Hickey (album)

Hickey
Studio album by Royel Otis
Released	22 August 2025
Length	38:25
Label	Ourness Capitol
Producer	Julian Bunetta Chris Collins Omer Fedi J Lloyd Lydia Kitto Royel Otis Blake Slatkin
Royel Otis chronology
Pratts & Pain (2024) Hickey (2025)
Singles from Hickey
"Moody" Released: 9 May 2025 [1] "Car" Released: 27 June 2025 [2] "Say Something" Released: 25 July 2025 [3] "Who's Your Boyfriend" Released: 22 August 2025 [4]

Hickey is the second studio album by the Australian guitar-pop duo Royel Otis. It was announced in June 2025 and released on 22 August 2025, via Ourness and Capitol Records. ^[5]

Explaining the album title, Royel Otis said "…because love bites harder than any other emotion in the world." ^[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Clash	7/10 [7]
The Independent	[8]
NME	[9]

Alex Peters from When the Horn Blows called the album "their most emotionally charged yet" saying "the duo have delivered yet another outstanding body of work, one that captures the sting of love lost without sacrificing musical vibrancy. Hickey isn't just an album about heartbreak. It’s about the strange, beautiful tension of feeling both broken and alive at the same time." ^[10]

Helen Brown from The Independent said the duo "come off as problematic exes on their second album" saying "You can really relish these songs as outpourings of vulnerability, confusion and anger. They could be perfect to help lovely folk to dance away the pain of messy breakups. But you don’t have to strain too hard to hear them on the incel's playlist either." ^[8]

Liberty Dunworth from NME said "Throughout the tracklist, guitarist Royel Madden and singer Otis Pavlovic proudly lean into what they do best. Woozy guitar lines are out in full force, accentuated by shimmering synths and intriguing drum patterns, while Pavlovic's hazy vocals add the finishing touch, making each track instantly recognisable." ^[9]

Sam Walker-Smart from Clash said "Following 2024's Pratts & Pain , hickey doesn't tamper much with their winning formula. If anything, things feel slightly grander and more deliberate this time around." Walker-Smart continued "Once again, they've landed on the magic formula: that coming-of-age, memory-soaked, danceable indie we can't help but love." ^[7]

Track listing

Hickey track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"I Hate This Tune"	Royel Maddell Otis Pavlovic Blake Slatkin	Slatkin	3:31
2.	"Moody"	Maddell Pavlovic Amy Allen Slatkin	Slatkin	2:55
3.	"Good Times"	Maddell Pavlovic J Lloyd	Lloyd	2:38
4.	"Torn Jeans"	Maddell Pavlovic Chris Collins	Collins	3:22
5.	"Come on Home"	Maddell Pavlovic Lydia Kitto Lloyd	Lloyd Kitto	2:56
6.	"Who's Your Boyfriend"	Maddell Pavlovic Allen Slatkin	Slatkin	2:53
7.	"Car"	Maddell Pavlovic Omer Fedi Slatkin	Slatki Fedi	3:17
8.	"Shut Up"	Maddell Pavlovic Slatkin	Slatkin Royel Otis	2:41
9.	"Dancing with Myself"	Maddell Pavlovic Kitto Lloyd	Lloyd Kitto	3:09
10.	"Say Something"	Maddell Pavlovic Fedi Billy Walsh	Fedi	2:24
11.	"She's Got a Gun"	Maddell Pavlovic Lloyd	Lloyd	2:28
12.	"More to Lose"	Maddell Pavlovic Julian Bunetta Fedi	Bunetta Fedi	2:54
13.	"Jazz Burger"	Maddell Pavlovic Fedi Slatkin	Slatkin Fedi	3:11
Total length:				38:25

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal. ^[11]

Royel Otis

• Royel Maddell – guitar (all tracks), vocals (tracks 1–4, 6, 7, 10, 12, 13), percussion (2), bass (4, 7, 8, 10); keyboards, programming (4); background vocals (5, 9), piano (12)
• Otis Pavlovic – vocals (all tracks); keyboards, programming (3); bass (5, 9); drums, synthesizer, engineering (8); guitar (13)

