Royal Headache

Think Buzzcocks, but '70s-ish white-guy-pop-soul vocals. From Australia (Sydney). Energetic punk/garage with well-crafted short songs, a nice formula they stick to. You know the drill. Everything's worth a spin, but check out the detailed tracks below.

1 (2:11) ** Kinetic sugar-rush punk, guitar like a guy getting electrocuted. Singer sounds a little '90s-top-40, with shades of blue-eyed soul-- Sudden ending,
2 (1:44) ** Stormy swirl of guitar opening; muddy and minor-key, but the same hooky speed-punk.
3 (1:33) Sunny soul singing, kinda a Van Morrison at-his-sunniest vibe.
4 (2:15) *** Dense thrushing of guitars... yelping soul vocals, harshness cuts in, edgy saw of a guitar solo, and it ends.
5 (1:40) ** Crazy energy, pulsing overlapping guitars, and freak-out punky vocals... just bulging with energy in every axis... Wow, quick.
6 (2:29) Instrumental, at a more determined pace, pretty cool but plodding safely...
7 (2:11) [FCC, apparently. I didn't hear it, but the case warns.] ** Thrippy guitars at all deliberate speed, vocals chug along.
8 (2:42) A lower, blewsier register, but the lack of the wall of punk guitar doesn't do the vocals a favor. Eh, this is a dud, relatively. Skip.
9 (2:25) ** Sensible speed with the guitars, but reverbed-up vocals have pain-- great hooks, and crazy bridge, drives all the way.
10 (2:40) * Surfy strummy instrumental, leisurely but sweet...
11 (2:31) *** Again, relaxed. 'Honey joy; honey joy..." the harsh edge is off, but there's a great energy and great hooks here-- garagey and accelerating all to the end...
12 (2:24) ** More of the Buzzcocks wall of guitar... classic punky soul vocals, against crazy thrumming and drumming and energy... "Take pity on us..."

-Hervey Okkles