There’s probably never been a B-sides/rarities album that’s been for anyone but fans. They’re obtuse collections, meant for people already interested in a particular band’s music, not for general consumption. This, of course, makes for an intimate record, one that is worthy of space right next to the studio albums and the like ”“ if the song are any good. Luckily, Royal City’s 1999-2004 is such a collection, for the most part anyway. The B-sides/rarities album features originals as well as covers. The former succeed, one of the latter does not. RC’s cover of the Strokes’ ‘Is This It’ is just odd. They take an uptempo garage rock song and turn it into an awkward acoustic, quasi-country number. The bass line ”“ the most important part of the song ”“ is completely ignored and, thus, the original’s bouncy nature is gone. RC’s version is just”¦.there. Add to that the fact that Julian Casablancas’ performance has attitude. It has to, considering that he sings a line like “Can’t you see I’m trying/ I don’t even like it/ I just lied to get to your apartment.” But when Aaron Riches sings the same line it loses most, if not all, of its meaning because he does it in a ¾ time sing-songy manner that sounds like the template for the Kidz Bop version. It’s simply a head-scratcher why the band would apply its waltz-esque sound to a Strokes song. RC’s take on Iggy Pop’s ‘Success’ ”“ renamed ‘Here Comes Success’ for no apparent reason ”“ fares better, mainly due to the fact that the original swings like RC’s hallmark sound. RC’s version is much cleaner, both in execution and production which takes away from the Pop’s original but it’s not maddeningly strange like ‘Is This It.’ The Royal City originals are the actual reason for fans to own this collection. ‘Can’t You Hear Me Calling’ is a beautiful, yet mournful track with only acoustic guitar and harmonica that features tortured lyrics like, “Baby, can’t you hear me calling, calling after you?/ My lungs burn but I can’t get through/ The cigarettes in the ashtray, the underground drift on the subway/ Baby, I died of thirst on my way/ Oh, but you didn’t hear me calling, calling after you.” Elsewhere, the band shows some humor on the straight-up folksy ‘Dog Song’ which is simply the narrator assuring that while his dog may bark loudly, it’s still a kind dog ”“ just “be nice and don’t cuss at him at all.” Then there’s the best song of the disc, ‘In The Autumn.’ The cut is about as old-school country as the band has ever and will ever be. The chorus, though rather inane, is nonetheless the best melody here and one that will stick in your head for weeks. With only three albums in a span of five years, Royal City 1999-2004 doesn’t seem like a cash grab considering that the band never really “made it.” Its fans were of the purest order and this set is for them as a sort of eulogy for a great lost band. If you’ve ever been a Royal City fan at any point, you’d do well to give this a try. 81% There’s probably never been a B-sides/rarities album that’s been for anyone but fans. They’re obtuse collections, meant for people already interested in a particular band’s music, not for general consumption. This, of course, makes for an intimate record, one that is worthy of space right next to the studio albums and the like ”“ if the song are any good. Luckily, Royal City’s 1999-2004 is such a collection, for the most part anyway. The B-sides/rarities album features originals as well as covers. The former succeed, one of the latter does not. RC’s cover of the Strokes’ ‘Is This It’ is just odd. They take an uptempo garage rock song and turn it into an awkward acoustic, quasi-country number. The bass line ”“ the most important part of the song ”“ is completely ignored and, thus, the original’s bouncy nature is gone. RC’s version is just”¦.there. Add to that the fact that Julian Casablancas’ performance has attitude. It has to, considering that he sings a line like “Can’t you see I’m trying/ I don’t even like it/ I just lied to get to your apartment.” But when Aaron Riches sings the same line it loses most, if not all, of its meaning because he does it in a ¾ time sing-songy manner that sounds like the template for the Kidz Bop version. It’s simply a head-scratcher why the band would apply its waltz-esque sound to a Strokes song. RC’s take on Iggy Pop’s ‘Success’ ”“ renamed ‘Here Comes Success’ for no apparent reason ”“ fares better, mainly due to the fact that the original swings like RC’s hallmark sound. RC’s version is much cleaner, both in execution and production which takes away from the Pop’s original but it’s not maddeningly strange like ‘Is This It.’The Royal City originals are the actual reason for fans to own this collection. ‘Can’t You Hear Me Calling’ is a beautiful, yet mournful track with only acoustic guitar and harmonica that features tortured lyrics like, “Baby, can’t you hear me calling, calling after you?/ My lungs burn but I can’t get through/ The cigarettes in the ashtray, the underground drift on the subway/ Baby, I died of thirst on my way/ Oh, but you didn’t hear me calling, calling after you.” Elsewhere, the band shows some humor on the straight-up folksy ‘Dog Song’ which is simply the narrator assuring that while his dog may bark loudly, it’s still a kind dog ”“ just “be nice and don’t cuss at him at all.” Then there’s the best song of the disc, ‘In The Autumn.’ The cut is about as old-school country as the band has ever and will ever be. The chorus, though rather inane, is nonetheless the best melody here and one that will stick in your head for weeks.With only three albums in a span of five years, Royal City 1999-2004 doesn’t seem like a cash grab considering that the band never really “made it.” Its fans were of the purest order and this set is for them as a sort of eulogy for a great lost band. If you’ve ever been a Royal City fan at any point, you’d do well to give this a try. 81%