The wait is over! After a five-year absence, Sweden’s The Crown have returned triumphant with their eighth studio album Death Is Not Dead (2015) via Century Media Records. Marking the return of original Johan Lindstrand, for the first time since 2004’s Crowned Unholy (a re-recording of Crowned in Terror 2002), Death Is Not Dead could easily be seen as one of the most highly anticipated crossover Thrash/Death albums of 2015. Joined by Lindstrand are original guitarist Marko Tervonen and bassist Magnus Olsfelt, along with former Impious guitarist Robin Sörqvist (guitar). Seeing the departure of long-time drummer Janne Saarenpää, Tervonen took on drumming duties for the record before officially finding his replacement, Henrik Axelsson, who is featured on bonus tracks. Surely after such a long hiatus, fans wondered what would The Crown sound like in their return and now they finally can.
Beginning with a short instrumental that sounds vaguely similar to Marilyn Manson’s cover of the Eurythmics 1983 hit “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of These),” suddenly a fierce crunch of a distorted guitar shatters the silence and moves directly into the track “Head Hunter.” The combination of Lindstrand’s aggressive and guttural screaming vocals with Tervonen and Sorqvist’s guitars is like a blast from 1990’s crossover past and is simply destructive. “Iblis Bane” is best characterized as a Scandinavian thrasher’s dream. Rolling double bass, palm muting, and fret wandering combine to simply steamroll the listeners’ ears when suddenly, the song slows down to an almost melancholy pace and immediately shreds into a solo.
Fans of England’s Doom Metal powerhouse Paradise Lost are in for a real surprise when they discover The Crown’s rendition of “Eternal” from the seminal 1991 album Gothic. This cover can be easily confused with Paradise Lost’s own version where it is not for a little more throat by Lindstrand. It is an excellent rendition and perhaps one of the best covers of Paradise Lost one will ever hear. The album surges forward from there with “Speed Kills (Full Moon Ahead),” which is one of the record’s most essential tracks. Five years of silence seems to have had no negative effect on The Crown and this track is the best example to show they have not sacrificed speed and brutality. Relentless from beginning to end, it never slows, immediately leading directly into “Herd of Swine” with furious blast beats. With drum hits that are so intense, younger drummers will salivate while Lindstrad screams, “Speed kills! At the heart of darkness, speed kills another roadkill down the line!” Moving on with a relentless thrashing, “Horrid Ways” and “Ride to Ruin” follow before the album’s biggest surprise with instrumental “Meduseld.” A stand-out track, this masterpiece begins with acoustic guitars and, keeping a melodic Groove Metal feel, adds the texture of violins to give it a very classical feel. Finally, the album closes out with a full-on Melodic Metal ear-tingler, “Godeater,” fans will rejoice and want to restart the record from track one all over again.
Death is Dead focuses on catchy guitar riffs, and harsh-growling vocals, and brings the band back to its full glory of destructive Death Metal with the fury and speed of Thrash. This honestly could be considered their strongest release to date, balancing Doom, the crushing feeling of Death Metal, and the speed of Thrash. Intricate singular and dual guitar solos abound on this track and the album as a whole, setting The Crown apart from run-of-the-mill, cookie-cutter “Thrash influenced” bands. After rising from the ashes of what many thought was an “indefinite hiatus,” The Crown surprise all with a neatly packaged album that is sure to have old-school fans cheering and new fans wanting to know when they are touring again. Cryptic Rock gives Death Is Not Dead 4 out of 5 stars.
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