Words: Ken Magno
Royel Otis sold out ‘Coming Home’ show, packing out Sydney’s iconic venue to the brim and delivering a show that solidifies the Byron duo’s place as one of Australia’s best current acts. Catapulting from local heroes to global superstardom thanks to their ARIA topping debut album ‘Pratts & Pain’, as well as a sold-out world tour beside it, Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic were building up quite the reputation – and one that they easily proved they could live up to.
The night kicked off with drums kicking into the opening beat for their track ‘Heading for the Door’, one of the many great tracks off their recent debut album. The band exploded into view with the boy’s front and center, behind them a gigantic statue of a prawn towering over them (an audience member yelling out “Did they steal the Ballina prawn?”).
The night had numerous highlights, from anthemic tunes such as ‘Motels’ and ‘Kool-Aid’, to their viral hit cover of Sophie Ellis-Baxter’s 2001 hit single ‘Murder on the Dancefloor’, which quickly received much praise from the audience. Royel Otis’ discography perfectly blends together aspects of Australia’s iconic indie surf-rock sound with elements of synth-pop to create their vibrant sound, with Otis’ soft and dreamy vocals perfectly harmonized with Royel’s expressive guitars. The band closed out with their hit single ‘Oysters in My Pocket’ being coming back with an encore of their cover of the Cranberries ‘Linger’, a moment that seemed to freeze time itself as the audience quietened down to a hush before joining the duo for the chorus, the line “I’m in so deep, you know I’m such a fool for you” echoing through the Hordern and etching itself into the walls like a sonic memory, closing out the year perfectly.
2024 has been nothing but stellar for Royel Otis, and with three more appearances before the year closes out with an impressive festival run at Lost Paradise, Wildlands and Beyond the Valley, the future only looks bigger and brighter for the homegrown Aussie heroes.
Royel Otis
