Credit: Scott Smith
Live
Royal Blood
Alexandra Palace, London
November 21 2017
Words: Izzy B
For their second of three nights at London's Alexandra Palace, the question the two former incumbents of the Royal Borough of Tunbridge Wells known as Royal Blood might have been asking themselves was not 'How Did We Get So Dark?' to take the title of their second album, but more "how did we get so big?" For a two-piece act they not only can make a racket when it comes to the decibels, but to pull off three consecutive nights in front of 10,000 fans is no mean feat.
Ben Thatcher may prefer being ensconced behind the safety of his drum kit, and while Mike Lee may be the frontman in theory, he obviously seems happier belting out the songs and tearing at his bass guitar than anything else. But neither affect their ability to hold court in this mammoth venue.
Credit: Greg Lee
The Royal Blood fanbase greet everything, from the bombastic guitar riffs to Thatcher's onslaught of thrashing drumming with unadulterated enthusiasm; from opener 'Lights Out', 'Come On Over', and the electric bangsr 'Ten Tonne Skeleton', the pace is relentless.
Highlights abound from a setlist comprised from both albums: new songs like 'Look Like You Know' and the funk styled 'She’s Creeping' standing up against early hits such as 'Little Monster' - which engages the crowd for a join-in singalong - the blues-infused 'Figure It Out' and 'Out Of The Black'. An added touch of pzazz comes with two backing singers appearing on a raised platform to provide harmonies to 'I Only Lie When I Love You'.
Royal Blood have their detractors it's true, and not everyone is as on board as those obvious hardcore fans at Ally Pally. But there's no denying this pair have become big, and you can't achieve that just on a whim.
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