Label: Spinefarm Records
Review by Warren Mayocchi
“Wick” is the name of the new Royal Thunder album. They are a group with a distinct and powerful sound. If I were to describe Royal Thunder, I would say they belong in the “intense” genre. Generally their music is hard rock, but everything about what they make is passionate. The hypnotic punctuation of the drumkit, vocals from the edge, the twisting dance of the guitars. It all makes for a hypnotic performance. The second track on the album, “April Showers”, has a music video [here]. It is a good indication of what Royal Thunder is about. Through all the opening tracks Royal Thunder are in full strength, playing mid-tempo rock and leaving nothing in reserve. This comes to a climax with “The Sinking Chair” and then “Plans” alters the mood. The tempo slows and the band open the emotional floodgates to thicken the atmosphere. Throughout the album the lyrical content is thought provoking and ambiguous. For example, “Turnaround” starts with, “Turning over every stone in me, I found the one that weighs me down”. It is a driven song and is easily my favourite track. Diversity is one of the most noticeable features of the album. From the gospel close to “We Never Fell Asleep” to the country tinges in “Plans” the band incorporate influences from the history of rock throughout this album. It is all Royal Thunder though, everything fits together and sounds fantastic. Looking at the album cover it is obvious the band intend to invoke the thought of fire by choosing “Wick” as the album title. Listening to the album I like to think of them working away at each song, perfecting the performance, pursing the right sound, using up every bit of fuel before the death of the flame.
Rating – 96/100
Tracklist
- Burning Tree
- April Showers
- Tied
- We Slipped
- The Sinking Chair
- Plans
- Anchor
- WICK
- Push
- Turnaround
- The Well
- We Never Fell Asleep
Line Up
- Mlny Parsonz – Vocals & Bass
- Josh Weaver – Guitar
- Will Fiore – Guitar
- Evan Diprima – Drums