Royal Headache - Live In America (2024) [Official Digital Download]

When Royal Headache's self-titled debut full-length hit in the early '10s, it felt like a giant sigh of "it's about time." The punk world is no stranger to melodicism, but it had been since the days of the Jam and Paul Weller since we last saw a singer with real pipes—not a guy who could ably sing or with a shredded scream, but an actual singer with range. And rarer still, vocalist Tim "Shogun" Wall could belt it out with true soul.

Royal Headache released two finely crafted LPs—the self-titled album and High, both word-of-mouth favorites also on the What's Your Rupture? label. International tours built upon wild live shows only further solidified the Australian band's reputation, leading to supporting slots for bands like Black Keys, an appearance on Late Night with Seth Myers and press in major outlets like NPR, Pitchfork and more—not to mention a particularly glowing piece in the Washington Post headlined "On Friday night, Royal Headache was the greatest band in the world." Not so bad for a punk band, eh?

And by 2017 Royal Headache were gone, fracturing sometime after their final gig at Los Angeles' FYF Fest in June; the band confirmed the end in a Facebook post a little less than a year later. Those in the know mourned them, and those who didn't already, would. Royal Headache were truly one of a kind.

Live in America does a pretty spectacular job capturing the band's incredible stage show. Culled from a pair of gigs—a 2012 appearance on free-form radio station WFMU following the self-titled album's release and a 2015 concert from Chicago's Empty Bottle—the record presents the band at two crucial points. The WFMU appearance, Side A, is incendiary—showcasing the band with their most punk urgency as Shogun attacks the songs with an intensity reserved for hardcore but delivered like the finest of R&B. You can hear the electricity on beloved songs like "Psychotic Episode" and "High" (which would later appear as the title track for their second LP) despite rather flat introductions at the end of the WFMU broadcast.

By the time of the Empty Bottle gig, Royal Headache were a well-oiled machine, executing their set with a pinpoint precision in between Shogun's semi-odd, humorous or self-deprecating banter. The B-side reflects the more experienced version of the band, with a live mix that adhered closer to their recorded sound. The vocals are more front and center and Shogun's more floral moments shine brighter.

TRACKLIST

1. Royal Headache - Really In Love (Live on WFMU)
2. Royal Headache - High (Live on WFMU)
3. Royal Headache - Psychotic Episode (Live on WFMU)
4. Royal Headache - Down The Lane (Live on WFMU)
5. Royal Headache - Girls (Live on WFMU)
6. Royal Headache - Distant And Vague (Live on WFMU)
7. Royal Headache - Pity (Live on WFMU)
8. Royal Headache - Stand And Stare (Live on WFMU)
9. Royal Headache - Another World (Live at Empty Bottle)
10. Royal Headache - Psychotic Episode (Live at Empty Bottle)
11. Royal Headache - Really In Love (Live at Empty Bottle)
12. Royal Headache - So Low (Live at Empty Bottle)
13. Royal Headache - Teardrops (Live at Empty Bottle)
14. Royal Headache - Love Her If I Tried (Live at Empty Bottle)
15. Royal Headache - Electric Shock (Live at Empty Bottle)
16. Royal Headache - Eloise (Live at Empty Bottle)
17. Royal Headache - Little Star (Live at Empty Bottle)



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