High
Royal Headache
What’s Your Rupture?, 2015
Over the years the Sydney punk-rock four-piece Royal Headache have transitioned from playing underground warehouse shows in the inner west to taking the stage at the Sydney Opera House last year to infamy (the police were called after 60 fans swarmed the stage during their performance). They are known for their frenzied shows and frayed-edges style.
Though Royal Headache’s new album, High, is a departure for the pub-punk band, they wade into more soulful territory with lead singer Shogun’s vocals being allowed to shine. This is music with the force and chaotic energy of punk complemented by the moving vocals and emotion of soul. Shogun’s vocals accordingly can transition from punk-shouty to controlled crooner. This album is more pared back and polished, less chaotic than their 2011 self-titled album, a more mature sound for RH.
“High”, the lead single, is the kind of energetic shout-along Royal Headache are known for. It’s a song about obsessive love, and even the whole album seems to have an undertone of heartbreak and loneliness. Shogun said in an interview: “It’s about falling in love in a disastrous circumstance, putting your faith in something that might destroy you, and not being afraid because it’s one of the only things that ever felt good.”
The ballad “Wouldn’t You Know” is a soulful song and is new territory for the band, with the addition of keyboard on this song (and others). It’s a melodic and tender song of love and loss. “Garbage” is more of a classic punk song with energetic guitar and aggressive vocals. Shogun roars and growls, “you belong in the garbage.” They also use samples of glass smashing and destruction in the intro to the song.
High is an album about exorcising inner demons and pain. Indeed, Shogun said in interview he “pictured [himself] chain-smoking in a mental institution for the rest of [his] life”. Yet this album is ultimately optimistic, like “Little Star”. This album will have you jumping up and down, and pondering loss and loneliness, but still, in the end, it gives you the sense everything’s going to be all right.
