User Score
8.6

Universal acclaim- based on 148 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Negative: 4 out of 148
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  1. Feb 13, 2023
    9
    Amazing debut album. The grooves are very tight and the bass sounds massive on nearly every single track. -1 because at (even though very few) occasions the album doesnt manage to convince with originality as some parts sound so much like muse it could literally be a muse track. but overall an album that is 100% worth your time
  2. Jan 18, 2022
    9
    On their debut studio album, Royal Blood wins the grand prize with their ambition and rage to conquer the world. It's brutal, it's raw and it's pleasing on so many levels. The melodies are so precise and well-produced, you feel like you're next to Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher jamming it out after emptying a bottle of honey whiskey. The only complaint could be how short it is, but theOn their debut studio album, Royal Blood wins the grand prize with their ambition and rage to conquer the world. It's brutal, it's raw and it's pleasing on so many levels. The melodies are so precise and well-produced, you feel like you're next to Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher jamming it out after emptying a bottle of honey whiskey. The only complaint could be how short it is, but the solution is easily found: you just have to play on repeat. Expand
  3. Jul 5, 2021
    10
    Origin of Symmetry is the only other album to hook me on a group so completely. I still love Muse, but this made me love Royal Blood.
  4. Jun 5, 2021
    10
    Great debut album, perfect tracklist, heavy riffs, stunning drums, beautiful songs. Almost perfect.
  5. Mar 7, 2018
    10
    Royal Blood are the best modern hard rock band out there, the entire album is perfection, one of the best rock albums of the 2010's
  6. Aug 26, 2017
    5
    I knew of this band's existence for about a year when I heard one of their songs (can't remember which) while scouring through YouTube. I thought it was rather average. I didn't pay much attention until Lights Out came out, at which point I researched the band a bit. I was interested why they were so popular.

    I still don't get it. All the songs here are the same mediocre crappy song. If
    I knew of this band's existence for about a year when I heard one of their songs (can't remember which) while scouring through YouTube. I thought it was rather average. I didn't pay much attention until Lights Out came out, at which point I researched the band a bit. I was interested why they were so popular.

    I still don't get it. All the songs here are the same mediocre crappy song. If they were just really similar, fine, but the songs are all incredibly mediocre. The only songs that kinda stand out are Figure it Out and Out of the Black.
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  7. Jun 19, 2017
    10
    Album of the decade in my humble opinion! it takes me all the way back to when I first heard Nirvana's Nevermind. there's not one bad song on this entire album.
  8. Apr 20, 2016
    8
    For a mainstream rock band, Royal Blood carry a surprisingly refreshingly authentic blues-influenced sound, making them stand out from other mainstream pop bands that pass as "rock" these days, *cough* Imagine Dragons *cough* (seriously, this two man act creates far more noise than Imagine Dragons can pull off with four men)

    The songs are infectious, immediate and hard-hitting. The only
    For a mainstream rock band, Royal Blood carry a surprisingly refreshingly authentic blues-influenced sound, making them stand out from other mainstream pop bands that pass as "rock" these days, *cough* Imagine Dragons *cough* (seriously, this two man act creates far more noise than Imagine Dragons can pull off with four men)

    The songs are infectious, immediate and hard-hitting. The only real gripe I have with this album is that it isn't longer, with more adventurous songs. The immediacy is more than welcome, but a nice break away from this on one or two tracks would have been nice, and having seen them live, I know they are perfectly capable. Maybe next time around, eh?

    But, if you need something to restore your faith in the future of mainstream rock, this might just be the medicine you're looking for.
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  9. Mar 2, 2016
    8
    Fresh, wild garage rock. Yes, it's simple and yes, it wakens a sense of nostalgia, but what's wrong with that? I look forward to their second one. It'll be tough for the guys to meet high expectations.
  10. Oct 9, 2015
    9
    TRACK RATINGS
    Out of the Black: A+
    Come On Over: A-
    Figure it Out: A
    You Can Be So Cruel: B
    Blood Hands: A
    Little Monster: A-
    Loose Change: A+
    Careless: B-
    Ten Tonne Skeleton: A
    Better Strangers: A

