With Mike Kerr on vocals and bass and Ben Thatcher on drums, Royal Blood’s self-titled debut isn’t any less than we expected. They’re possibly the best new band to have come out of the past year. Why else would such a young band’s debut reach number 1 in the album charts upon its release. Its heavy, bitey rock with lyrics to match, and totally mosh pit worthy.
The band already have a huge fan following, having supported Arctic Monkeys during their London gigs this year. If you’re already one of those fans of the band you’ll have heard a few singles from the album. ‘Out of the Black’, ‘Come On Over’ and fast-paced track ‘Figure it Out’ are the trio introduction on the record, big songs for a big album.
‘You Can Be So Cruel’ follows, a somewhat lighter yet feisty taste to what they have to offer. ‘Blood Hands’ is one of my favourite tracks of the album. It’s a deeper, well vocalised head-banger and seems more derived from their influences, the likes of Led Zeppelin. Royal Blood are the heavier, long lost cousins of Band of Skulls with added essences of Queens of the Stone Age and the teardrops of Jack White.
Previous single ‘Little Monster’ hits straight away with the raunchy bass guitar and punching drums, dumbing down briefly four times with Fatboy Slim-esque vocals before the song hits with Michael’s belting voice, ‘run little monster before you know who I am’, that’s when the track wins you over big time. The fact those guitar riffs are from a bass guitar is almost as mind boggling as the duo’s talent.
The next track on the album ‘Loose Change’ seems like a calmer point on the album, at first, ‘Cause all that glitters is gold till the glitter gets sold and the money don’t fold’. Subtle vocals teamed with stepped back instrumentals until half way through, when it reaches a pace only Pendulum would have reached. They’ve shown they’re the jack of all trades, whether its slow or fast paced they’ve ticked those boxes and with a big tick at that.
‘Careless’ is next and we’re back at a somewhat mellow stage in the album, no surprises on this track though. Its the calm before the storm of ‘Ten Tonne Skeleton’, another one of my favourites from the album. With its instantly recognisable sound and steady beat next to the yet again catchy vocals, it creates another truly great track that is simultaneously just as great live. They do say two heads are better than one.
The finale of the record is ‘Better Strangers’, a riff infused melody that just makes you want to put the album on repeat again. Yep, its one of those records.
You can download the album from iTunes or order the CD/Vinyl from Amazon here
Listen to ‘Little Monster’ below
