WHEN Royal Blood were writing their first set of songs – which would later become their debut number one album – it was just two friends in a tiny room with a washing machine in the corner.

The north west has always been pretty receptive to the two-piece's success story and by November 2014 Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher were playing to a sold out crowd of 1,500 at The Ritz in Manchester.

Fast forward to present day and the hard rock duo have just played the biggest gig of their career at Manchester Arena – a 14-fold increase in crowd size.

If fans were delighted it was nothing compared to Kerr and Thatcher's own reaction.

They looked appreciative and a little nervous throughout and, through a big grin, Kerr said he was speechless about the whole affair.

How thankful and visibly thrilled they were made it a special night all round. They relished every moment up until the point they were even reluctant to leave the stage.

And despite the nervous energy, it was a evening of tight musicianship and chemistry that elevated all of the songs. 

What was staggering was how many hits the band have had on just two albums.

But it was the monster size riffs of their earlier work like Out of the Black, Come on Over and Figure It Out which sounded best in the arena setting.

Support band At The Drive-in praised Royal Blood for being a full-on rock band in the computer age.

And there is something pure about what they do: distilling rock down to its crucial elements.

It's amazing how big their sound is for just two people. The next generation of rock is in safe hands.