Royal Headache – High (21.08.)

01 My Own Fantasy
02 Need You
03 High
04 Another World
05 Wouldn’t You Know
06 Garbage
07 Love Her If I Tried
08 Carolina
09 Little Star
10 Electric Shock

For Royal Headache’s serrated and honeyed debut, the Sydney rock’n’roll classicists took a day-and-a-half to record all of the instruments. The vocals, courtesy of a fellow known simply as Shogun, took eight months. They still sounded urgent, rather than fussed over, and conveyed the generous vigor and warmth that moves listeners first to melt and then to grasp for one word: soul. Stateside, the imported R.I.P. Society edition of Royal Headache became a coveted item, motivating underground rock’s first-responders at What’s Your Rupture? to issue a domestic version in 2012. Shogun’s stubborn commitment to honing the most vivid vocal takes proved to be pretty savvy.

The title track from High, Royal Headache’s follow-up, retains that swagger and grace. A scrappy chord progression lumbers in time to the swinging backbeat and Shogun starts with a refrain that relishes the ambiguity between lovers and dealers: „Tried to call you on the phone/ ‚Cause you get me high.“ The saccharine melody and yearning lyrics cultivate a sense of exultation, but Shogun’s delivery is also trenchant. His vocals have attack; every line starts with a jab, followed by a massage, not unlike the Undertones’ singer Feargal Sharkey. Impressively, three years after Royal Headache, there’s no inkling of diminishing returns for this approach. The essential thrills remain. Pitchfork

Das Album hat einfach seinen eigenen Thread verdient – meine ganz große Hoffnung für 2015. Ich mochte schon das erste Album, allerdings war mir das im Endeffekt dann doch einfach zu „lo-fi“. Da konnte nicht mal die fantastische Stimme von Sänger Shogun etwas retten. Dem Eindruck der ersten Single nach korrigieren sie das hier aber – und so ist ‚High‘ schon mal (m)ein ganzer heißer Anwärter auf den Track des Jahres.