Arctic Monkeys are from Sheffield, UK, in Northern England. They built a following in 2004 through online file sharing and distribution of their demo tapes but refused to sign a record contract with any label because they cherished their independence. When they finally signed with Domino Records, it was because of the "do it yourself" attitude of founder, Lawrence Bell, who ran the label from his own house. Their first single with Domino was "I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor."
They were all teenagers when they formed the band in 2002. Alex Turner told The BBC about the origins: "We all got guitars for Christmas and started playing in my garage that summer, rehearsed there and in a warehouse for a bit for about a year."
Their first album, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, became the fastest selling debut in UK history, earning them an entry in the Guinness Book Of World Records. They beat out Definitely, Maybe by Oasis by selling 363,735 copies in the first week and 113,000 on the first day. About a month later, the album was released in the US and opened at #24 on the albums chart, one of the best debuts ever by a band on an independent record label.
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