Royal Blood On 10 Years Of Their Debut Album: ‘It doesn’t feel old, it feels fresh’
Royal Blood have spoken to NME about the tenth anniversary of their hugely successful self-titled debut album ahead of the release of the deluxe edition, out tomorrow (16 August).
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Bassist Mike Kerr revealed that the album remains a favourite of the duo. “It’s still a record that we live and breathe really, at every show, he said. “At least half of it we consider a fundamental part of our live show still. This decade coming around and looking back there have been a few songs we’ve dusted off and put back in the set which have been a bit of a blast from the past, but it doesn’t feel old, it feels fresh. Because we play songs from that record still, they’ve also grown with us and how we play them live has changed with us. They’ve adapted themselves a little bit. It all feels very fresh still, it doesn’t feel like an old relic or anything like that.”
Drummer Ben Thatcher also looked back on the band’s celebrity fans. “When people like Jimmy Page would turn up to our shows, or Lars [Ulrich, drummer] from Metallica. Those moments where we’re just two kids from small towns outside of Brighton, and did not ever expect to ever see Lars Ulrich at the dressing room door. Or Jimmy Page coming to our first show in New York, moments like that were pinch yourself: ‘What is going on here?’”
Kerr elaborated on the moment the band crossed paths with the Led Zeppelin guitarist, “We heard the rumour he might be coming, and it was at the Mercury lounge in New York which holds about 200 people, so it’s on the intimate side. I just remember walking onto stage, and in that venue [with] the dressing room you have to walk through the crowd to get to the stage, and I walked out the dressing room door and I literally brushed shoulders when I walked past, and was overcome with a wave of excitement and fear.
“I also have the memory of opening up the show, playing that first song keeping my head down, and when I plucked up the courage to look up [and] gauge what his reaction [would be], and I just saw him with a big smile on his face, loving it. That moment will never leave me.”