The Royal Hounds - Low Class Songs For High Class People (2019)

There’s nothing wrong with listening to songs with serious themes. You certainly have a lot of options for that. However, sometimes it’s nice to listen to some music just because it’s fun. If you had to describe Low Class Songs for High Class People by The Royal Hounds with just one word, fun would be an excellent choice.

You get the fun vibe right away with the opener “Chinese Buffet”. Scott Hinds plays a rockabilly bass line as he sings about all the items on the Chinese buffet (including crab legs if you’re lucky enough). Meanwhile, the pedal steel gives it a honky-tonk sound. It’s a fun song about dinner that will get you singing along.

Between the driving beat by Scott “Bramble” Billingsley, the bass line, and the clean guitar picking, It’s hard not to think about Reverend Horton Heat when you hear the melody of “Pizza Party”. This is a short song that will get you dancing as you listen to the lyrics which are suggestive in the same way as “Guacamole” by Texas Tornadoes.

While it’s clear that the band doesn’t take itself too seriously, the guys do show off their chops with two instrumental tunes. “Manteiga Braganca” is a real foot-stomper with some lightning-fast guitar picking by Matheus Canteri as well as a rhythm that makes it impossible to remain still. “Pororoca” isn’t quite as uptempo, but it’s still fun to listen to. With its twangy surf sound, this song brings Southern Culture on the Skids to mind.

If you like old-fashioned truckin’ songs, you’re in luck because this album includes “Road Scholar”. This is a song about a guy who drops out of school to become a truck driver who knows “every street in the U.S.A.” The pedal steel player gets to show off a bit in the instrumental break while the tempo of the song is pretty well suited to the subject matter. If you were a trucker, this would be a pretty good tune to hear while you drive.

From surf to honky-tonk to psychobilly (“Tweakers from Outer Space”), this album takes you on a bit of a musical journey. No matter the style, it’s hard not to smile when you put this album. The Royal Hounds forgo gravity for fun, and they do it very well. ~Gary Schwind