with
The Crown
The Hobo Review

What can be said about Swedish death/thrash legends The Crown? What can attest to the truly god-like status of two past and present vocalists Tomas Lindberg and Johan Lindstrand - the former part of two of the greatest groups in the history of Swedish death metal (The Crown, At The Gates)? What can convey the awe of the ear-shredding six-string dueling madness of Marcus Sunesson and Marko Tervonen?

No mere words of course. But as a ‘writer/reviewer’ I’ve been allotted the difficult task of putting the brilliance of The Crown into written form.

Since 1993 the band have been committed to making the most aggressive and relentless mix of death and thrash metal – touring internationally with acts such as Emperor and Morbid Angel. But in 2004, The Crown’s career ended abruptly. The band cited the break-up was due to ‘financial reasons.’ As the boys themselves originally posted in a press release: 

Coming home from tours with empty pockets, equipment falling apart and having a pile of bills on the doorstep is simply "horns down". Paying the bills with tour memories and floorscores is just not possible. We do love standing on stage but we don't know much about the business part, and that's a bad combination. Trust me on that one.

I have my own suspicions of course. After the departure of Lindberg in 2002 (and after the original release of Crowned In Terror), the band started losing their passion, their energy. No disrespect to Lindstrand intended, but the fire of their past work was not to be seen in their 2003 release Possessed 13. After losing heart in their mission due to numerous other setbacks, the band stepped gracefully from under the spotlight of the metal world – which may or may not have been the right choice, depending on who you speak to. 

The boys from The Crown however, have been given one final opportunity to ensure their legacy lives on by rerecording, remixing and reproducing their (already superb) 2002 effort Crowned In Terror under the name of Crowned Unholy – complete with a special edition DVD.

Having now owned both Crowned In Terror and Crowned Unholy, I can safely say that musically, the latter only improves the former. 

While there is definitely not a single thing wrong with In Terror (in my opinion, evidently not in the eyes of The Crown), the production, timing and energy of the original have been enhanced thanks to the wonders of hindsight and a bigger production budget. 

Specifically Crowned Unholy has newly recorded new bass and vocal tracks, and ‘enhanced’ drums. The more perceptive of you may notice the few minor differences in the actual songs (the acoustic intro/solo and clean vocals in "Speed Of Darkness", additional keyboards and clean vocals on "Drugged Unholy", taking that intro drum roll out of "Crowned In Terror" [bad Jaane], etc) – a few of which I could have done without.

All of Lindberg’s vocals (remember, he’s the one from At The Gates) have been replaced by Lindstrand’s (the original and returning vocalist) to give fans closure on the what-if-Lindstrand-never-left question, and to allow fans to possess an all Lindstrand Crown
catalogue. While both have very similar vocal styles – and both are unquestionably brilliant – I am, sadly, against Lindstrand’s vocal rerecording.

Tomas’s vocal were perfect. He outperforms Johan on every single track bar "Death Is The Hunter", "Satanist" and "Drugged Unholy" (and of course the Tomas / Johan vocal duet on "Death Metal Holocaust" which unfortunately is without Johan’s contribution in this release). I do however, understand where The Crown is coming from with this re-release, and I realize that many fans will undoubtedly praise and treasure it.

The bonus DVD is entitled The Crown Invades Karlsruhe (Germany), and was recorded at a show on the 24 of November back in 2003. To be honest, this is not how I had envisioned a Crown performance. Minimal movement, poor quality vocals, a fairy-tapping drummer, minimal crowd involvement – perhaps my impression would’ve been different if the DVD covered The Crown in their prime. Good thing the DVD comes free, because that’s about all I’d be willing to fork out for it. 
 
While Crowned Unholy isn’t exactly required for owners of Crowned In Terror, any fans who do not possess either are strongly recommended – nay, to be forced at gunpoint – to buy at least one. This is decent re-release of an inspired death/thrash masterpiece. 

 However, the raw, imperfect feel of In Terror was not without its charm – and Tomas’ unabated, unrelenting screams do deserve their place in Crown history. I’m torn between my slight preference for the Lindberg vocals, and the significantly improved production quality of Unholy (for the record I would’ve given the original Crowned In Terror a rating of 4.5/5 to perhaps even a 5/5). But whichever you choose, I assure you, you will not be disappointed.
 

The Crown – Crowned Unholy
Label: Metal Blade
Genre: Swedish Death / Thrash Metal
For Fans Of: Bolt Thrower, At The Gates, Entombed 
Best Tracks: Crowned In Terror, Drugged Unholy, Death Metal Holocaust
Rating: 
 

CD Track-Listing:    1.House Of Hades (Intro)     2.Crowned In Terror     3.Under The Whip     4.Drugged Unholy     5.World Below     6.Speed Of Darkness     7.Out For Blood     8.(I Am) Hell     9.Death Is The Hunter    10.Satanist    11.Death Metal Holocaust

DVD Track-Listing:    1.No Tomorrow     2.Face Of Destruction (Deep Hit Of Death)     3.Death Explosion     4.World Below     5.Deliverance     6.Blitzkrieg Witchcraft     7.Cold Is The Grave     8.Zombiefied     9.Dream Blood Hell / Kill ‘Em All    10.Under The Whip    11.Bow To None    12.Total Satan    13.House Of Hades / Crowned In Terror    14.Revolution 666 (from 1999)

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