Royals is a pop punk band on the rise from the UK, with infectious energy and even catchier lyrics. Single by single, the guys are cementing their place in the music world, and are making waves with their newest track, “Worldwide Catastrophe,” out today! We caught up with Royals ahead of the release to chat about the new tune, their favorite projects, and visions for the future.
Photo courtesy of Royals
Photo courtesy of RoyalsRoyals is (from left to right):
Alex Baker, Tom Trowbridge, Luke Smithson, Tom Guildford, Will Sherlock
Melodic Mag: Who is who, and who does what in the band?
Royals: Luke Smithson – Vocals, Will Sherlock – Guitar/Backing Vocals, Alex Baker – Guitar, Tom Guildford – Bass, Tom Trowbridge – Drums
MM: On Spotify, it shows your fans are all over the world, from Australia to the US. Does it sometimes blow your mind to know that you have such a wide reach?
Royals: Absolutely! It’s mad to us to think that there are listeners out there in so many of these far away countries. We’re really lucky to be in an era where there is so much scope for smaller artists to get their music heard across the world, especially in these times when travel isn’t possible.
MM: Out of all of your tracks, which was the easiest to make? The hardest?
Royals: Easiest – “Still Trying.” The instrumental came together real quick and just flowed really well, and I (Luke) wrote the lyrics all in one sitting pretty easily without having to overthink anything. It was all just very real and in the moment.
Hardest – Probably one of our upcoming songs. I was under a lot of pressure to finish an extra song once we had decided we were recording an additional track, and although I had an instrumental about 90% done for said song, it was incredibly stressful to finish and to get all the lyrics finalized. The writing process was only just finished about one week before we had studio time arranged to record. Thankfully, it all came together in the last few days and is now one of our favorite songs as a band.
MM: What is the significance of the colorful, graphic design pattern used as the album art for your latest singles?
Royals: Each of our latest singles have a strong theme that is reflected in the color of the artwork, and you can actually find these themes in the small text on the artwork. Aaron Finch (designer) has absolutely killed it with these designs and they are all building up to something super cool.
MM: Who are some artists that inspire Royals?
Royals: State Champs, All Time Low, Between You and Me, Neck Deep, Stand Atlantic, Point North, Hot Milk, Seaway. We’re also individually influenced so much by other music, with many of us coming from heavier backgrounds in melodic hardcore and metalcore, so we have external influences outside of pop punk ranging from Architects to Children of Bodom to The 1975.
MM: What can you tell us about your upcoming single, “Worldwide Catastrophe?”
Royals: The song was actually written nearly a year ago, but obviously Covid-19 meant our recording was pushed back. It’s a strong message about the state of the world we live in and whether our generation can be the voice for change to make it a better place. It’s the first song to be released with our two new members (Tom & Tom!) too, which is really exciting for us.
MM: Is a debut album in the works?
Royals: There isn’t currently, but it’s definitely something that we want to strive for the in the near future. We’ve got a good few plans in the works for 2021, so we’re buzzing to watch that all unfold!
Photo courtesy of Royals
Photo courtesy of RoyalsMM: What are some things on the Royals bucket list?
Royals: We’d all love to get out to the US some day, if that was ever possible. In the long term, playing some major festivals, Warped Tour (if it ever comes back), and then maybe in the shorter term, Slam Dunk Festival, getting out to Europe. Being played on Kerrang! was one of our goals that we’re very pleased to say we are going to be ticking off, as “Worldwide Catastrophe” premiered on Alex Baker’s Fresh Blood Show, so hopefully we can keep on reaching our goals and setting new ones!
MM: Your music videos all have such creative themes. Is there a clear favorite amongst the band? Also, who are the dogs featured in the Fair-Weather Friend video/did they enjoy their music video debut?!
Royals: From a visual point of view, I think our new video for “Worldwide Catastrophe” is probably the favorite amongst the band, so it will be interesting to see what the world thinks of that! We actually had a stronger theme/idea for it which wasn’t possible due to Covid, so to have it come out as amazing as it did, we’re really happy. Shooting the video for “Up All Night” was probably the most fun that we’ve ever had on a shoot though!
Hah, those are Luke’s dogs in the video! Cali and Stella! Now you’ve said that, wondering if we should bring them back sometime…
MM: The reimagined version of “Up All Night” just had its one year anniversary! Were there any hesitations to release this track, or did you feel like the band was due for a track with a more stripped-back, intimate sound?
Royals: I don’t think any of us had any hesitations about this one! It’s the closest song that we have to a love song, so a stripped back version came pretty naturally. We all love reimaged/ reworked/acoustic versions of songs, and to be able to do our own was such a cool experience and we had great feedback. We look forward to doing it again in the future!
MM: Any final thoughts or shout-outs?
Royals: Wear your mask, get your jab, look after each other, and don’t be a dick. Let’s get this show back on the road – Royals want to see you in 2021!
We’d like to shout-out our bossman, Graeme from Warkworth Music, for sticking by us during this time and for all the help; Seb Barlow for helping us make our tunes banging; Aaron Finch for his outstanding design work; Oli Duncanson for shooting us the dopest video to go with this track; Konnor Walsh for absolutely killing it with the lights; and LJR Photography for the sweetest stills to go alongside it!
Thank you so much, Royals! We absolutely love the new music, and are so excited for the day when live shows and festivals return so that we will be able to see you on tour.
Royals’ new single, “Worldwide Catastrophe” is available on platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. You can check out the music video below.