    Pretty Damn good rock and roll if you ask me. Excited to see what this band does next
  11. Jul 28, 2015
    8
    Bursting onto the scene, mainly during the summer of 2014, the sound these guys create with a drum and bass guitar is phenomenal. The bass guitar essentially does the work normally done by a rhythm and lead guitar in your normal set up. The songs nod the head towards a mix of The White Stripes and especially towards the more stripped back offerings Muse have given us over the years. "OutBursting onto the scene, mainly during the summer of 2014, the sound these guys create with a drum and bass guitar is phenomenal. The bass guitar essentially does the work normally done by a rhythm and lead guitar in your normal set up. The songs nod the head towards a mix of The White Stripes and especially towards the more stripped back offerings Muse have given us over the years. "Out of the Black" is one of the best rock tunes in recent times while "Ten Tonne Skeleton" is another favourite. The album and the band deserve their early success and it will be interesting to see in which direction they can take their sound in the future. Expand
  12. May 22, 2015
    8
    Using a bass guitar and drums, two-piece rock band Royal Blood have created a deceptively simplistic debut album, filled with menace and grit. I can't wait to hear their next album. This is a great first step.
  13. Jan 25, 2015
    7
    The band sounds good, it seems to have potential and it's actually quite surprising to notice that all has been made by just two people, but as I was listening to it I couldn't avoid recalling very evident influences (or copies) of Jack White, The White Stripes, The Black Keys, Muse, etc. So overall it sounds acceptable but it's unoriginal, unimaginative, too commercial, repetitive andThe band sounds good, it seems to have potential and it's actually quite surprising to notice that all has been made by just two people, but as I was listening to it I couldn't avoid recalling very evident influences (or copies) of Jack White, The White Stripes, The Black Keys, Muse, etc. So overall it sounds acceptable but it's unoriginal, unimaginative, too commercial, repetitive and kind of boring. Expand
  14. Dec 30, 2014
    7
    I stopped and picked up a disc from Royal Blood, a talented group out of the UK that formed in 2013 . Once I gave the disc a play I was surprised to find that this band isn’t a group, it’s a duo. Surprised because of the full sound they produce. Mike Kerr sings & plays bass and Ben Thatcher plays drums, that’s it! All the songs & music are written by the two of them.

    I had heard one of
    I stopped and picked up a disc from Royal Blood, a talented group out of the UK that formed in 2013 . Once I gave the disc a play I was surprised to find that this band isn’t a group, it’s a duo. Surprised because of the full sound they produce. Mike Kerr sings & plays bass and Ben Thatcher plays drums, that’s it! All the songs & music are written by the two of them.

    I had heard one of the songs from the disc on the radio and it caught my attention. That song, Figure it out, brought me back a bit to early Led Zeppelin with a beat that doesn’t overdue it, it just grabs you and holds you throughout the song like John Bonham’s simple but extremely heavy beats did on any Zeppelin song. I was surprised to find that Figure it out wasn’t the first single released off the disc it was “Out of the Black” another equally good song which sounds a bit like Chevelle. Don’t get me wrong, the songs are good it’s just that some of them you’d swear you heard before. ”Blood Hands” sounds a lot like Wolfmother.

    After listening to this disc I had to look on the sleeve to see if additional guitars were used because there was just too much fullness on each song. Sure enough there were, with the additional guitars being mixed in at another studio which left me feeling a bit duped. It sucks selling yourself as a “duo” when other musicians are needed to get that same sound live on stage! **** Green Day has done this for years using a lead guitarist who practically stands off stage & plays yet no one knows his name except die hard Green Day fans. I’d love to hear Royal Blood live to see how the 2 of them come up with such a full sound? I’ll bet there’s more than 2 of them on stage!!

    The disc contains 10 songs, most of which are different in sound & style which earns my points, no cookie cutter songs here. “Come on over” offers a great riff, probably the catchiest on the disc. “Little Monster” may be the best song out of the 10. I enjoyed the disc with the exception of the overuse of distortion. Some of the songs sound like the toggle switch stuck on the distortion peddle. Maybe this is how Royal Blood wants to distinguish themselves from other bands? It’s unfortunate because some of the songs have so much distortion it takes away from the lyrics. For me, the sound would have been much better had the distortion been cleaner. It’s possible that with this being the first release from the band, there wasn’t enough money to produce a better sound?

