“I can address the Arch Enemy-shaped elephant in the room with For I Am King. A female vocalist, a Gothenburg-inspired guitar attack, just enough metalcore riffage to keep things relatable – Crown has got it all. To be clear, there is nothing cutting edge about it; if it’s riffs you want, ask and you shall receive. Don’t approach Crown expecting to come away with the prototype of the new breed of melodeath or a newfound respect for Arch Enemy.” Arch usurper.
“After waxing lyrically about female voices in metal in my previous review, a random grab from the promo bin saw it fit to expand upon that intro with a female growler. When leaving The Agonist, Alissa White-Gluz infamously said: ‘No one can do what I can do,’ and metal has been happy to prove her wrong time and time again. Bands such as Aephanemer, Bethlehem, and Light This City are just a few examples of extraordinary female laryngeal destruction, and Critical Mess is joining that growing pantheon.” Woman made.
“It’s a ritual most metalheads born in the 80’s have participated in. At some point, that guy who got into metal a few months before you did comes up to you, brandishing a discman, and says: “You gotta hear this, there’s a band with a chick who can growl!” In 10% of the cases, he’d have Kittie or Otep with him, but most of the time he’d be talking about Arch Enemy, the melodic death metal band whose primary distinguishing feature is having a chick who can growl.” Growlers, man.
When an album lands in my inbox accompanied by an apology from Angry Metal Guy himself, you know it’s gonna be a rough listen.
