“Love Abuser (Save Me)” the latest hot single from Royal and the Serpent’s new EP “Happiness is an Inside Job” is a monster song. Usually Royal and the serpent falls under Indie Pop or Electropop, however, I would argue that this song screams rock. On my first pass through this song, I felt like I was transported back to 1993 listening to Hole opening up for Bush.
The song starts out with a single electric guitar with a little distortion. A chunky riff. Ryan’s lyrics hit home with some graphic imagery as the drums and bass come in lay down a groove right on the beat. The verses break down to just the electric and Ryan singing, then a big wall of sound with the chorus piping in hot. “Save me” keeps playing over and over again. Great hook here. My favorite lyric in the song is “Cause we’re both fucked up and I need you tonight”. Killer lyric. You can really feel the pain in this song. The lead singer has been through some stuff in her life (speculating), but if not, she’s a great actor. I felt like these lyrics were coming from personal introspection. The song ends as “Save me” is repeated over and over with big chunky guitars, big drums, big bass. Great way to end this big tune.
I’m going to dive into the rest of this EP and see what else is here. If this gem is any indication of what this EP has to offer, then I’m in for a good hour or so.
About the Artist
At the age of 18, Santiago moved to Los Angeles, where she worked as a bartender in a restaurant. She has credited encouragement from a co-worker, who later became her first manager, for motivating her to pursue a professional career as a musician.
In 2017, Santiago independently released “Temperance”, her debut single under the stage name Royal & the Serpent. On her moniker, she has explained that “‘Royal & the Serpent’ translates to ‘Me + My Ego'”. In 2018, she released her second single, “Together”, and was featured on the song “Wicked” by music producer Tommee Profitt. By the end of 2019, she had signed with Atlantic Records.
“Overwhelmed”, Royal & the Serpent’s first single on Atlantic, was released in June 2020, and her debut EP Get a Grip was released in October. That year, she joined English singer Yungblud‘s Weird Time of Life virtual tour as a supporting act. Royal & the Serpent’s second EP Searching for Nirvana was released in June 2021. In January 2022, she featured as a guest vocalist on “pity party” by Stand Atlantic. Her third EP, IF I DIED WOULD ANYONE CARE, was released on January 28th 2022.
