Since releasing their debut album Shaking Hips and Crashing Cars in 2023, The Royston Club have played sold-out shows across the UK, entertaining crowds with their catchy lyrics and contagious energy. Almost a year since the first single was released, and three months since the album was announced, Songs For The Spine is here.
Containing ten tracks, the album ranges from the anthemic indie rock that the band is known for to heavier, grittier songs, demonstrating a new side to their music.
The opening track, ‘Shivers’, was released as a single in April and offers a dramatic introduction which crescendos, echoing the band’s usual sound, while simultaneously introducing a newer, grittier vibe. This is followed by ‘The Patch Where Nothing Grows’, a catchy track, layered with colourful metaphors in true Royston Club style. ‘Crowbar’ – the first completely new song on the album – is jam-packed with edgy guitar riffs and surging instrumentals.
A unique and dynamic take on the aftermath of a breakup, ‘Glued To The Bed’ is a prime example of The Royston Club doing what they do best, before offering the listener another slightly heavier, more ballad-like song in ‘Cariad’. ‘30-20’ brings to mind early 2000s pop-punk, with its edgy guitars and energetic drumline, which are immediately contrasted by the pensive introduction to ‘Spinning’, a beautiful song about overthinking, which replicates the cycles of anxiety through the tidal instrumentals and reflective lyricism.
As the album builds up to its conclusion during ‘Through The Cracks’ and ‘Curses & Spit’, The Royston Club once again demonstrate how they are expanding their boundaries musically, while still maintaining their trademark indie rock style.
The final, and longest, track on the album is titled ‘The Ballad of Glen Campbell’, a piano-heavy ballad filled with thoughtful lyrics. Musings such as “there’s comfort in the panic of watching love blur and skew” are complemented by moments of quiet and a surprisingly tender piano break before building back up to the song’s climax. The final part of the song layers the dramatic instrumentals with semi-inaudible snippets of Tom talking, before returning once again to just the piano and Tom’s voice saying “darlin, that’s quite enough”.
Overall, it is clear that for The Royston Club, the only way to go is up. As the venues get bigger, so do the songs, and this album is a brilliant example of how they’re taking that growth in their stride, to continue creating music that both they and the fans will love.
