Noel Gallagher has absolutely no idea what to think of the new Arctic Monkeys album

Nearly a week has passed since we first had a chance to listen to the sixth Arctic Monkeys album, Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, and there’s barely a single person who doesn’t have some opinions to share.

It’s either a brilliant change of direction or an unwelcome deviation from what made the band so popular to begin with. It’s either fantastically layered, or full of songs that blend into one another.

At the same time, when we talk about people with opinions on the British music scene, the Gallagher brothers are often at the front of the queue to share everything they think about every single facet of the industry.

With that in mind, Noel Gallagher probably had some firm and controversial opinions about Tranquility Base, right? Actually, his response isn’t what you might have anticipated.

Read more: It looks like Liam and Noel Gallagher are finally mates again

Gallagher appeared on Radio X to discuss the album, and was uncharacteristically noncommittal.

“I’ve just been listening to it in the car today on the way here, and I don’t know what to make of it,”

“You’d expect a few choruses [from an Arctic Monkeys record] and there isn’t any of them.”

Was this him being kind about an album he couldn’t get into, or was he genuinely at a loss to explain his response to it?

Arctic Monkeys announced a series of high-profile tour dates before the release of the album, which was their first in more than four years.

They will headline Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona in June, as well as playing at other festivals across Europe and North America, while they have also announced a number of (mostly sold-out) dates.

Their tour will begin on 22 May at Columbiahalle in Berlin, with four homecoming dates in Sheffield and multiple North American dates before the end of the year.

(Images: Getty)