    I will give credit where it is due, these two gentlemen are obviously very talented musicians who have developed a sound that, if they continue to work at it, will bring them much success. They need to concentrate more on their own sound and get away from that of bands that may have influenced them. Influence is one thing, sounding like them is another and it won’t be long for the public to notice.

    Vigo
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  15. Nov 24, 2014
    10
    few complaints about this band, solid drummer, solid guitarist = entertaining music
    one thing is that their songs are relatively short and there are only 10 of them, about 40 mins of music which is a little short of the average
  16. Nov 24, 2014
    9
    After a tough year of listening to songs about butts this was exactly what our ears needed. Let's just go back to some raw rock with amazing bluesy feeling. The bass riffs are outstanding and are have amazing sound and feeling. I was amazed that a bass could be such an original substitute for a lead guitar.

    Overall, this gem proves that rock has in fact not died. It gives us something
    After a tough year of listening to songs about butts this was exactly what our ears needed. Let's just go back to some raw rock with amazing bluesy feeling. The bass riffs are outstanding and are have amazing sound and feeling. I was amazed that a bass could be such an original substitute for a lead guitar.

    Overall, this gem proves that rock has in fact not died. It gives us something fresh, because it gets rid of the bland-sounding indie rock bands that watered down the general sound of rock music. The duo is basically giving a big middle finger to goody-goody indie/hipster bands such as Imagine Dragons, fun. and Bastille.

    A solid album and an instant classic.
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  17. Nov 18, 2014
    8
    A quality release from a duo with a straightforward and fun sonic direction. With this very strong debut album, they're definitely going to be artists to watch over the coming years.
  18. Oct 22, 2014
    8
    It's not always easy to pull it off when there's only two members of the band, but Royal Blood do just that on their self-titled debut. What makes the album unique is the fact that there isn't actually a guitar present. Never has a bass guitar sounded so much like a guitar through the use of just effects pedals. The songs themselves opt for big choruses, which is never a bad thing whenIt's not always easy to pull it off when there's only two members of the band, but Royal Blood do just that on their self-titled debut. What makes the album unique is the fact that there isn't actually a guitar present. Never has a bass guitar sounded so much like a guitar through the use of just effects pedals. The songs themselves opt for big choruses, which is never a bad thing when you're writing an album, and is perhaps the reason they've become so popular so quickly. I was lucky enough to see Royal Blood at Reading Festival this year and they didn't disappoint. Unfortunately though, their current tour sold out in minutes and I was one of the unlucky ones. Definitely recommend this album (Personal favourites: Come on Over, Little Monster, Careless) Expand
  19. Sep 30, 2014
    8
    Garage rock revival scene has garnered a lot of success since the early 2000s, when a number of bands (BRMC, The White Stripes, The Strokes) began to seduce music industry with their sixties/seventies-esque, rocking riff oriented tunes. Borrowing from a now well-known established formula, enters Royal Blood, a British duo (Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher) that echoes inevitably the likes of TheGarage rock revival scene has garnered a lot of success since the early 2000s, when a number of bands (BRMC, The White Stripes, The Strokes) began to seduce music industry with their sixties/seventies-esque, rocking riff oriented tunes. Borrowing from a now well-known established formula, enters Royal Blood, a British duo (Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher) that echoes inevitably the likes of The Black Keys or the aforementioned Jack White band, with their eponymous debut album. At 10 tracks length (over a little bit more than 30 minutes), the LP is charged mostly with raunchy riffs and daunting drumming (Out of the Black, Figure It Out), as well as bluesy rhythms (You Can Be So Cruel, Loose Change) that, despite some technical failures, deliver the goods coherently and command admiration. A formulaic album, perhaps Royal Blood's major downside is its no-risking spirit: in terms of advancing the genre, it does not offer much, as it prefers to dwell within a comfy zone that ultimately leads the audience to accept the striking resemblance to other established rock bands. It is like a canvas in which a grandiose œuvre d'art is being reproduced adequately–it satisfies, but it does not transcend. Expand
  20. Sep 19, 2014
    8
    Royal Blood mixes the proven formula of traditional blues and garage rock with amazingly free-spirited songwriting. This is something new in the world of Blues Rock that is mostly defined by Bands like the Black Keys and Arctic Monkeys (which are also brilliant bands, but focus more on guitar-play than their lyrics). Still, sometimes one might wish for the last refinement in some songs,Royal Blood mixes the proven formula of traditional blues and garage rock with amazingly free-spirited songwriting. This is something new in the world of Blues Rock that is mostly defined by Bands like the Black Keys and Arctic Monkeys (which are also brilliant bands, but focus more on guitar-play than their lyrics). Still, sometimes one might wish for the last refinement in some songs, the last spark to light the fire and send you off dancing and singing... Expand
  21. Sep 16, 2014
    3
    This is what happens when you strip music of any personality, any real sentiment. You get music which is purely aesthetics for aesthetics sake. Mannequin music. Something to hang your old studded leather jacket on. If hearing rock guitar riffs to placate your sense of nostalgia is all you hope to gain from music, this is perfect. The musical equivalent of a getty images stock photograph.This is what happens when you strip music of any personality, any real sentiment. You get music which is purely aesthetics for aesthetics sake. Mannequin music. Something to hang your old studded leather jacket on. If hearing rock guitar riffs to placate your sense of nostalgia is all you hope to gain from music, this is perfect. The musical equivalent of a getty images stock photograph. Its a pointless exercise. The fact that it got a mercury nomination is astounding.

