ROYAL BLOOD – CONCORDE 2, BRIGHTON 5.9.23 (5pm show + 7:30pm show)
Royal Blood 5pm show review by Richie Nice:
As a genuine stadium-filling act, Royal Blood needs little introduction, and being originally from Worthing, they are a shining example of a local band made good. After a brief spell in Australia with an early lineup, they settled on the current core personnel of Mike Kerr on bass and vocals and Ben Thatcher on drums, and spent most of 2013 in Brighton Electric Studios developing their act. Deals with Warner Music and management company Wildlife Entertainment followed. The idea of a bass-led duo making a massive full-range rock sound seemed to chime with the public imagination, and their eponymously titled 2014 release was the fastest selling debut album for many years.
Nearly a decade on, the band has released their fourth album, ‘Back To The Water Below’ on 1st September 2023. With the previous three all making number one in the UK charts, there’s an understandable enthusiasm to maintain that statistic. Established act or not, with the charts still weighted towards physical sales, that means a busy schedule of release-week shows for record shops. On the Tuesday after release they’re back in Brighton, with two out-store shows for Resident at the 650 capacity Concorde 2. For the fans this is a rare opportunity to catch their heroes in a relatively intimate setting, and with almost everyone buying a copy of the album to gain entry, it’s a healthy quantity of extra sales too.
It’s a hot and sunny afternoon, and Brighton seafront is particularly busy. I’m standing in a good-natured queue snaking around a labyrinth of tubular barriers in advance of the 5pm door time for the first of two shows. It’s worth arriving early to secure a good vantage point, and needless to say, both shows are fully sold out. Inside, Ben’s extensive drum kit in a sparkly white finish looks impressive on its own riser, house right. The stage setting is plain black with a Resident logo backdrop. Extensive effects units with many foot switches flank the microphone position, but there are no visible backline amps or wedge monitors. These days, the band utilises a touring keyboard player, Darren Watts, and his instruments are stacked on a stand towards the rear of the stage, house left. I notice he has two microphones on boom stands, presumably routed via different effects paths for convenience.
The background music comes to an abrupt halt, mid-song, at 6pm, and greeted by a loud and sustained cheer, the core duo takes the stage. They open with ‘Mountains At Midnight’, lead single from the current album, and it sounds enormous, the effects simultaneously rendering Mike’s four strings as growling deep lows and high driven guitar. He’s using his own signature model Fender Jaguar bass, in the orange and black of the band’s tiger logo, and his flying fingers are a sight to behold at close quarters. The drums are obviously a huge element too, and Ben, sporting his trademark baseball cap, is powerful and precise as he thunders around the kit. Flashes of bright white strobe illuminate the room, picking out a sea of raised arms and pointing fingers, and given that this is still fairly new material, there’s some impressive singing along by the people around me.
Keyboard player Darren is on for ‘Boilermaker’, from the third album. It’s bouncy and insistent, led by a bendy lead riff alternating with gruff bass during the verses. Darren adds a delicately oscillating accent, and some nice swoops of synth, along with backing vocals for the chantalong chorus, for which there is an enthusiastic take up amongst the crowd. Mike is out showboating on the bass bins, and the people around me are getting very excited indeed.
Next is the urgent chug of ‘Lights Out’, from 2017’s ‘How Did We Get So Dark?’ Ironically, the lights are anything but out, getting super busy with strobing flashes of red and white. It’s another riff-based piece with a huge chorus. The crowd chants even mimic the break of wailing lead sound, which is punctuated by beautifully tumbling drums.
‘Pull Me Through’, a recent single from the current album, brings a slight change of mood from the preceding rock assault. It’s a languid strut, led by chunky piano chords, with a ridiculously catchy melody line that the crowd are already familiar enough with to accompany en masse. Royal Blood may be primarily about bluster, but they sure can write a good tune.
The crowd has struck up a football-style chant of “Seagulls”, doubtless looking for some home-turf acknowledgement, but Mike is focussed on the task in hand. ‘Trouble’s Coming’, from ‘Typhoons’, is a stomping romp of electronic stabs with plenty of stops and nimble keyboard embellishments. Mike makes big gestures in the brief moments he’s not playing, and leans into the crowd for a lead break, much to the delight of the front rows.
I’ve been impressed by the audience’s excitement and enthusiasm thus far, but ‘Little Monster’, from the debut album, takes it up another level. Mike’s switched to a white Starcaster semi-hollow bass for the familiar riff, and there’s a massed choir of punters to bolster the chorus. There’s an utterly awesome instrumental section, with the bass flinging out gorgeous lead tones and Ben makes a brief foray out into the ecstatic crowd, before ushering in a reprise of the chorus with a blistering broadside of fills.
The “Seagulls” chant returns briefly before ‘Shiner In The Dark’, from the current album. It’s another cracking tune over a choppy rhythm of electronic stabs and a nicely repeated keyboard motif. The lead sound of the bass rings with a lovely howling sustain. For ‘Waves’, also from ‘Back To The Water Below’, Mike introduces an additional guitarist, Will Power, who supplements the rhythm on a red Telecaster. It’s a piano-led piece though, with expansive chords underpinning a massive sound and stadium vibe. Some people around me are using the lights on their mobile phones to replicate the now-discouraged cigarette-lighters-in-the-air effect. There’s a beautiful descending playout whose chord pattern reminds me of ‘All The Young Dudes’, and is a blissful highlight of the set for me.
