From Sheffield's underground clubs to world-renowned stages, the Arctic Monkeys have been on a journey as unpredictable as their melodies. A journey that, for now, has found its pause in Vancouver, one of the final stops on their North American tour for The Car. As the band carved through their setlist like a sculptor brings form to clay, the Pacific Coliseum reverberated with a fervor that transcended mere fandom. This was a pilgrimage.
The anticipation reached critical mass as the opening chords of "Sculptures of Anything Goes" filled the Coliseum, which once hosted events of the 2010 Winter Olympics but now served a different kind of spectacle. Fontaines D.C., the evening’s gifted opening act, had already set a high bar. But as the lyrics of the new album’s tracks mixed with classics like "Brianstorm" and "Teddy Picker," a question lingered: How does a band sustain its creative voltage over decades? Tonight, in Vancouver, that question disintegrated in the sheer joy of the moment.
A recent feature of their repertoire, “Body Paint,” came to life with an extended outro that seemed to reach into the furthest corners of the venue. Not to be overshadowed, "Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino" was a poetic interlude, a stark contrast to the crowd-pleasing "Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?" The Arctic Monkeys have grown; they are no longer the band that told you how good you'd look on the dancefloor. They are the band that asks you to ponder the darker facets of fame, the transience of life, and the deceptive reflections in a mirrorball.
Having traveled a path that began in Rio de Janeiro, navigated through arenas and festivals from Australia to London, and will soon conclude in Inglewood, California, this North American segment comes as a significant chapter for the band. With only a handful of cities left—Portland, San Francisco, Sacramento, and Inglewood—the Vancouver performance felt like a penultimate act, a culmination of miles traveled, and a warm-up for the epilogue.
The live debut of "Hello You" during the encore carried an uncanny atmosphere; it was a letter from the future, an ode to what's next. The show culminated in "R U Mine?"—a sonorous inquiry that reverberated far beyond the Pacific Coliseum’s walls, leaving us all to wonder: what are we really searching for when the final chord fades away?
Captured both visually and emotionally, this wasn't just another concert; it was a declaration. A declaration that the Arctic Monkeys have both found and questioned their place in the universe. As they take their final bows of the North American tour, they leave behind a memory in Vancouver—a city now entwined in the tapestry of their ever-evolving story. It's hard not to ponder what kind of legacy you're building when you're part of something larger than life.
So, as the house lights come on and you find yourself exiting the venue, you might just catch yourself asking: What will be the soundtrack to your own indefinable journey?
More photos from the night below:
