Everyone knows Arctic Monkeys. In the lineage of British rock bands known the world over, their name slots into a family tree that includes the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and the five Oasis songs that made their way across the sea. That said, you’re not a computer or a library, so there’s a chance you’ve missed out or forgotten a certain breed of Monkeys tune. Like the Stones and the pot-smoking Beatles before them, Arctic Monkeys come in several flavors.

Across five (and soon to be six albums), the Sheffield group have grown into a formidable, stadium-conquering rock band. But where did they start? Essentially, the story is thus: the Monkeys as a small band in the north of England; the Monkeys releasing the fastest selling British debut album of all time; the Monkeys as men with long-hair and beards who get featured in the LA Times ahead of the release of their new album Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino.

If you’re reading this and you’re British, you might have some questions. For example: why did Alex Turner and drummer Matt Helders vacate the lovingly pudding-filled hills of Yorkshire and emigrate to the glistening yet cold concrete streets of Los Angeles? Or—_as has been asked time and time again—_what’s happened to Alex Turner’s accent? Here at Noisey we don’t have those answers. Or at least we don’t for the first question, and that’s only because we spoke to a linguist for the second.

What we do know, however, are the stages of the Arctic Monkeys career—those different flavors that have, over the years, melded together and made them the globally recognized band they are today. Maybe you’re 15 years old and have come across the Arctic Monkeys in their most recent AM phase and would like to delve into their back catalogue. Or perhaps you’re still hanging from 2007 and haven’t listened to anything past Favourite Worst Nightmare and don’t understand what the fuss is about. Whoever you are, we’ve got you. This is The Guide to Getting into Arctic Monkeys.

So You Want To Get Into: The “I’ll Kick Your Head In” But Still Be a Sweetheart About It B-Sides of Arctic Monkeys

Like all stories, it’s best to jump in at the beginning. In this case: the (probably?) cold winter of 2002. “Me and Cookey got guitars for Christmas that year” remembers Alex Turner in a 2005 interview with NME, referring to himself and guitarist Jamie Cook. “It got to March and I’d only learned a few chords but [Jamie] could already play all the Bond theme. I realized I had to step up my game.”