The Age of the Understatement

The Age of the Understatement is the debut album by The Last Shadow Puppets, featuring Alex Turner of Arctic Monkeys, Miles Kane of The Rascals and James Ford of Simian Mobile Disco. It was released on 21 April 2008 in the UK, following the release of the title track as a single in the previous week.[6] It entered the UK Album Chart at No. 1 on 27 April 2008. The album was nominated for the 2008 Mercury Music Prize.[7]

The Age of the Understatement
Studio album by The Last Shadow Puppets
Released	15 April 2008
Recorded	August 2007[1]
Studio	Black Box, France RAK, London (track 4) British Grove, London (orchestra)
Genre	Symphonic pop[2][3] pop rock[4] baroque pop[5]
Length	35:10
Label	Domino
Producer	James Ford
The Last Shadow Puppets chronology
The Age of the Understatement (2008) Everything You've Come to Expect (2016)
Singles from The Age of the Understatement
"The Age of the Understatement" Released: 14 April 2008 "Standing Next to Me" Released: 7 July 2008 "My Mistakes Were Made for You" Released: 20 October 2008

Background and recording

The album was recorded in Black Box Studios, France, and RAK Studios in London, England. The duo claimed the album was influenced by the music of Scott Walker, Serge Gainsbourg's Histoire de Melody Nelson, The Electric Prunes' Mass in F Minor, and Ennio Morricone's The Good, the Bad and the Ugly soundtrack.[8]

Album art

The album art consists of a photo of a model named Gill photographed by Sam Haskins in 1962.[9]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	77/100[10]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[11]
The Guardian	[12]
Mojo	[13]
NME	8/10[14]
Pitchfork	7.7/10[2]
Q	[15]
Rolling Stone	[16]
Spin	[17]
Uncut	[18]

The Age of the Understatement received largely positive reviews from contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 77, based on 25 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[10]

Marc Hogan of Pitchfork gave the album a favorable review, stating, "The biggest difference between The Last Shadow Puppets and Turner's main gig is in the lyrics. Though less immediately noticeable than the majestic production, the change in the scale of Turner's songwriting is ultimately more profound." Hogan continues, calling the album "Turner's most impressive album-length statement yet, one that strives, musically and lyrically, for the epic grandeur of an era before GarageBand or MySpace, and avoids lapsing into pretentiousness by dint of its own headlong enthusiasm."[2]

Commercial performance

The album entered the UK album chart at No. 1 on its release,[19] selling 51,186 copies in the first week. It has sold around 300,000 copies in the UK as of April 2016.[20] In the US, it debuted on the Billboard 200 at No. 111,[21] and No. 9 on Independent Albums.[22] It has sold 51,000 copies in the US as of March 2016.[23]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Alex Turner and Miles Kane.

No.	Title	Lead vocals	Length
1.	"The Age of the Understatement"	Kane and Turner	3:07
2.	"Standing Next to Me"	Kane with Turner	2:18
3.	"Calm Like You"	Turner	2:26
4.	"Separate and Ever Deadly"	Kane and Turner	2:38
5.	"The Chamber"	Turner with Kane	2:37
6.	"Only the Truth"	Kane and Turner	2:44
7.	"My Mistakes Were Made for You"	Turner	3:04
8.	"Black Plant"	Turner with Kane	3:59
9.	"I Don't Like You Anymore"	Kane and Turner	3:05
10.	"In My Room"	Kane and Turner	2:29
11.	"Meeting Place"	Kane and Turner	3:55
12.	"Time Has Come Again"	Turner	2:22
Total length:			35:10

Different versions of the album list the last two tracks in a different manner. Catalog number WIGCD208 lists track No. 11 and No. 12 as "The Meeting Place" and "Time Has Come Again" respectively while catalog number WIGCD208S lists them as "Meeting Place" and "The Time Has Come Again".

Personnel

The Last Shadow Puppets

• Alex Turner
• Miles Kane
• James Ford

Production

• James Ford – production, mixing
• Jimmy Robertson – engineering
• Steve McGlaughlin – orchestra recording
• Richard Woodcraft – mixing

Orchestrations

• Owen Pallett – arrangement and conducting
• London Metropolitan Orchestra – performance

Artwork

• Sam Haskins – front cover photography
• Deidre O' Callahan – portrait photography
• Matthew Cooper – design
• Jason Evans – design assistance ("with thanks")

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (2008) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[24] 30 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[25] 4 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[26] 39 Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[27] 23 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[28] 12 French Albums (SNEP)[29] 18 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[30] 42 Italian Albums (FIMI)[31] 56 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[32] 23 Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[33] 66 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[34] 34 UK Albums (OCC)[35] 1 US Billboard 200[36] 111 US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[37] 1 US Independent Albums (Billboard)[38] 9 US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[39] 16

