CD review THE CROWN ‘Royal Destroyer’

The Crown belongs to the veterans of Swedish death metal with a foundation date in 1998 after having been around as Crown Of Thorns for a few years. In a way the guys belong to the group of bands, being the forerunner of Swedish death metal. The Crown premiered in 1998 with ‘Hell is Here’ and nine additional releases followed between then and now.

This months The Crown offer a new longplayer that clearly indicates that a lot of horsepower comes from Trollhätten, even after the downfall of Saab cars. It’s the death metal engine that runs as smooth and heavily, leading to eleven songs that represent ‘ Royal Destroyer’. ‘Royal Destroyer’ is The Crown’s eleventh longplayer and if ‘Cobra Speed Venom’ was already a massive riff assault it’s the new record that lifts the bar even more.

The big thing with ‘Royal Destroyer’ is that the quintet manages to create a perfect storm when it comes to fierce and harsh outbursts that blend with a vitality that impresses. The underlaying rock’n’roll spirit that’s weaved into ‘Motordeath’ helps the album to get out of the box immediately. High speed, furious riffs and aggressive vocals are key for letting the song become an excellent starting point. There isn’t any smooth way into the album since the blast reaches you with the first note played.

‘Royal Destroyer’ has the power of an approaching horde of rabid elks since after having found a way to handle the opener the next aggressive anthems are waiting in line. Swedish riff grinders The Crown unleash with ‘Ultra Faust’ and ‘Let The Hammering Begin!’ another two excellently crafted death metal smashers, the latter with a real nomen et omen expression.

‘Royal Destroyer’ doesn’t provide you with a moment to recover. Although ‘We Drift On’ comes with an acoustic middle part, it’s more the calm within the storm, that includes with ‘Scandinavian Satan’ and ‘Baptized in Violence’ some more metallic hurricanes. With all the aggressiveness and unleashed force of nature, The Crown finds the sweetspot of heaviness and catchy sounds. A wrecking ball was seldom as appealing as what the guys offer with ‘Royal Destroyer’. These songs have destructive elements that are all weaved together by The Crown in style. ‘Royal Destroyer, an album fully recommended by Markus’ Heavy Music Blog.