Switching to an old-school rock style, the British indie rock band enters new musical territory with positive results.

In 2006, Arctic Monkeys, a UK indie rock band, entered the mainstream music scene with their debut album “Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not” — which immediately became the fastest-selling debut album in UK chart history, according to BBC . Their post-punk revival musical style fit in with the rest of the punk-inspired pop bands, including Fall Out Boy, that dominated in the early 2000s. Their quick guitar jams and sharp lyrics appealed to the young, angsty generation and thus propelled the band to a well-deserved prominence in the music world.

Well, it’s now 2013. And it’s time for a change.

So far, the band has adapted well — not that they need anyone to tell them that, seeing as they basically explore different genres and styles with every new album. In “AM,” the band has ditched some of the fast punk and pop style that can be found in their earlier and most popular songs, such as “Mardy Bum” (2006) and “Fluorescent Adolescent” (2007). Instead, they have opted for a more serious, slow-strumming rock style that is reminiscent of Black Sabbath.

The lyrics, sung by lead vocalist and guitarist Alex Turner, are noticeably slower in pace to match with the steady guitar chords and bass lines. Throughout the album, Turner’s voice is in balance with the guitars and bass unlike the jumble of fast-paced lyrics and jams that were signature of the band’s earlier days. Ironically, the song “No.1 Party Anthem” features slow dance rhythms not at all suggestive of a party. The song, which is about a man who’s trying to project a bad boy image to attract a girl, is essentially a chillout, rather than something you would hear in a nightclub as the name would suggest.

In fact, the entire album is one long chillout session, with noteworthy songs like “Do I Wanna Know,” “R U Mine” and “Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?” (which already suggests what kind of vibe this song has).

But old-school rock isn’t the only style from which the band is taking note. While the band does retain some of its original pop style — how else are you going to keep your hipster youth audience? — one particular song, “Fireside,” has elements of the French hip hop band La Caution, especially from within their most famous song, “Thé à la Menthe.”

The start of the album might leave one skeptical about this group, thinking that it would be another so-called “hipster band” that churned out either kumbaya tunes or Bon Iver murmuring one-hit wonders. However, unafraid to branch out, Arctic Monkeys seems to have what it takes to continue making appearances –– but let’s see what happens in next seven years.