Royal Bangs - Flux Outside

I was introduced to Royal Bangs through one of those giveaway CDs - in this case compiled by Mojo with a Black Keys compilation. The initial inclusion of the track 'My Car Is Haunted', from the band's second (2009) album Let It Beep, was puzzling to me since it sounded like Hot Chip covering Klaxons - a sound not particularly synonymous with last year's most prominent nostalgic rockers. Nonetheless it was a track I enjoyed - and after discovering the link to Black Keys was through a record label managed by member Patrick Carney - prompting me to download their March 2011 release.

From the get-go 'Glass Helmet' thrashes out heavy drumbeats and energetic vocals, with a tune slightly reminiscent of Klaxons' "Atlantis to Interzone" (albeit with less haywire beeps). 'Fireball' makes use of swashing percussions and a jerky guitar riff for a much more conventional dancy vibe - drawing in some folk influences for eccentricities. It's a pretty nice instrumentation but singer Ryan Schaefer is often barely audible - which isn't always a problem but with an alt.rock band can be. 'Back Then It Was Different' sounds like the battle-music for a boss level of a Nintendo game, with squelching synths, but is spared the gimmicks with nice drumming from Chris Rusk.

But their true rock roots surface on 'Triccs', a Hendrix-like stomper that 95% of garage bands aim for but never pull off. Here the distorted vocals act as a slight hint of psychedelic influences, guiding along the chords with vague melodies and drowned-out cries. 'Bull Elk' continues the heavy outbursts with a more unfocussed direction - cutesy tunes and unusual instrumentation give it some unconventional inclusions that somehow work.


At times however the juxtapositions aren't quite pulled off. The opening to 'Bad News, Strange Luck' is a quiet piece of contemplation with scratched guitars and pianos that allude to authentic southern USA, but then around 2:30 a frenzied electronic loop kicks in to inject some not-necessarily-needed hysteria. It's a pretty unique mixture though, and will probably be a favourite once the culture shock wears off. 'Loosely Truthing' is more of the latter, a no-holds-barred approach to drumming that, if drowning out the rest of the band, is only rivalled by crunching electric guitars.

Perhaps the poppiest of the lot, 'Faint Obelisk Two' plays off some catchy riff-work to a much more muted background - it does culminate in a rapturous drum finale though (fear not, noise-enthusiasts). Schaefer evokes early Springsteen in 'Silver Steps', easily his best vocal performance on the record. The psychedelic trickery return in 'TV Tree', a nifty track that sounds a little bit like recent Strokes material (albeit with less emphasis on the electronics).

For the final two tracks Schaefer is in Bono mode. First of all 'Dim Chamber' places us in spurned lover balladry, a quiet and contemplative piece that puts the band in their most raw and emotional state ("she left me without some kind of warning", "sucked the sunlight out of the house"). All this over marching drums is one of the record's most rewarding experiences - but any hopes of a U2 tribute are dashed in 'Slow Cathedral Melt', which, whilst indeed evoking the lead singer's voice, is a distorted mass of catchy guitars and southern garage music.


It starts quite messily but by the third or fourth track the experimentation tried out by Royal Bangs has paid off - early skirmishes such as Fireball sound clumsy when followed by gems like Triccs - and what's left is an accomplished new direction for the Tennessee trio.

Rating: 7.5/10
Highlights: Slow Cathedral Melt, Triccs, Dim Chamber, Faint Obelisk Two, Back Then It Was Different
Avoid: n/a
Artwork watch: Looks like one of those little painting-portals from the Super Mario 64 game. Pretty.