Following on from their highly praised debut album, ‘Shaking Hips And Crashing Cars,’ Welsh quartet, The Royston Club, will release their sophomore album – ‘Songs For The Spine’ - on August 8^th, proving they are a force to be reckoned with. 

Having already established their status in the UK Indie scene, supporting the likes of Kasabian and The Lathums, The Royston Club show that they are about to be in amongst the big leagues. 

The entire album rings true to the band's diverse influences, including post-punk, new wave, and alternative rock music. The opening track ‘Shivers,’ affirms the band's deserved place in the current music scene, and with nods to shoegaze and early The 1975, the guitar-driven track opens the album loudly and confidently, showing promising signs of what’s yet to come. The track carries a nostalgic tone, like a song from an early 2000s coming-of-age film, the sign of a fantastic indie song. Take, Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging, for example: one of the most iconic movies from that period, with an outstanding soundtrack filled with indie rock. That familiar sound is replicated on ‘Shivers,’ and ‘The Patch Where Nothing Grows,’ which was released as a single on August 8^th, 2024 – exactly a year before the band will release ‘Songs For The Spine'. This project has been in the making for a long time, and has indeed been a long time coming. 

Rather than simply releasing a second album, The Royston Club is setting out to prove they are playing an entirely different game this time and are leagues above themselves with this record. Where ‘Crowbar’ has a familiar sound, like previous releases from the band, tracks like ‘Glued To The Bed,’ ‘Cariad,’ - a nod to their Welsh heritage, and ‘Spinning,’ show a new strength for the band. These slowed down tracks carry a melodic power and exceptional build-ups, with ‘Spinning’ sounding especially Radiohead influenced, the band are finding themselves on new, comfortable territories, furthering their talents and chemistry as a band. It seems that whatever they try out works exceptionally well. 

The album, as a whole, carries a perfect blend of classic indie music, slow ballads and upbeat festival songs, further securing their place in the current indie scene. The album flows exceptionally well, with each song carefully selected in its place, from ‘30-20,’ to ‘Spinning’ to ‘Through The Cracks,’ displaying the band's expert knowledge in their sound already. In the two years since their debut release, they have grown massively, and continue to gain even more traction every day, slowly becoming a household name for anyone who is a music fan. 

The album’s highlights, by far, are ‘Shiver,’ ‘Cariad,’ ‘Spinning,’ and the closing track, ‘The Ballad of Glen Campbell,’ which is a massive six-minute track, showcasing the band to the absolute best of their abilities. The variation in sound across the record shows the potential that they carry already, and they keep getting better and bigger. These massively powerful tracks show that, despite their status, The Royston Club are going to be more than an indie band. Their strength and confidence in their sound is immense and is certainly taking them places. They seem to be playing every UK festival this summer, and with the imminent release of the album, it is clear that the band are having a fantastic 2025. The sound they carry with them thus far is going to continue to grow, and this album will prove that The Royston Club are certainly ones to keep an eye on.