David Bowie.[4] The song is one of few on the album to feature a traditional chorus,[3] and has been likened to the band's Suck It and See as well as Everything You've Come to Expect by Turner's side-project The Last Shadow Puppets.[5] The track has also been compared to stylistic subversions by King Crimson, Jim O'Rourke and Billy Joel, "stomping with an eerie, psychedelic whimsy that seems to come naturally".[6]

The song's absurdist lyrics describe a taqueria on the roof of the album's titular hotel that has been ironically receiving "rave reviews, four stars out of five".[6][7] In an interview with Zane Lowe for Beats 1, Alex Turner explained the track's ironic jokes are about critics who "never give a perfect 100".[8] 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".[6]

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 account.[1] 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 movies. The video was filmed at Castle Howard in the band's native county of Yorkshire[9] with the underground scenes being filmed at Munich Marienplatz station in Munich, Germany.

Critical reception

Sam Sodomsky of Pitchfork 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 and Jack White, 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".[6]

Track listing

Promotional CD single (Domino RUG942CDP)[10]
No.TitleLength
1."Four Out of Five" (edit)4:25
2."Four Out of Five" (album version)5:12

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino liner notes.[11]

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[30] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date Format Label Catalogue no.
Various 13 May 2018 Contemporary hit radio Domino RUG942CDP[10]

References

  1. ^ a b Kaye, Ben (14 May 2018). "Arctic Monkeys share video for "Four Out of Five": Watch". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  2. ^ Stolworthy, Jacob. "Arctic Monkeys release surreal new music video for first Tranquility Base single". The Independent. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Arctic Monkeys - Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino". Clash. 11 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  4. ^ "Article". pbs.twimg.com.
  5. ^ Smith, Thomas (21 May 2018). "Arctic Monkeys – 'Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino' album review". NME. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  6. ^ a b c d Sodomsky, Sam (11 May 2018). ""Four Out of Five" by Arctic Monkeys Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  7. ^ Daly, Rhian (11 May 2018). "The most brilliant and surprising lyrics on Arctic Monkeys' 'Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino'". NME. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  8. ^ "Alex Turner: The Making of 'Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino' [CLIP] - Beats 1 - Apple Music". YouTube. 11 May 2018. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  9. ^ Moore, Sam (14 May 2018). "Arctic Monkeys' eccentric new video for Four Out Of Five is quite the trip". Metro. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  10. ^ a b "Four Out of Five" (rear cover). Arctic Monkeys. London: Domino Recording Company. 2018. RUG942CDP.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. ^ Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino (booklet). Arctic Monkeys. London: Domino Recording Company. 2018. WIGLP339.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ^ "ARIA Chart Watch #473". auspOp. 19 May 2018. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  13. ^ "Arctic Monkeys – Four Out of Five" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  14. ^ "Arctic Monkeys – Four Out of Five" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  15. ^ "Arctic Monkeys Chart History (Canada Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  16. ^ "TOPPLISTINN 23. JUNI 2018". RÚV. Archived from the original on 8 March 2015. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  17. ^ "IRMA – Irish Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  18. ^ "Netherlands Single Tip Chart - May 19, 2018". Mega Charts. 19 May 2018. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  19. ^ "NZ Heatseeker Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 21 May 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  20. ^ "Arctic Monkeys – Four Out of Five". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  21. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  22. ^ "Top 100 Canciones – Semana 20: del 11.05.2018 al 17.05.2018" (PDF) (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 23 May 2018.
  23. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  24. ^ "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  25. ^ "Official Singles Sales Chart Top 100". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  26. ^ "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  27. ^ "Arctic Monkeys Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  28. ^ "Arctic Monkeys Chart History (Rock Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  29. ^ "Adult Alternative Songs: Year End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved 12 December 2018.
  30. ^ "British single certifications – Arctic Monkeys – Four Out of Five". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 24 July 2020.