10,000 beers and 28 years: The Royal Bliss Saga
March 11th, 2010
From death-defying car crashes to struggles with addiction to free falls from balconies, Royal Bliss can talk rock-and-roll tragedy with the best of them
by John Stafford
People stood shoulder-to-shoulder on Valentine's Day eve at the Green Pig Pub, awkwardly jostling for position in anticipation of Salt Lake City's own hard rock phenomenon: Royal Bliss. The drone of disjointed conversations gave way to raucous applause as the band took stage. Raising a glass of beer high above his head, lead singer Neal Middleton offered a toast to the hometown crowd, beaming a grin that seemed to say, "we made it."
Commercial success didn't come easy for Royal Bliss, nor did it happen overnight. From death-defying car crashes to struggles with addiction to free falls from balconies to reconstructive surgery, the band can talk rock and roll tragedy with the best of them, but what's truly remarkable is the way they responded to this adveristy. After a tumultuous 10 years, the group notoriously nicknamed, "the unluckiest band in rock," finally made the big time, signing with Capitol records in 2007.
tenacity that rocketed the band to national fame
The band formed in 1997 when guitarist Chris Harding heard Middleton playing a solo gig at a local pizza parlor. Shortly after, Harding asked Middleton to join his band. "I told Chris I would love to sing in a band and he invited me to jam," Middleton said in the band's biography. "That night we clicked and wrote four songs."
Middleton soon dropped out of college and quit his day job to focus on music. Royal Bliss began playing gigs throughout the west and built up an impressive fan base, which allowed them to sell more than 8,000 CDs on their own, according to their biography.
By 2004 Royal Bliss was gaining momentum. They had released four albums and their onstage tenacity, captivating hooks and passionate delivery started to generate interest from major labels. Then tragedy struck. Middleton nearly fell to his death from a fourth story balcony in southern California. Doctors told him that he would never walk again.
An accident of this magnitude would be enough to put most bands on a permanent hiatus. Not so for Royal Bliss. Not even prescribed paralysis could hold Middleton back from his dream. After months of grueling rehabilitation, Middleton miraculously learned how to walk again and the group reentered the recording studio more dedicated than ever.
Unfortunately, Royal Bliss was far from overcoming the trademark misfortunes that would earn them their undesirable nickname. In an interview with Real Rock 103.9, Middleton reflected on the series of harrowing events that threatened to derail the band. "All of us went through some horrible stuff," he said. "My guitar player put his ski through his face. My drummer rolled his car five times and knocked up his ex-girlfriend. Taylor broke his leg. We got sued by our old manager; got sued by our old producer. This was all in six months and it was really tough, but the fact that we made it through that kind of solidified us. It was like, "Alright we're going to do this. If this isn't going to break us up nothing is."
After facing more misfortune in six months than most people face in their entire lives, the band emerged from the studio to release the aptly titled "After the Chaos" and "After the Chaos II" in 2005 and 2006 respectively. Not surprisingly, both albums resonate with a gripping catharsis, and aficionados have described "After the Chaos II" as "Royal Bliss at its best."
In a genre that has more often than not been characterized by the outrageous antics of self-worshiping prima donnas, it's refreshing to see a band that hasn't strayed far from their roots. Though the group has had opportunities to leave Salt Lake to pursue music in more potentially lucrative locales, they have stayed put in their hometown. "It's always been our goal to come from Salt Lake City, because we believe the talent in Salt Lake deserves to be noticed."
Though the band's major 2008 release, "Life in Between," cracked the Billboard charts, they have not sacrificed their down-to-earth appeal. They still play the local bar scene that facilitated their rise to success in front of fans who still crowd the front row to sing every word at the top of their lungs.
"After 10,000 beers and 28 years, I've finally figured it out," muses Middleton in the band's alcohol-drenched anthem "I Was Drunk." "There's plenty of time just to settle on down." Given the band's recent successes and their knack for the astonishingly dramatic, it's hard to imagine that they'll be doing that anytime soon.
Learn more about Royal Bliss at their official website:
Royal Bliss plays every Wednesday night at A Bar Named Sue. Photos for this story were taken from the Green Pig Pub in Downtown Salt Lake City.
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