    Its top 40 pop for people who don't feel comfortable listening to top 40 pop.

    If all it takes for you to be excited about new music is the simple, decades old distorted riff, then you're probably not much into music. Don't bother with this, you might as well listen to the albums that Royal Blood listen too.
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  22. Aug 30, 2014
    9
    A hard, sexy collection. The perfect length for excessive replays, this duo take hard bluesy rawk to new levels of intensity. Thrills and spills of the purest kind.
  23. Aug 29, 2014
    8
    This duo has promised a fresh and invigorating sound which has held my interest where few others have in 2014. The album has unrelenting rock (Out of the Black, Come On Over, Little Monster), atmosphere (You Can Be So Cruel, Blood Hands) and infectiously rhythmic undertones (Figure It Out, Ten Tonne Skeleton). At 10 tracks, the result in a short but intense journey with not an ounce ofThis duo has promised a fresh and invigorating sound which has held my interest where few others have in 2014. The album has unrelenting rock (Out of the Black, Come On Over, Little Monster), atmosphere (You Can Be So Cruel, Blood Hands) and infectiously rhythmic undertones (Figure It Out, Ten Tonne Skeleton). At 10 tracks, the result in a short but intense journey with not an ounce of filler in sight. There is diversity aplenty, although some tracks do have striking similarities in style. However, this serves in making the results more cohesive rather than dull, especially when considering the power and groove of the riffs and the organised chaos of the drumming.

    Highlights: Out of the Black, Figure It Out, Loose Change, Ten Tonne Skeleton.
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  24. Aug 26, 2014
    9
    It's not often you hear something new, especially in the somewhat clichéd world of rock duos, but Royal Blood have created a fresh and inventive album that rocks from beginning to end. Considering they use just a bass and drums, it's surprising to find so many interesting noises scattered throughout the album. The heavy riffs are simply unbelievable, and the drums equally so. This is aIt's not often you hear something new, especially in the somewhat clichéd world of rock duos, but Royal Blood have created a fresh and inventive album that rocks from beginning to end. Considering they use just a bass and drums, it's surprising to find so many interesting noises scattered throughout the album. The heavy riffs are simply unbelievable, and the drums equally so. This is a fantastic album that is definitely worth a listen if you ever get a chance. Expand
  25. Aug 25, 2014
    8
    I'd say that this will be the best rock album to come out all year. If you are pining for old school Queens of the Stone Age and wonder if there is somebody out there, who writes riffs like Jack White used to, then this album will satisfy your soul. Admittedly, there is no abundance of new songs on the album - but songs like the stellar "You Can Be So Cruel" make up for that deficiency.
Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 15 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 15
  2. Negative: 0 out of 15
  1. Classic Rock Magazine
    Dec 18, 2014
    90
    It never lags. [Sep 2014, p.95]
  2. Sep 23, 2014
    70
    There’s heft and muscle to these songs (or, yes, “song”) and the album is a good taster for what these guys must sound like live.
  3. Kerrang!
    Sep 16, 2014
    100
    At it's best, it's a thing of beauty. But if the duo's choruses set the gold standard, it's the riffs that are worth their weight in platinum. [23 Aug 2014, p.54]