"We snuck into a Royal Blood tribute gig!" - Royal Blood's Mike Kerr exclusive interview

[@RoyalMonsterBand]

What a fucking lovely bloke Mike is, thank you very much for the shout-out! We were so honoured Mike and Ben along with others came along to our show in Brighton back in March 2018. Roll on album #3 with this new Disco-DC blend, which we are absolutely loving!

[@gabrieladdison]

I think it’s awesome how they are keeping it fresh/new but not abandoning their usual style

[@andyderp6473]

Love when artists mix it up each album for better or for worse, nothing worse when it's 1 for 1, from what I've heard there's bits and pieces from the last but extremely changed up, can't wait!

[@SINGHDASLAYA]

Love these guys! Remember hearing their first couple songs for the debut and being blown away and my friends at Sixth Form getting an ear full from me telling them to check Royal Blood out. I understand where Mike is coming from with retreading water and I am all for experimenting with sound. I personally believe that albums don't need to be one-dimensional especially for rock bands as the rock genre is the most versatile genre. You can have the hard rock stuff we love and also have pop-rock and all sorts mixed in there. Just got to remember your roots and let the fans that have been with the band since the beginning that they haven't been forgotten.

[@cameronball7093]

Can't wait for the new album man

[@josuepon0318]

Love this interview!

[@adamstebbins507]

Long live these rockin bad asses!!!

[@SSSweeper]

Well, as Mike put it he started to write the songs free of any restrains and limits and it is great for an artist or musician. I can see that. But since they kinda created the base with the first album, that's why I feel that "dance" vibe feels so alienating to those who started to follow the band early (including myself). Still would be interesting to hear the final effort.

[@hdsg8361]

I think it will all make sense live for them they have to grow and change that’s part of being an artist

[@SSSweeper]

@@hdsg8361 no doubt about that. But the change shouldn't be very drastic in my opinion. Though different bands evolve differently.

[@RoyalMonsterBand]

@@SSSweeper Not sure they really planned their change so much as stumbled upon an evolution of their sound that they like and are hoping everyone else likes it as well. Feels organic what they've released so far - too much music planned out by a panel of songwriters/A&R/label execs so I'm glad this doesn't fall in that category

[@broersenkees]

@@SSSweeper They should just do whatever they feel like. Put no limits on their creativity. It's either going to be great, or it's going to be shit. We're going to have another great album to listen to, or we'll still have the first two albums to listen to. There's not really a worst case scenario here.

[@SSSweeper]

@@broersenkees yeah, I totally agree on that if we look at it as musicians. But as a fan who really felt a resonance when listening to Hole and the debut I fear that the guys would evolve into something different. I'm not putting limits on their creativity, I'm just assuming that if you found your signature sound you should better stick to it and try to evolve and modernize without changing the core of it. Royal Blood (to my ears at least) had their place with minimalistic but rocking approach, evolving on the base of White Stripes and adding just a pinch of pop. But now with dance sound (and I don't like any club and dance music at all, call me stereotypical rocker, whatever) I, as a fan, have a fear of them turning into a different nature. If that's what they wanted in the first place - I'm okay with that. It's just that the "flavor" I felt on the second album and disliked seems to be enlarging on the 3rd. But on the other hand, it will probably bring a totally different audience to the band, so it's not my right to decide which way is the right one for the band.

[@fydstar]

Is the future live Royal Blood with backing "tapes" or another member? i'm in a two piece bass and drum combo (FYDStar, there is some Royal Blood influence for sure, but we are sludgier and more cosmic ha!) and I add extra levels of instrumentation or atmosphere on the recordings and not yet having played live I automatically assume we will sequence any extra sounds or use things like the Midi Guitar app on the mac to add concurrent synth/atmos. I created a two piece to make what I want musically an easier process without to much democracy so to speak ha! However having a synth/atmos/sounds guy would be cool!

[@kerrangradio]

Yeah will be interesting to see if they go down the Black Keys route, ending up with a full band on stage.

[@lunarubyjon594]

I’m actually really disappointed that Mike seems to be suggesting that women can’t enjoy ‘music to fight to’. I’ve always preferred a heavier sound and I resent the implication that I need ‘danceable’ music because I’m a woman. I’ve seen Royal Blood live several times and haven’t felt like I can’t get down the front and enjoy it. Sorry Mike, I love you but I’m not impressed with that comment.

[@ec4202]

I think it was more a take on men than it was on women - saying it was typically men who would use their shows and their music as an excuse to fight. I don’t think he was implying that women couldn’t like that kind of music, he just wanted to write more danceable music that people wouldn’t use an excuse for aggression regardless of their gender.

[@lunarubyjon594]

I get what you mean. I suppose I just felt it was a bit of a clichèd take on gender and I was a bit disappointed by that.

[@broersenkees]

He just hopes for a more diverse crowd if they play more diverse music. He didn't say anything about women not being able to enjoy heavy music. No need to be offended by something he didn't say 🙂

[@SINGHDASLAYA]

tbh I feel that mike just like pretty much all other musicians wants his music to be heard by as many people as possible and let's face it women are the biggest consumers of music and the ones who really get songs out there. We guys are very picky with music these days mainly because the popular radio songs are incredibly dense and lack any creativity and musicianship. I personally dislike a lot of the stuff out there these days because it just panders to seduce women and make people insecure instead of being art.

[@lunarubyjon594]

I’m not offended. I’m just a little disappointed with they way he phrased it. By all means go for a more diverse crowd by experimenting with new sounds. I’m looking forward to the new album even if it’s not sounding as much to my taste as their older stuff. But don’t bring gender into it 🤷‍♀️