Count The Hives among Arctic Monkeys’ legions of fans. In a new interview with NME, singer Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist shouted out the English rockers as “the only good really popular band” around these days.
“I think the Arctic Monkeys are fucking amazing,” Almqvist said. “Like, that’s the only good really popular band, and that’s not easy to do.”
The singer’s praise comes after The Hives supported Arctic Monkeys on a recent tour of the UK, marking a full circle moment for the bands; Almqvist revealed that the English rockers were inspired by his band and The Strokes in their early days as a group, and the two previously toured together a decade ago, before the Hives went on hiatus. “It’s a really great tour to be on,” he said. Watch the band’s new NME interview below; their comments regarding Arctic Monkeys begin around the 2:30 mark.
The Hives aren’t the only artists to sing Arctic Monkeys’ praises these days. Damon Albarn recently lauded Alex Turner and company as “the last great guitar band.”
Next month, Arctic Monkeys will head Stateside for a run of shows in support of their new album The Car (get tickets here). The Hives have headlining shows of their own scattered across the globe for the rest of 2023 in support of their own new LP, The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons. Find tickets to their upcoming gigs here.