Big set, big sound: Arctic Monkeys bound for the big time

Monkeys?

More like 500-pound gorillas.

Arctic Monkeys opened with a wham of a song Saturday night at the Paramount, filling the place with the white-hot intensity of the slamming "This House Is A Circus."

And the young lads from the UK stayed at that bracing level of high-powered energy, intricate interplay and searing lyrics through an impressive 15-song set. The big crowd matched them in intensity, dancing wildly and breaking out in frequent moshing and crowd-surfing.

Last time the Monkeys played here, in March 2006, it was in the close confines of the Crocodile Cafe. Their finely honed musicianship, tight arrangements, smart lyrics and authority onstage, especially on the part of lead singer Alex Turner, were impressive then.

Now it's apparent that Arctic Monkeys had bigger plans. They've developed into an arena act, with a sound and show much too big for nightclubs. Sometimes the elaborate lighting effects were almost too big for the Paramount, but all the busy brightness never distracted from the outstanding music and performances.

It was great to see them in the Paramount — even better than it would have been at the twice-as-big WaMu Theater, the original site of the concert — for the close-up view and the perfect sound. But it's unlikely they'll ever play a theater here again, because the Arctic Monkeys are going to be huge.

The set included all the best songs from their two albums, some more obscure songs from singles and EPs, and one new song. The lively crowd took over the line "kick you out, kick you out!" during "Fake Tales of San Francisco," bounced to "Dancing Shoes," moshed to "If You Were There, Beware" and went nuts over an extended version of the breakthrough hit, "I Bet You Look Good On the Dancefloor."

The new song, "Nettles," with its references to lonely limousines and pitfalls of the entertainment business, sounded like a Turner head-check, perhaps telling himself to beware the perils of stardom. Like all his lyrics, it was smart and intriguing.

A young, energetic, earnest five-piece called Voxtrot, the kind of bar-band the Monkeys have long since transcended, opened.

Patrick MacDonald: 206-464-2312, pmacdonald@seattletimes.com