Royal Blood — Back To The Water Below — Album Review
Alternative | Rock
Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Music
Royal Blood was one of those cases in which their debut album pretty much set them on the path of critical praise that they indulge in now. And for that reason, the Brighton-based rock duo need little introduction.
For once, I wasn’t that late to the party at all when it came to discovering that band, as many others around me were enjoying the discovery of Royal Blood’s self-titled debut album, released all the way back in 2014. With that being said, I’ve had a lot of years to listen to and enjoy the gritty sounds put out by this duo.
The very fact that the band only consisted of these two members really impressed me that first time around. However, as time went on, it became more and more clear that Royal Blood could only go so far with their sound. This became obvious quite quickly as their second album rolled in. Titled How Did We Get So Dark? and released in 2017, the band’s sophomore album brought forth the very same sound that was present in the debut album, albeit in a much more bland fashion. Not to mention that fans were very used to this sound at this moment in time.
It became clear that Royal Blood needed to switch up their styles somewhat to keep things interesting, and they certainly made a valiant effort to do so with their third album Typhoons, which was released in 2021. While this album certainly felt different to what the band had done before, many of the tracks on the album felt similar to one-another instead, making for a notion that Royal Blood have a knack for creating sounds that get very old, very fast. Nevertheless, Typhoons was still an enjoyable musical moment of 2021.
Just over two years later, we now arrive at Royal Blood’s fourth studio album, which they have given the name of Back To The Water Below.
I must admit, I wasn’t as excited towards this album upon its release as most others that have arrived this year. While the band ultimately released two teaser tracks prior to the arrival of Back To The Water Below, it was their first teaser, “Mountains At Midnight” which I used as my basis of what to expect from the album as a whole. What I felt from that single at the time, in a stylistic sense, was kind of a mish-mash of the sonic feel shared by the tracks on Typhoons, and their “classic” sound (though the musical framework of the track also felt reminiscent of Queens of the Stone Age as well).
And while “Mountains At Midnight” did grow on me ever-so-slightly when the album in full was released, the overall aesthetic of the record, much like the newest album from Queens of the Stone Age, felt like the bare-boned typical rock album that I simply just find uninteresting. And while Royal Blood tried to shake things up once more with the inclusion of piano keys in various tracks, there was still something blatantly missing from Royal Blood’s sound in order to make it as deep as the title suggests.
During the second or third run-through of Back To The Water Below, it finally hit me; Royal Blood NEED a bassist. As impressive as Royal Blood just being Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher are, introducing a bassist, or even just a third member would one-hundred percent be the best way to keep things refreshing going forward. There’s only so much sound you can explore with just guitar and drums, and I feel that this would greatly benefit Royal Blood, especially considering the stage they are at in their discography.
In short, while Back To The Water Below was an enjoyable listen in parts, the impact it leaves on the bands discography is light if anything at all. And going forward, I hope for the band to go even deeper than the water below.
Favourite Tracks: Shiner In The Dark | Tell Me When It’s Too Late | High Waters
Least Favourite Tracks: The Firing Line | How Many More Times
Warner Records
