The pursuit of younger, dumb enjoyable defines Royel Otis. It’s uncommon they don’t appear to be they’re having heaps of it: of their current music movies, they don their greatest disguises, dressing up as bandits on the run (‘Motels’) and ‘50s promenade kings (‘I Wanna Dance With You’). The Sydney-based duo, made up of greatest friends Royel Madden and Otis Pavlovic, are seemingly intent on having as a lot of fun as potential, making massive cloudbursts of pop songs that view the world by way of a woozy, optimistic haze.
That spirit glimmers by way of the band’s third EP, ‘Couch Kings’. “Some music may be so critical, or deep and significant, however with us, everyone seems to be invited to the occasion,” Pavlovic just lately advised NME, expressing Royel Otis’ need to interrupt out of Australia’s indie scene and take their exuberant sense of self-belief to festivals throughout the globe, together with an look at Studying & Leeds in August. It isn’t precisely a revolutionary outlook, however throughout this seven-track assortment, the NME 100 graduates execute it with actual willpower.
Following 2022’s ‘Bar & Grill’ EP – which housed breakthrough hit ‘Oysters In My Pocket’ – ‘Couch Kings’ might solely be made by a band who’ve spent years listening to vibrant 2010s indie acts like The Drums and Grouplove, alongside baggier forebears like The Charlatans. Drawing from this pool of influences signifies that Royel Otis know learn how to craft simple hooks, acquainted sufficient to fulfill passive listening whereas concurrently hinting at a extra curious and expansive sound to return. Smelling faintly of SPF 50, the humid bounce of ‘Razor Enamel’ is concise and joyful, whereas the looping refrains of ‘Kool Assist’ are wrapped up in overdub. Even with its frenzied tempo and vocal results, the latter monitor nonetheless feels vibrant, not overstuffed.
‘Couch Kings’ is finally a transitional second for Royel Otis, even when it appears like a blended bag in locations. Not each track clicks – take the sluggish ‘Letter For Roy’, which slips into anonymity when positioned subsequent to the glistening, Seashore Boys-referencing ‘Going Kokomo’. At their very least, nonetheless, there may be all the time one thing inside every monitor to maintain your consideration; the melodies are modern and memorable, even within the moments the place they’re clouded by extra reasonably than enhanced by it.
The EP’s standout second is its title monitor, which pushes Royel Otis’ musical ethos of effectivity entrance and centre, stripping away any spare transferring components to focus solely on a large, starlit hook. Ridiculously catchy with out being gimmicky, it’s right here the place Madden and Pavlovic sound delighted to be nearing their full potential, and that giddiness will doubtless enhance tenfold once they actually nail the radiant and nimble sound they’re looking for.
Particulars
- Launch date: March 31
- Report label: OURNESS
