It’s been many years in the making now, and months of singles, but 100 percent worth the wait! As I anticipated, Royal Blood’s new album Typhoons is a banger from beginning to end, and I’m about to walk you through my thoughts on all of it!
This is perhaps the bands most ambitious outing to date, but in a way that just makes them sound even better than the prior releases (all of the others being amazing in their own right). The sound is bigger and totally unique, and this time around I think the added backing vocals really add something to the whole effort. At the base of it all, it’s still just two dudes jamming out on drums and a bass guitar, but the sound is so full that they’ll still have you doubting them until you get the chance to see them in a live setting.
I might be repeating myself since the band released four singles before dropping the whole album, but no matter! There are still plenty of noteworthy moments to call attention to. First and foremost, there seemed to be an intelligent pairing method for songs, which somehow made the transition into the next pairing less noticeable or jarring. For instance, “Limbo” and “Million and One” both had a very disco and Daft Punk feel to them, while “Either Way You Want It” and “Boilermaker” seemed like nice compliments to each other. However, I make note of these pairings, but I can’t ignore the complete abandon of form that the closing track “All We Have is Now” took. In this track, there were no signature bass or drums, and instead was replaced with a solitary piano and Mike Kerr’s voice. It definitely isn’t my favorite, but I can’t help and wonder if Pink Floyd was the inspiration here? It’s immediately who I thought of anyway.
If I had to pick another weak (but not really weak) track off the record, perhaps “Million to One” fills that hole? The instrumentals are great, but it’s the lyrics and vocals that put me off, if only just a little bit. Aside from my previously stated favorite singles “Typhoons” and “Boilermaker,” “Hold On” and “Mad Visions” definitely caught my attention, and the tapping of my toe, from the first note! I know I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, but producer Josh Homme’s presence in this album is definitely felt and very much welcomed. This is an excellent shift for the band to take, and I absolutely know they are going to crush it in a live setting.
Typhoons is a solid record top to bottom and you’d be a fool to deny your ears a listen! If you just want to listen to a hit from the first go, then “Boilermaker” is the track I send you off with. Go listen!