Royal by name and rich by the nature of their bass and drum soundscape - Brighton-based duo Royal Blood are showing newbies to the music scene how it's done, despite still being in the early stages of band life themselves. For those of you new to their sound, Royal Blood can only be described as that which would result if Arctic Monkeys, Queens of the Stone Age, Drenge and The White Stripes were to form a super group. They're that good. The band caught the eye of Arctic Monkeys drummer Matt Helders earlier in the year, when the Sheffield drummer asked for a Royal Blood T-shirt a day prior to the Monkeys' headline Glastonbury gig. This caused plenty of panic for the group whose merchandise didn't even exist until Helders submitted a request.
Thankfully, singer/bassist Mike Kerr and drummer Ben Thatcher aren't ones to shy away from a challenge and twenty four hours later the drummer was seen sporting the first set of threads that was to become their official merchandise. Kerr later remarked to NME magazine "That melted our brains." Here's the deal with Royal Blood - they're brain-melting specialists. From the opening rumbles of 'Out Of The Black' it's clear we're onto something special. Royal Blood pile straight into a major tune blanketed by sleazy bass spins that will see listeners going berserk for their creeping, yet appealing menace. Relying on relatively little is a hard task to master, but the two-piece make full use of their limitations and send out hooky thrash rock tracks such as B-side 'Come On Over'.
Exuding sheer explosive energy, from a band that are drip-feeding fans with new material, Royal Blood have proven themselves to be ones to watch out for as they head for the big league and burst out of speakers near you soon. Violently thrilling to their core, we're excited to see where their sound takes them if this glimpse of anticipation is anything to go by.
Words Lauren Wade
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