Year-end charts Chart (2008) Position Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[40] 62 French Albums (SNEP)[41] 102 UK Albums (OCC)[42] 70 Certifications Region Certification Certified units/sales United Kingdom (BPI)[43] Platinum 300,000[20]

Release history

Region	Date	Label	Format	Catalog
Japan[44]	15 April 2008	Hostess	CD	HSE-10065
Germany[45]	18 April 2008	Domino Records	CD
United Kingdom[46]	21 April 2008	Domino Records	CD	WIGCD2008
			LP	WIGLP208
Australia[47]	21 April 2008	EMI Music Australia	CD
Europe[48]	25 April 2008		CD	WIGCD208
United States[49]	6 May 2008	Domino Records	CD	CDNO181
Brazil	25 August 2008	EMI Music Brazil	CD

References

1. Michaels, Sean (20 February 2008). "Alex Turner ready with new side project album". guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 25 February 2008.
2. Hogan, Marc (22 April 2008). "The Last Shadow Puppets: The Age of the Understatement". Pitchfork. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
3. Phares, Heather. "The Age of the Understatement – The Last Shadow Puppets". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
4. "The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age of the Understatement". FIP. May 2008. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
5. Anderson, Stacey (26 March 2016). "The Last Shadow Puppets". Interview. Retrieved 31 May 2018. an ambitious effort that melded '60s rock, agile strings, and baroque pop
6. Greenwood, Phoebe (20 February 2008). "Arctic Monkey's Alex Turner christens new collaboration The Last Shadow Puppets". Times Online. Retrieved 25 February 2008.
7. "Home - Bearded Magazine: The Home of Independent Music". Archived from the original on 12 March 2012.
8. The Last Shadow Puppets Yahoo Music Interview. 31 March 2016 – via YouTube.
9. "Five Girls (1962)". Photography. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
10. "Reviews for The Age of the Understatement by The Last Shadow Puppets". Metacritic. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
11. Divola, Barry (9 May 2008). "The Age of the Understatement". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
12. Petridis, Alexis (18 April 2008). "The Last Shadow Puppets, The Age of the Understatement". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
13. "The Last Shadow Puppets: The Age of the Understatement". Mojo (174): 100. May 2008.
14. "The Last Shadow Puppets: The Age of the Understatement". NME. 18 April 2008. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
15. "The Last Shadow Puppets: The Age of the Understatement". Q (262): 125. May 2008.
16. Rosen, Jody (15 May 2008). "The Age of the Understatement : The Last Shadow Puppets". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 1 May 2008. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
17. Wood, Mikael (May 2008). "Cue the Strings". Spin. 24 (5): 100. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
18. Moody, Paul (16 April 2008). "The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement". Uncut. Archived from the original on 13 May 2008. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
19. Sexton, Paul (28 April 2008). "Last Shadow Puppets, Madonna Lead U.K. Charts". Billboard.
20. Jones, Alan (8 April 2016). "Official Charts Analysis: Everything You've Come To Expect tops the Official Albums Chart". Music Week. Intent Media. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
21. "Billboard 200". Billboard. 25 May 2008.
22. "Independent Albums". Billboard. 25 May 2008.
23. "Upcoming Releases". Hits Daily Double. HITS Digital Ventures. Archived from the original on 30 March 2016.
24. "Australiancharts.com – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement". Hung Medien.
25. "Ultratop.be – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
26. "Ultratop.be – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement" (in French). Hung Medien.
27. "Danishcharts.dk – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement". Hung Medien.
28. "Dutchcharts.nl – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
29. "Lescharts.com – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement". Hung Medien.
30. "Officialcharts.de – Top 100 Longplay". GfK Entertainment Charts.
31. "Italiancharts.com – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement". Hung Medien.
32. "Norwegiancharts.com – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement". Hung Medien.
33. "Spanishcharts.com – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement". Hung Medien.
34. "Swedishcharts.com – The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement". Hung Medien.
35. "Last Shadow Puppets | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart.
36. "The Last Shadow Puppets Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
37. "The Last Shadow Puppets Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard.
38. "The Last Shadow Puppets Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard.
39. "The Last Shadow Puppets Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard.
40. "Jaaroverzichten 2008". Ultratop. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
41. "Top de l'année Top Albums 2008" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
42. "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2008". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
43. "British album certifications – Arctic Monkeys – The Age of the Understatement". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type The Age of the Understatement in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
44. "The Age of the Understatement". EIL.com. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
45. "The Age of the Understatement". Amazon.de. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
46. "The Age of the Understatement". Domino UK. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
47. "The Age of the Understatement". Herald Sun HiT. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
48. "The Age of the Understatement". Amazon.fr. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
49. "The Age of the Understatement". Domino USA. Retrieved 15 June 2008.