Review THE CROWN “Crown of Thorns”

The Crown are among the pioneers of Swedish death metal. Formed in 1998, the band released the album “Hell is Here” in the same year, which was the beginning of a restless adventure in the field of extreme metal.

Starting as Crown Of Thorns, changing to The Crown and later to Dobermann, the band never completely disappeared and returned in 2009 as The Crown. Since then, four albums have been released, with “Crown of Thorns” being the next studio effort the band will release.

The album title speaks volumes when it comes to what to expect from these ten songs. In a way, it is an album that harkens back to the band’s roots while creating something new. With such an ambition, the working process was a bit different from the normal routine. The creation of the artwork happened quite early. It was Giannis Nakos who did the artwork for “Crown Of Thorns” and if you look closely you can see a bridge on the sleeve. It is the sketch of the “Strömkarlsbron”, which connects the two banks of the river Göta älv and contains a statue of “Strökarlen” – a water spirit. The bridge is located at the band’s home base in Trollhättan and offers a great view of the Trollhättanfallen.

If you’ve ever had the chance to see water run through Trollhättanfall, you know the energy that is released in such a moment. The Crown connects to their homebase by taking a step back to their roots and also translating the unbound energy of Trollhättanfallen into raw and power-filled music.

The songs on “Crown of Thorns” are fierce death metal anthems that combine metal, melody and an anarchic vibe. “Churchburner”, with it’s little reference to Slayer, was the lead single of the album and is a roaring song. Death metal made in Sweden, this is what “Churchburner” stands for. It’s a brutal track with some clever breaks and an infectious groove.

Equally heavy but with a bit of a different expression comes “Gone to Hell”. A throbbing bass and the lead guitar kick off a song with a punky vibe. It’s one of the moments on “Crown of Thorns” when melodies become important without compromising the heaviness of the album.

Merciless when it comes to speed is “The Agitator”. The song is a less than two minute sledgehammer that hits you right in the face. The counterpart to such a pounding tune is “The Storm That Comes”. The title refers to the approaching storm that The Crown musically depict. Starting quietly, the song slowly builds up. You can feel the storm coming as you listen to this tune, which reflects the epic nature of this album. Sticking to the basic pattern, the song still offers enough versatility and twists to make it entertaining from start to finish. It is a very solid way to end an album that also includes three bonus tracks, depending on the format.

“Crown of Thorns” is a great release from the Swedish death metal veterans. While focusing on edges and blasting metal, the band is never afraid to add a good melody line to their songs. The latter is what draws you in, while the heaviness is the DNA of this release. And as mentioned – this album reflects the natural power of Trollhättanfallen to perfection.