Arctic Monkeys/The Last Shadow Puppets

When the Arctic Monkeys topped the U.K. charts with the hammerhead hooks of "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor," it was as if they arrived on the scene as the next Oasis — a British export with the swagger and spot-on singles to bring the States to its knees. All thanks to the Internet, where the Monkeys turned a file-sharing fanbase on to the sun-stroked riffs of "A Certain Romance," the skittering drum'n'bass rhythms of "When the Sun Goes Down," and the galloping guitars of "Mardy Bum." The boys kept kicking out the jams, too, whether it was through the Last Shadow Puppets — the widescreen pop project of singer/guitarist Alex Turner — or the Monkeys' stellar sophomore album, Favourite Worst Nightmare.

Speaking of those two believe-the-hype releases, they pop up throughout our Next Steps alongside a handful of b-sides and fan favorites.

The honeyed, cheek-to-cheek harmonies of a slow-burning "Baby I'm Yours" seem like a random golden-oldies reference from one of England's hippest young acts — until you realize that frontman Alex Turner spends his free time projecting symphonic Wall of Sound pop onto the Last Shadow Puppets (the swooning strings of "Standing Next to Me" and "The Meeting Place," the lonesome cowboy stroll of "My Mistakes Were Made For You"). Well, that and David Bowie, who's covered in swingin'-'60s style throughout the sparkling grooves of "In the Heat of the Morning." Heard alongside such stunning 180s as "Temptation Greets You Like Your Naughty Friend" — an Arctic Monkeys cut with a mic-slaying guest spot from Dizzee Rascal — it's clear Turner's got enough tricks up his sleeve to keep the whole world guessing.

The Arctic Monkeys story reads like the carefully spun tale of a myth-raking publicist. Really, now — these guys formed a band because they were bored? And, four years later, they just happened to deliver the U.K.'s fastest-selling debut since Oasis' Definitely Maybe? Well, yeah. A "MySpace sensation" according to the more than 225,000 Brits who picked up Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not in its first week, the Monkeys are the sound of brash and bratty 20-somethings reared on the Beatles and Bowie as much as Bloc Party and Franz Ferdinand. In other words, they write perfect, guitar-guided pop songs, whether they're as deceptively simple as the brain-burrowing wordplay of "Fluorescent Adolescent" and the lawn-mower riffs of "Brianstorm" or as rich and unapologetically nostalgic as those of the Last Shadow Puppets, a side project that reveals the Phil Spector-ish visions of frontman Alex Turner and such collaborators as James Ford of Simian Mobile Disco and Arcade Fire arranger Owen Pallett.