Additional contributors

• Blake Slatkin – synthesizer, engineering 1, 2, 6–8); additional vocals, bass, guitar (1, 2, 6); drum programming (1, 6, 7), drums (1, 8), programming (2, 13); percussion, Wurlitzer electric piano (2); mixing, piano (13)
• Amy Allen – additional vocals (2)
• J Lloyd – guitar, programming, engineering (3, 5, 9, 11); bass, drums, keyboards (3, 5, 11)
• Chris Collins – bass, drums, keyboards, programming (4)
• Lydia Kitto – background vocals, bass, drums, keyboards (5, 9)
• Joey Waronker – drums, engineering (6, 7)
• Omer Fedi – bass (7, 10, 12, 13), synthesizer (7, 10, 12), guitar (7, 10, 13), drum programming (7), programming (10, 12, 13), drums (10, 13), vocals (10)
• Julian Bunetta – drums (12)
• Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing (1–6, 8, 9, 11)
• Ben Baptie – mixing (7)
• Serban Ghenea – mixing (10, 12)
• Randy Merrill – mastering (1, 3–13)
• Joe LaPorta – mastering (2)
• Michael Harris – engineering (1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 10, 12)
• Bryce Bordone – additional mixing (10, 12)

Charts

Chart performance for Hickey

Chart (2025)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA) [12]	5
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [13]	31
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [14]	20
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [15]	122
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [16]	14
French Albums (SNEP) [17]	161
French Rock & Metal Albums (SNEP) [18]	10
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [19]	34
German Rock & Metal Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [20]	12
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [21]	32
Portuguese Albums (AFP) [22]	144
Scottish Albums (OCC) [23]	9
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [24]	18
UK Albums (OCC) [25]	14
US Billboard 200 [26]	151

References

1. "Royel Otis Drop "Moody" After LA Tease". Rolling Stone Australia. 9 May 2025. Retrieved 11 May 2025.
2. "Royel Otis Share Bittersweet Single "Car" and Announce Intimate Australian Fan Events". Rolling Stone Australia . 27 June 2025. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
3. ""A Song About Unspoken Words": Royel Otis Release Third Album Single "Say Something"". Rolling Stone Australia . 25 July 2025. Retrieved 26 July 2025.
4. "Taken from their new album hickey @royelotis' brilliant new single "who's your boyfriend". Out now 🌴". Facebook. 22 August 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
5. Lynch, Jessica (23 June 2025). "Royel Otis Set August Release for Second Album Hickey". Billboard. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
6. "Royel Otis Release Second Album Hickey". Rolling Stone Australia . 22 August 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
7. Walker-Smart, Sam (24 August 2025). "Royel Otis – Hickey". Clash . Retrieved 22 August 2025.
8. Brown, Helen (22 August 2025). "Royel Otis: Hickey review – Australian duo come off as problematic exes on their second album". The Independent . Retrieved 24 August 2025.
9. Dunworth, Liberty (22 August 2025). "Royel Otis – 'Hickey' review: a sun-kissed exploration of young adulthood". NME . Retrieved 24 August 2025.
10. "ALBUM REVIEW". When the Horn Blows. 21 August 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
11. "hickey / Royel Otis / Credits". Tidal . Retrieved 23 August 2025.
12. "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. 1 September 2025. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
13. "Longplay Charts vom 29. August 2025". Ö3 Austria Top 40 . Retrieved 30 August 2025.
14. "Ultratop.be – Royel Otis – Hickey" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
15. "Ultratop.be – Royel Otis – Hickey" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
16. "Dutchcharts.nl – Royel Otis – Hickey" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
17. "Top Albums de la semaine 35, 2025". Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique . Retrieved 1 September 2025.
18. "Top 100 Rock & Metal Albums de la semaine 35, 2025" [Top 100 Rock & Metal Albums of Week 35, 2025] (in French). Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique . Retrieved 1 September 2025.
19. "Offiziellecharts.de – Royel Otis – Hickey" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
20. "Offizielle Deutsche Charts Top 20 Rock/Metal-Charts – 29 August 2025" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts . Retrieved 1 September 2025.
21. "Official Top 40 Albums". Recorded Music NZ. 29 August 2025. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
22. "Top 200 Álbuns Semana 35 de 2025" (PDF) (in European Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. p. 2. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
23. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
24. "Swisscharts.com – Royel Otis – Hickey". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
25. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
26. @billboardcharts (2 September 2025). "Debuts on this week's #Billboard200..." (Tweet). Retrieved 3 September 2025– via Twitter.