Royal Blood returns to Brazil with an album that ‘made music itself the priority’

With a 10-year career, the duo Royal Bloodformed by Mike Kerr It is Ben Thatcher, is preparing to do something new in his career: performing solo shows in Brazil. The presentations are scheduled for this Saturday, 13th, at Audioin São Paulo, and on April 16, at Flying CircusRio de Janeiro.

It is worth remembering that this is not the group’s first visit to Brazil. In 2018, they were part of the line-up of Lollapalooza Brazilin which they performed on the first day of the festival, which takes place annually at Interlagos Autodromein São Paulo, and in Rock in Rio 2015.

In 2024, Royal Blood arrives with the fourth and unreleased studio album in his luggage. Entitled Back To The Water Belowthe album was released on September 1, 2023, and has a different sound compared to the band’s other works, known for carrying influences from garage rock and blues rock.

Furthermore, the album came after a very turbulent time during the coronavirus pandemic, when the duo released Typhoons (2021). During an interview with Rolling Stone Brazil, Mike Kerr commented how live is the most important element for the band, something lost in the health crisis. However, the creative process of Back To The Water Below it was calmer.

“It never felt like we were going to just have a normal kind of release. And going straight out on the road, it was all very… we felt very contained. So this was great,” he said. “Being able to be with our fans on the day the record was released, and put these new songs straight into the set, has been great.

That’s where we can really evaluate everything. The whole point of being in a band for us is to play live.

The behavior of the Royal Blood in the studio it is not necessarily looking for a complex message/narrative with the studio albums, but the process is much more sentimental, for each listener to interpret the lyrics in their own way.

“Someone might interpret the meaning of the song completely differently to someone else,” the singer continued. “There may be someone else who doesn’t even hear the lyrics, [porque] she just likes the riffs, or she just loves the drums. And that’s okay too. I think we all listen to music in our own way.”

New horizons with Back To The Water Below

With songs like “Pull Me Through,” “Shinner In The Dark,” “Mountains At Midnight” It is “High Waters,” Back To The Water Below came about in a different way, rather driven when the duo was on the piano and “for a song,” according to Kerr.

“Because of that, it made the type of riffs and what we played [em algo] secondary, and made the music itself the priority,” said the frontman. “It took us down a path we’d never taken before. Before, for better or worse, music came second.

It was all about the riffs and what we played. For us, it was interesting to change that.

Royal Blood in Brazil after six years

The moods of Royal Blood to do shows in Brazil couldn’t be better. The band’s singer described this moment as “special,” especially when they realize that they will debut, with a solo performance, in a different country.

“It’s going to be electric, man! The shows on this tour were just crazy, probably one of the craziest we’ve ever done,” he said. “There’s a decade of tension and a decade of expectation. On both sides. We want to meet our fans and do our best. So, yeah, it’s amazing.”

There is an intimacy, actually. And we can play longer. I have great experiences at festivals and at our own shows. It seems to be an ongoing comparison, but it’s difficult to answer because every day is different. So it’s a fun thing to do.