Review Summary: Cut loose like an animal
For artists and listeners alike, the most fantastic thing about a debut album is the lack of expectation. The artist allowed greater creative freedom, the listener no reference for comparison.
On a sunny afternoon’s drive home, I thirst for a new listen. My streaming service of choice highlights
Royal Blood as a “new & exciting” release. Ok, let’s do it. Play. The drum intro of "Out of the Black" fills my car, exploding into the first verse. It sounds, objectively, huge. The vocals are slightly incendiary, and even though I don’t know the words, they are still easy to follow. Halfway through the 2nd track, I am undeniably digging this album because it
goddamn rocks. Catchy, acidic guitar riffs punctuated with harmonics and drumming that is never boring nor too busy. It’s got the foot-stomping energy of The Black Keys’
El Camino with the dark desert-rock groove of early Queens of the Stone Age, and it’s relentless about it.
This is really ***ing good. "Blood Hands" puts things on a slower burn, but "Little Monster" picks right back up with a fat riff and a chorus that I know all the words to by the second repetition.
About a minute into “Loose Change” I become a little confused, mainly what I’m listening to is probably the best White Stripes impression I’ve ever heard. Except that it’s better than most anything The White Stripes ever did. The tempo change about 1:30 into the track is well executed and turns what might’ve been an okay track into a great one. It’s around this point that I’m trying to determine what I like so much about this album (superb production aside), and I come to realize that the album has managed to stay fresh throughout its runtime thus far – every track has brought just enough of “something special” to hold my interest, but never wears out its welcome or ruins the gimmick. The record’s backend continues this precedent; "Ten Tonne Skeleton" makes me utterly unable to sit still with its simple but infectious pseudo-synth groove, and the album closes with the blues-fueled "Better Strangers".
Wow.
Going in with no expectations is a large part of what made my first listen of Royal Blood’s debut so special, but I think it’s also what made it so great musically. It’s very evident that these are songs the duo wanted to make, devoid of filler, solo wankery, or any other pretentious musicality of yore. Each track is a singular idea that is fleshed out, played, and concluded before becoming weary; it’s no surprise that almost every one runs under 3:30.
Freedom from assumption is simultaneously the most beautiful and the most tragic thing about
Royal Blood. The brand new group put out an album with the songwriting chops of an artist that’s been recording for a decade, yet in the face of their success will have an even tougher battle. Will their sophomore album be a rehash where critics blast them for being stale? Or will it be a tonal shift that divides their fan base and is given the age old adage of “not as good as their old stuff”?