‘Figure It Out’, from the debut album, is probably the band’s most famous song. Mike switches to a red Gretsch bass for the iconic riff, and Ben starts the number standing proudly atop the drum kit. A sliding procession of hammer-ons lead into the chorus, and it’s getting properly crazy out in the crowd, with a general mosh coalescing into a circle pit. The seismic conclusion is punctuated with screeching lead sounds and rumbling fills of impossibly fast triplets. It is the classic big rock show, scaled down to an intimate setting, and everyone seems to be having an absolute blast.
You’d reasonably think there wasn’t anywhere left to go after that, but there’s still ‘Out Of The Black’ in the locker. The staccato stabs of the main riff are accompanied by white strobes flashing in time with the stuttering rhythm. Mike’s back on the bass bins, with rays of light bursting behind him, and Ben is out from behind the kit, making like he wants to jump into the circle pit, though with another show coming imminently, he thinks better of it and returns to the kit to finish the number. The conclusion is a massive drum roll overlaid with swoops of effects, Mike’s bass held above his head. The duo come to the front of the stage to soak up some well deserved applause.
As we file slowly out of the venue, all funnelled through the front door , everyone is dripping with sweat and wearing huge grins of pleasure. Outside, the queue is forming for the second show, so I’ll hand over to Christian for his account of what goes down in that.
Royal Blood:
Mike Kerr – vocals, bass
Ben Thatcher -drums
Darren Watts – keyboards, backing vocals
First show setlist:
‘Mountains At Midnight’ (from ‘Back To The Water Below’ 2023)
‘Boilermaker’ (from ‘Typhoons’ 2021)
‘Lights Out’ (from ‘How Did We Get So Dark?’ 2017)
‘Pull Me Through’ (from ‘Back To The Water Below’ 2023)
‘Trouble’s Coming’ (from ‘Typhoons’ 2021)
‘Little Monster’ (from ‘Royal Blood’ 2014)
‘Shiner In The Dark’ (from ‘Back To The Water Below’ 2023)
‘Waves’ (from ‘Back To The Water Below’ 2023)
‘Figure It Out’ (from ‘Royal Blood’ 2014)
‘Out Of The Black’ (from ‘Royal Blood’ 2014)
Royal Blood 7:30pm show review by Christian Le Surf:
Once again, the lights cut out in the blink of an eye, leading to white flashing lights filling the Concorde 2 as Ben and Mike make their way back onto the stage for another round. The closer from the first set, ‘Out Of The Black’, now the opener to this set kicks off with a bang with an irregular and jerky rhythm, but an incredibly tight one! Mike seems to be keeping a calm posture, but still belting out these vocals so powerfully.
With the crowd chanting the song’s stadium-sized riff and Ben climbing into said crowd, just within this opening song, Royal Blood have been able to retain their energy from the previous show. The return of backing member Darren James on keys brings us to ‘Boilermaker’, a song that holds a stellar bass tone from Mike. To my ears, this song feels like Muse playing over a Primus groove, with its skipping groove and sensual vocal progressions… easily one of the best songs in the set.
Speaking of best songs in the set, my personal favourite, ‘Lights Out’ comes next, complete with Mike’s mechanical bass momentum and tight drum performances from Ben. Being on the side of the crowd this time around (I was dead in the middle during the first set), I witness a wave of jumping bodies and flailing arms with the occasionally steady phone on record, capturing the evening. Some shimmering and beautifully discordant piano opens ‘Pull Me Through’, a song that sits in a slower progression to the rest of the set so far and with a chorus melody that seems eerily similar to Destiny Child’s ‘I’m A Survivor’…? Nonetheless, this song demonstrates the duo’s tenacity and stamina balancing powerful hard-hitting ragers and softer, more progressive cuts. The power and intensity drives back up as we approach the song ‘Trouble’s Coming’; opening with some gritty sliding bass and a simple four-on-the-floor groove, the song gives me futuristic Franz Ferdinand vibes as it still remains oddly angular despite its slightly more simplistic quality.
The opener to their new ‘Back To The Water Below’ record, ‘Mountains At Midnight’ comes next, featuring the heaviest and dirtiest riffwork of the entire set. It’s also incredible to watch Ben play these fantastically intricate drum grooves and for them to still feel and sound so natural. It’s also by this point the moshing starts… I’m making sure I stay intact this time around! ‘Little Monster’ kicks off with an oceanic roar of noise and distortion before giving way to the audience overpowering Mike with their choir-like lyrical retorts.
Another strong moment in the form of the song ‘Waves’ brings us towards the last leg of the set. Somehow it doesn’t seem right watching Mike and Ben play with a conventionally full band as they now have an extra live member playing guitar just for this song… but for this song, it works! Another slower number, this track contains a wonderfully luscious chord progression that is jammed out for the last minute or so.
And finally, following the more pop-oriented melodies of ‘Shiner In The Dark’, comes the classic ‘Figure It Out’. Playing around with a more minimal and simplistic groove, the song’s tremendous progression and energy were enough to win everyone over, leading to the biggest mosh pit of the entire night!
The song quickly doubles in pace as Ben proceeds to switch to a near-blastbeat drum groove before final fills and riffs close the show. With the crowd eagerly wanting more, the sweltering Concorde 2 starts to empty with the odd superfan rushing around the back of the venue to meet their heroes. Despite the only real differences in the two sets being the band’s on-stage banter and the setlist order, Royal Blood were able to hold together a strong balance of momentum and stamina throughout the entire night; it’s incredible to see two lads from Worthing come this far in their careers!
Second show setlist:
‘Out Of The Black’
‘Boilermaker’
‘Lights Out’
‘Pull Me Through’
‘Trouble’s Coming’
‘Mountains At Midnight’
‘Little Monster’
‘Waves’
‘Shiner In The Dark’
‘Figure It Out‘
