Fox Royale is an indie rock band from Joplin, Missouri, which has a population of about 53,000. On stage tonight are brothers Nathan and Caleb, and their friend Josh. The guitarist, Nathan, says he is married to a woman from Costa Rica, so he is trying to learn Spanish. He is very proud to have a 900 day streak on DuoLingo. 

To start the night, they play “Don’t Call Me When You’re Lonely”. This is their most popular track on Spotify with over 2.3 million streams. “Mary, pick up the phone, I’ll listen closely / Won’t you call me when you’re lonely? / Don’t lie and tell me I’m the only / One you call”. It’s a great song, but with these lyrics, maybe it should have been called “Won’t you call me when you’re lonely?” 

In some of the songs, Nathan overshares. The following song is a good example of that. It’s the 2023 single, “So Different”. “I like you / I like sex / Even though I know I’m not the best in bed”.

Nathan asks the crowd “Who is divorced?” A surprisingly large amount of people shout out. “Well, this song is about that”. This leads perfectly into “Blow This Up”. “Pretend like we got time for each other / Seems like we’re all fine / Someone’s always asking when I’ll blow this up / Just a matter of time”. It truly captures the end of a marriage with great lyrics.

Nathan talks about when he was younger, he had a crush on this girl that never wanted to hang alone. She would always invite her friends along. At the time, he thought she just wasn’t ready yet. But now he realizes she wasn’t interested in him. They go on to sing “Carnival Gods” about this. “I hate your friends, hate the way they talk / Thought tonight was only gonna be us”. 

Overall, it was a great 40 minutes that left the audience wanting more. Expect them to be back soon and continue to grow their audience. 

See a recent setlist here. 

Cost of a ticket: $22

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Exceptional

Rating Scale: Exceptional > Good Value > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney