
Crickets, stoners and ghosts.
-- The RG's --
03/02/2019
Stijn Daneels

Album genres:
■ | Stoner rock |
■ | Noise Rock |
■ | alternative rock |
Album artists:
■ | Wouter Vandaele | Vocals, guitar |
■ | Stijn Decoene | Drums |
■ | Jens Vanhee | Bass |
Review written by Glenn Van Bockstale.
The RG’s are a Belgian alternative rock band formed in
2013 as a two-piece band before bassist Jens joined in a year later. In 2015
they brought out their title-less debut album and recently we’ve got the band’s
second album “The Cricket Sound” sent to us by the band’s frontman Wouter.
Thanks a lot, man!
The album begins with “Bored Ass Tony,” a fast
pounding opening track that immediately shows one of the main features of the
RG’s sound. Which is how the heavy beats play alongside Wouter’s surprisingly
relaxed vocals, it’s a nice contrast that continues throughout this release. Up
next is the song “Stevie, The Guy Who Didn’t Pay Us,” a tune that further
expands on the high-octane stoner rock from the previous track. In fact, the RG’s sound reminds me of Ghost, specifically in the band’s frequent use of
operatic melodies and the calm, almost psychedelic vocals. But what makes the RG’s
style different from the Swedish clergy is in their faster paced and more
stoner and noise rock oriented material. Then comes the album’s title track, another
hard rocking tune and with several bass lines that, in fact, sound just like
crickets. Go figure!
The album’s fourth track, “Dirty Allen,” a slightly
slower and more meditative song with some high-pitched chanting throughout the
track. Up next is “All Day,” one of my favorite tunes on this release, a
swinging and very atmospheric stoner rock n’ roll song about self-reflection
and redemption. Then comes “Keep Your Secrets,” another thunderous stoner track
with a surprisingly catchy chorus being sung alongside frantic riffs. Track
seven, “Dead Inside,” is more light-hearted and alternative oriented while
still having a noise rock edge. The album’s penultimate song is “My Friend Ed”
and is the longest track on this release, clocking in at over 7-minutes but The
RG’s manage to keep things interesting with their frequent tempo changes, mixture
of alternative, stoner, noise and grunge rock and a lengthy instrumental part
in the middle of the song. And finally there’s “Smack Your Neighbour,” a nice, intimate
track that functions as a nice cool down from this sweet album.
I’ll admit that stoner rock isn’t quite my cup of tea
but I’m pleased to say that the RG’s second album presented this particular
subgenre in a very pleasant and engaging way. This release has plenty of high energy
moments and parts wherein you can sit back and relax to the howling melodies. It’s
kind of like Ghost but with stoner and noise added to the mix and it’s a successful
combo. Check out the The Cricket Sound’s title track here!
75/100