It’s easy to forget English rock band Royal Blood is a duo. Featuring Ben Thatcher on drums and Mike Kerr on vocals and bass, the band’s sound at first glance seems much more complex than anything that could be achieved by two instruments, but close listening will reveal just that.
Their intense hard rock sound is distinguished by wild drums and frantic bass lines played with an octave pedal to make them sound like a distorted guitar. They occasionally feature other instruments like keyboards, but these two are the stars of the show.
Their newest album, “Back to the Water Below,” released Sept. 1, could be said to be mostly more of the same, but not in a bad way. Royal Blood have found their niche and are digging deeply into it, introducing new elements only when necessary.
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“Mountains At Midnight” begins the album in classic fashion. Drums and bass feedback open the tune before dropping into a heavy, high-octane bass/guitar line.
During the verses, this line becomes somewhat sparser, introducing muted chords between thudding bass hits. This allows the bright vocals some nice room to breathe and keeps the track from becoming too monotonous.
“Pull Me Through” plays the album’s first wild card, opening with harpsichord and drums which are later joined by a bassline that punctuates its thrumming low end with rhythmic lines in the higher range. The song features swing rhythm all the way through, giving it a more danceable quality.
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The keyboard sticks around for “The Firing Line,” which uses a harmonic progression that stands out among Royal Blood’s discography. It has a particular emotional quality that isn’t generally present in their compositions.
The use of piano chords during the bridge and chorus reflects this quality, as does the production, which is much softer and more balanced than a typical Royal Blood song’s raucous fury. It’s certainly still recognizable, but by no means is it par for the course.
“How Many More Times” employs a similar idiom, albeit to a lesser extent. The mellower production is readily audible, with a more relaxed tempo and quiet piano chords in the background.
However, the track simultaneously maintains the intensity Royal Blood is known for. The crunchy bass and busy drums make up the song’s foundation, being pulled to the forefront in the chorus.
The band returns to form for “High Waters,” with a solid, satisfying bass line and crashing drums. This track really highlights the rhythmic precision that underlies the powerful textures, with the chorus demonstrating how locked in Thatcher and Kerr are with each other.
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“There Goes My Cool” represents the greatest departure on the album, and perhaps in their entire discography. From the first note, the arrangement is surprisingly akin to The Beatles.
The chorus reintroduces the distorted bass sound to the piano and drum driven track. This evokes some of Royal Blood’s signature sound, but without it, it would be difficult to identify it as one of their songs.
“Waves” closes the album with a relative whisper. The piano and slow tempo return, fitting nicely into a wide, reverberating texture. The bass, typically heavily distorted and in-your-face, takes on a clean tone and falls to the background gradually becoming more intense as the tune progresses.
Fans of Royal Blood have come to expect a particular parlance from the duo. “Back to the Water Below” delivers on this expectation for the most part, and even when it tries something new, it does so with that hallmark Royal Blood flair.
