Whispering World
Minus
Blue
No Good
I think that was the set list. There may have been one more song at the end, but regardless it wasn't Shake and Shift. Still, pretty killer. And I didn't even like Minus before they played it. Drown was the first Royal Thunder song I ever heard, way back in September or whenever it was when fortune led me to discover the CVI album. And of course they went straight to Whispering World after their opener, because it's a perfect second song. Second spot on the album and second spot on their set list. Then the aforementioned Minus. Then the hypnotic Blue. Then No Good. Then one more maybe? Couldn't place it, though it probably was either Sleeping Witch or Black Water Vision (I don't think it was a song from their EP).
And then they were done. Far too short a time, but understandable when you get third billing.
***
Royal Thunder is from Atlanta, and you can really hear some of that Southern rock in No Good. But they're also a bit psychedelic (go check out Blue). And possibly doom metal, if spiraling riffs and bluesy passages count (they're certainly not traditional doom that slowly crawls note by note). The term "atmosphere" is thrown onto the sounds of bands a lot, sometimes justified and sometimes not. It is here, in both Royal Thunder's debut album CVI, and in their live show. Still would have loved to hear Shake and Shift, though.
Deservingly so, Royal Thunder has gotten a lot of hype from the metal community since releasing their debut album in 2012. And definite praise. It's been on heavy circulation for me since first hitting play on the song Drown on RT's bandcamp. And since seeing them, I can't go more than a few hours without a listen. I even made a playlist of their set list (with an empty sixth spot waiting to be filled if I can ever figure out what the closer was, unless it indeed was No Good and I was too lost in the performance to notice). CVI was on practically every list focused on the best metal albums of 2012 (as arbitrary as those lists may be, still something to be proud of), and for a debut LP, the album is a remarkable accomplishment. (If you listen to their debut EP, you'll notice just how large a step they made.)
The band is fronted by Mlny Parsonz (that's a lowercase L, for those of you scoring at home) on bass guitar and vocals. Parsonz has a deep, soulful voice that resonates just as deeply as the rest of the music. Vocals tend to be put on the back burner for most metal bands, but not Parsonz' voice, which can go from a haunting whisper to an overpowering scream that makes your hair stand up (from their power, not in the screechy Quint-from-Jaws-scraping-his-fingernails-down-a-chalkboard way). It's hard not to get lost in her voice, especially when she rises up and belts something out moody (a bit of a stretch, but think Adele, were she from the South, in terms of emotional vocal resonance).
Then there's the rest of the band: Josh Weaver on guitar and Jesse Stuber on drums. The most noticeable thing (or perhaps the least noticeable) thing about the drumming is how it adds to the atmosphere. Royal Thunder has a lot of songs that build and build to stunning climaxes, only to then drop back to trance-like ambient passages. Cymbals pop up during those trance passages, gently and quietly adding an eerie ringing to the background, before the drums rev up as the music swells. They sit in the background until, all of the sudden, they're right there, and you didn't even notice.
Guitarwise, Weaver is excellent crafting psychedelic riffs and distorted solos that don't try to impress you with technical proficiency or speed. That might sound like criticism, but it's not. The guitar isn't trying to impress you, or act all like "look at me! I'm a guitar! I make awesome noises!" The guitar work flows with the music, showing a devotion to building intricate waves of bluesy doom that goes hand in hand with the rest of the band, balancing perfectly Parsonz' bass work (which is excellent, especially live). I actually met Weaver at the merch table when I bought a shirt. Got to shake his hand and tell him how excited I was to get to see Royal Thunder.
***
Drown
The first song I ever heard by Royal Thunder was Drown, and it had me instantly hooked. Fitting, then, that it would be the first song the band played. I love long songs that build and build to a point where it all comes crashing down in a wave of noise. It's akin to a journey, with an intricate amount of craftsmanship and elegance poured in. It's not about a hook or a chorus, it's about the whole song, each part feeding the next. Drown starts out slow and heavy, a guitar quietly strumming a few dark notes, Parsonz sings just above a whisper, and the drummer softly taps on his snare and cymbals. Then, after Parsonz croons some brooding lyrics for a few minutes, the wave hits. A driving guitar line backed by furious drumming leads into Parsonz kicking it up a notch, showing the power of her voice. A brief swell drops back into that quiet beginning before again hitting the gas pedal and flying into a a couple furious minutes of wailing guitar and bass. Finally we're laid to rest, as it all comes to a standstill while Parsonz sings a dirge during the closing minute.
Whispering World
Again, apt choice. It's the second song on the album, and it's the second song on the night's set list. Unlike Drown, it's not a builder. It hits you right from the first note, a heavy, moody song with a steady tempo and some true anger in Parsonz voice. She flat out screams, bitterness staining every syllable. I don't always care about the lyrics in metal songs, but I can't ignore the words to Whispering World.
"I knew you were wrong/but I just let you break me"Parsonz is on another level during those lines, channeling some raw emotions. Much of the rest of the lyrics are about having escaped whatever shit sparked this, a triumphant exclamation of freedom. There are some really killer guitar riffs as well, and an overflow that's both heavy and catchy. The song shows off Parsonz' lyrical abilities as well as the emotional range of her vocals.
Minus
Speaking of raw emotions, this quiet soliloquy pairs perfectly with Whispering World. Unlike the vitriol of WW, Minus is sad and somber. There are no screams and no riffs, but the exact same passion as before. I didn't "get" this song until I heard them play it, and that's likely due to them putting it right after WW. While WW is more along the likes of a "fuck you"-type breakup song, Minus is a humble one, maybe even an apologetic one. Not something you'd expect from a band that excels at Southern blues psychedelia.
Blue
Then there's Blue. It's a beautiful, spiraling song that builds and builds and never lets up. There aren't any vocals for the first three-and-a-half minutes (there's a music video for it, and when I watched it for the first time I thought it was an instrumental track), as you're simply swept up by hypnotic guitar playing and an equally hypnotic bass line. Just imagine ISIS (danger zone!), but with a druggy feel to it. Or perhaps a modernized song by The Doors. Opening with drums, guitars wailing for days, Parsonz' voice crooning along with the music in a wonderfully trippy way, and it all lasts for ten minutes. With perfect flow, no less, which is brought out when played live. All three band members are bouncing off each other, Weaver's grooving on his side of the stage, Parsonz' swaying to the beat, and Stuber holding the rhythm line to some heavy acid rock. They make it feel like the song stretches out for days, endlessly floating and curving through pockets of blue sky and clouds.
No Good
Probably the best example of that Southern rock flair to their music. The main riffs of the song are very, very bluesy. This is Royal Thunder's other short (read: < six minutes) but hard rockin' song (Minus is about two minutes, but it's more of an ambient track). To me, this song is all about the guitar work, because Parsonz' vocal melodies all come from the energizing guitar melodies (or perhaps vice versa, but either way the guitar wins out). Though I think it's rightful place is where it is on the album (it precedes Blue on the album, and the flow from No Good to Blue is perfectly synched, almost like they're one song), but since Royal Thunder killed every song up to that point, I didn't notice the change.
***
There must have been at least one more song on their set list, but I can't find a set list anywhere. But maybe that was it, and I just didn't want it to be over. In any event, it was a phenomenal show. Royal Thunder has a great future ahead of them. I can't wait to see what's in store. So go get their album CVI and go see them live if you can. I'll be writing about Enslaved's set later on, so stay tuned.
No comments:
Post a Comment