Royel Otis, Salarymen @ Lion Arts Factory, Adelaide 1/3/2024
There certainly is a buzz surrounding Sydney guitar pop duo Royel Otis playing to a full house at Lion Arts Factory who are all believing the same thing that they want to be riding this wave that these rising stars are on. Good luck getting a ticket as their tour is completely sold out. Royel Otis are Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic and their new album Pratts And Pain is something to be genuinely excited about as it is loaded with some seriously great songs. There is no shadow of a doubt that they will be playing much bigger venues next tour as the word continues to spread like wild fire about this band.
Salarymen opened and were really well received by the big crowd there early. Sydney-based duo Renee de la Motte and Thom Eagleton are making all the right noises and are making quite the impression on the indie scene. If there is any band to keep an eye out on this year it will be Salarymen. Hot damn! Singles Echoes and Young Guns are absolute gems.
Great atmosphere in the room as we were all packed in like sardines trying to get a good view of proceedings and emerging in to a haze of blue lights Royel Otis were straight in to it with Sonic Boom followed by Velvet. It was very clear early that they had already won the hearts and minds of this crowd. Bull Breed and I Wanna Dance with You had the crowd moving and Fried Rice was a classic and will be a set list staple in future shows. The band didn’t have to say a lot but were full of praise selling out their first headline show in Adelaide.
Their set might of clocked in at fifty five minutes but this is one show we will be talking about for a while to come and in future saying something “do you remember seeing Royel Otis at Lion Arts Factory?” Loaded with more killers songs it was Motels and Foam followed by the infectious and catchy songs of Adored and Sofa King. The energy was fever pitched on Triple J Like A Version cover Murder On The Dancefloor. The crowd went absolutely nuts and the room was just a sea of people jumping and singing caught in the whirlwind of energy of this song.
Finishing the set on Oysters In My Pocket the band disappeared back stage for a minute to towel off, it was like a sauna in the venue, and the crowd started the chant for one more song. The band returned to play another banger in Kool Aid to wrap up a great show showcasing two great bands that have a massive 2024 ahead of them.
Live Review By Rob Lyon