Arctic Monkeys return is on as first 2018 festival date announced

An album announcement is reportedly imminent

(Rex Features)

The return of Arctic Monkeys is officially underway following the announcement of the band's first tour date in four years.

Firefly Music Festival is the first planned stop for the Sheffield rockers who will headline alongside Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and The Killers.

Fans have been awaiting confirmation of a new album for some time now, with speculation rife since frontman Alex Turner was photographed reunited with his bandmates in December 2016.

Arctic Monkeys' latest record, AM, became the band's fifth consecutive number one upon its release in September 2013.

Firefly Music Festival's seventh run - set up at the Woodlands in the US state of Delaware - will also see performances from Foster the People, MGMT and alt-J.

It's certain that the band will follow up this announcement with an album release date, as well as a string of UK and US tour dates imminently.

In 2016, Turner united with The Last Shadow Puppet's Miles Kane to tour their sophomore record, Everything You've Come to Expect.

You can find our ten year anniversary retrospectives of Arctic Monkeys second album here as well as a compilation of Turner's greatest lyrics.

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