Arctic Monkeys frontman and The Last Shadow Puppets member Alex Turner has shared how crucial Leonard Cohen was to his songwriting.
The So Long, Marianne songwriter has been an influence on a broad range of musicians, from Nick Cave to Jarvis Cocker, but it appears the Arctic Monkeys frontman, too, has Cohen to thank for his work. Turner, as part of an EP project with The Last Shadow Puppets which features Miles Kane, released a cover of Cohen’s Is This What You Wanted. The cover of Cohen’s New Skin for the Old Ceremony track served as the lead single for the EP, and it highlights just one of the nods Turner has made to Cohen. The Favourite Worst Nightmare and The Car hitmaker would explain what effect Cohen had on his work, saying it was a talk the Death of a Ladies Man creator gave that pulled Turner into approaching his recent releases differently.
Turner said that Cohen was a huge influence on Arctic Monkeys’ Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino, and that the approach to his writing style was much different than anything the band had done before.
Turner said: “I suppose on the last Monkeys record, and even the record [The Last Shadow Puppets‘ Everything You’ve Come To Expect] I did just before this with Miles, there are songs that are about what they’re about, you know? Like Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High or whatever, it starts and ends with here
“Maybe that thing spills onto some of the other tracks or the tone of that, but I think I became less concerned on this album [with] compartmentalising every idea to the point where each song became this episode that starts and ends in three minutes. I feel like I allowed myself to spread these ideas across this while record, but make them all pull in the same direction.”
Part of allowing himself to spread the ideas out comes from Cohen and his style of writing, Turner confirmed. He added: “I think saw Leonard Cohen talking about writing and that idea if you pull out one thing from one his songs, you’re gonna be like, ‘What is he on about?’
“But in the context of everything, I feel like you know exactly where he’s coming from, especially with a writer like him – you’re right there with him as you listen to a song of his in its entirety or a record.
“Hearing him talk about that idea of pulling one thing out and it not making much sense is definitely something that spurred me on to approach this record in that way and not be so concerned with making the thing be about whatever it’s about.”
