Tonight was another long awaited show, Royal Blood. I’ve been a fan of theirs for nearly a decade now but this was the first opportunity we had to see them live. That when we finally got our chance it turned out to be at The Catalyst, well that was just icing on the cake! I’d been sitting on these tickets nearly 5 months, so excitement levels were high!
The opening act – Hot Wax – we’d not heard of. We checked out some of their tunes ahead of time, didn’t dig it, and set out late for the show.
Right about 9pm the lights dimmed and the theme from “the Good, the Bad and the Ugly” came busting out of the P.A. setting the scene for what turned out to be an unbelievably amazing show.
The band was to tight and powerful, it was really a sight to behold. Bassist/vocalist Mike Kerr is one of a kind, the most unique player to hit the scene since Les Claypool. How he manages to play “guitar” on a bass, while holding down the bass lines AND singing simultaneously?!?! I don’t know what kind of wizardry/voodoo this guy is putting out there, but what he does seems physically impossible. Seriously, I’ve now seen it with my own eyes, and I still don’t know how he does it. I was miles beyond impressed by his performance.
Drummer Ben Thatcher was solid as a rock throughout the entire set. For my money, he’s the closest thing we’ve to got a modern day John Bonham. I’ve seen a lot of “alternative” bands over the last few decades, and most of the drummers are “blah”… This was certainly not the case with Ben, he was outstanding from the first note to the last. A real pro.
They played an hour-plus set, followed up with a 3-song encore, and honestly I’d kinda forgotten how many great songs they’ve put out since their debut album. It was really an amazing show, well worth the wait!
I’ve seen a lot of great shows this year and I can say without reservation that Royal Blood was amongst the best. I would absolutely go see them again, without hesitation.
Thanks for a great night, Royal Blood and crew!
And thank you for stopping by!
The Boring Old Man 