Royal Blood at Brixton Academy

Rock duo Royal Blood celebrate the tenth anniversary of their 2014 debut self-titled album with a packed-out date at Brixton Academy. Catapulting themselves onto the scene with a project replete with thunderous drums and slick guitar riffs, they proved the enduring commercial appeal of a stripped-back yet heavy-hitting sound.

Out of the Black immediately engages the audience with a brooding extended introduction. Drummer Ben Thatcher parts the crowd, preparing them for the first of many mosh pits to spawn throughout the night. Drums and guitar meld into a throbbing punch, a potent combination that easily fills the 5,000-capacity hall.

Purple-tinted fog floods the stage during Figure It Out; by this point, the crowd is fully responsive to the push and pull of Royal Blood’s live arrangements. A raucous outro finally allows the band to fully cut loose. Ultraviolet flares punctuate Ten Tonne Skeleton’s howling guitar breaks.

Kerr and Thatcher are flanked by walls of lights reaching almost double their height. The intricately arranged light show provides extra emphasis to the key moments of the set, adding a much-needed boost to moments that become predictable as the night proceeds. The band knows their audience however; their style relishes in cathartic headbanging choruses and extended instrumentals as opposed to unexpected twists.

Their excellently produced no-frills debut transfers well into a live setting. It’s the kind of rock that lacks extended solos, instead relying on tight riffs, restrained and repeated to maximise their impact. You could almost call it bluesy if it weren’t for the painstaking orchestration of their live show which leaves little room for improvisation

Having completed a full run-through of their debut, Royal Blood move onto material from 2021’s Typhoons and 2023’s Back to the Water Below. Swung rhythms, extra background textures and a supplemental keyboard provide necessary respite from what is starting to sound hollow. Indeed, the narrow sonic box they have placed themselves in leads to an occasional sense of déjà vu: “Did I just hear that?”

The embellishments to their recent material supply some distinction between the tracks. A dramatic piano intro lends more weight to the inevitable wall of distortion heralding Pull Me Through’s chorus while a gothic organ swirls beneath Boilermaker.

Royal Blood have gradually furnished their songwriting with extra sonic diversity, yet remain rooted in their tried-and-tested method. Brixton’s response demonstrates an enduring passion for this approach, and the band certainly delivered a vigorous justification.

Ben Browning
Photos: Nick Bennett

For further information and future events visit Royal Blood’s website here.

Watch the video for the single Shiner in the Dark here: