1932229_639240986148316_1937722963_nHa, ‘optimistic’, get it?  It’s funny!  Oh, you have no idea why, do you?  That’s because you need to go purchase/download the brand new Young Beautiful In A Hurry album “Royalty” and check the song listings.

Ok, pardon my pun, and let’s talk about this band.  It is primarily made up (at least on this album) of Brendan McCreary, Pete Griffin, and Brian Taylor, with additional backing vocals provided by Chris Norton and Raya Yarbrough. Recently they’ve been featured on SyFy’s Defiancelead vocalist/guitar player/keyboards Brendan McCreary and bassist Pete Griffin were also main contributors on the Knights of Badassdom score, as well as Starz’s Black Sails.  Brendan has also been a featured vocalist/musician for CW’s 90210, Fox’s Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Eureka, NBC’s Trauma, The Cape and Human Target, The Walking Dead, and fronts The Johnny Vatos Boingo Dance Party, alongside reunited members of the iconic 80′s band Oingo Boingo.  Hmm, McCreary you say?  Why yes!  Brendan is the brother of Emmy winner Bear McCreary, and the two work together often.  Collaborations for the siblings such as the Freddie Mercury tribute concert and Battlestar Galactica live concerts have resulted in spectacular music.  Bear is one of the two associate producers (the other is the band’s manager Barbara Leung) on “Royalty”, directed one of YBH’s music videos (my personal favorite because QUEEN), and joined the band for a song at their recent release party in Los Angeles at Cement Studios.  (I totally admit my photographering skills for live music seems to be mostly turning into black and white stuff, as well as setting a personal goal to take at LEAST 50 frames of the drummer next time, sorry guys.  BUT they did have at least two different drummers, making me want to ask if the first one was actually John “Stumpy” Pepys or Peter “James” Bond turning into a green globule during a show.)

All the neon colors at the release party!

I’ve now seen YBH perform live twice, both times I was immensely impressed by their energy, presence, and neon colors.  No really, there was a lot of purple, pink, and orange Reeboks going on.  But I digress.  Lemme tell you about the music, because that’s what this CD is in my lap.  When I listen to something, I need to have one of three thoughts in time with it: fight, fornicate, or cry.  I guess we can trade out the middle one for “drive fast”, because I seem to do that more on a daily basis than anything else.  Sing-along-ability is always important for the radio masses too, and you definitely get that with ‘Royalty’.

The track listing for the album is:

  1.  Stuck On The Girl
  2.  Oh! Future
  3.  Optimistic
  4.  Hot Mess
  5. The Worst Is Yet To Come
  6.  Royalty
  7.   Casual

“Stuck On The Girl” also happens to have a pretty nifty video  and caused me to suffer from the GODDAMNIT EARWORM sickness that seems to happen when a catchy hook/good chorus happen.  I love to listen to music when I drive around, I mean who doesn’t, and I find with the right audio, my mood can change drastically from the traffic-centric frustration, to windows down singing along with abandon this song inspires.  (Maybe it helps that I live in San Francisco, and there is a line about “The City”.)  Sort of a weird funky awesome Billy Joel inspired keyboard riffs opens “Oh! Future” along with the line “I’m playing your games, I came in a wild one now I’m coming out tame’, giving you the impression that while young, YBH has been around the musical block a few times and come out with a cautious but aggressive knowing of their sound and abilities.

I could write over and over again how fantastic Brendan’s voice is; he can croon, McCartney scream, do Freddie Mercury operaetic runs, and follow in Michael Jackson rhythms without missing a note on “Optimistic”.  My guilty pleasure from the album is “Hot Mess”, every release should have at least one of these types of attitudy pop rock refrains.   While comparing the sound to other contemporary bands seems a might unfair, the opening piano of “The Worst Is Yet To Come” is so descendant of the style of Muse that I can’t help but point it out.  THAT’S NOT SAYING I DON’T ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS POWER BALLAD OF THE ALBUM, because I do.  The ‘hard luck story’ mentioned in this tome comes across both sad and triumphant, a warning and statement of fact in tandem.  The title track “Royalty” remits clap along sections, smoothly arenaceous breakdowns, and proclamations of pretty princesses taking you home.  “Casual” closes out the album, darkly romantic, melancholic and seductive, the cello-evocative guitar and Annie Lennox breathless vocals does it’s job by making you want to put the entire EP on repeat for hours on end.

LinZee Nicole singing with YBH

The songwriting prowess is fantastic, there isn’t a track I don’t find myself appreciating the well rounded hooks, riffs and lyrics.  The studio producer should also be commended, the warmth and reality of the audio without the overwhelming use of autotune and single button ‘studio magic’ is so damn refreshing that I could cry with relief.  I honestly feel the album SHOULD have been titled ‘Optimistic’, because that is the main emotion I’m left with.  If you have the chance, see them live (with female backing vocalist LinZee Nicole *dreamy sigh*) and experience the impressive and energetic performances they give.  The album is also available for a listen on GoodMusicAllDay.

Five out of five raised lighters for “Royalty”.

ABOUT >> Mary Anne Butler
  • ACCOUNT NAME >> Mab
  • BIO >> Mary Anne Butler (Mab) is a reporter and photographer from San Francisco California. She is a lifelong geek, huge music nerd, occasionally cosplays at conventions, does Renaissance Faires, and in general lives the life of a True Believer. She may be short, but she makes up for it with a loud voice.
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