The Confessional

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us...oh, wrong speech. The Confessional is the place artists and staff confess what "Divine Intervention" led them to their Calling. A place where all souls are cleansed of their musical inequities, where the source of what fueled their passions are revealed.

Our first installment is from staff writer, Josh Thorne, entitled:

"The Crown"

When I first started getting into extreme music, there were three bands that defined the core of my daily listening Pantera, Bolt Thrower, and Cannibal Corpse. After some short-lived musical wanderings into other, cheesier areas of musical listening, I discovered…the old school. After hearing bands like Exodus, Celtic Frost, Slayer, Motörhead, Kreator, and the like, I became utterly obsessed with old school heavy metal. The music was so brutal, and yet it appealed in such a massive way to me…more so, however, because of the attitude of the bands. At the time, you have to remember that nü-metal ruled the world. Idiots with baggy pants, red baseball caps, and wife beaters were the dominating force in music. I enjoyed the old school bands because they reminded me of myself at the time. I was the only kid in my town that wore the classic Metallica shirt with the flaming skull or the spiked leather wrist gear. That appealed to me, and to this day I don’t know why…but it was a great time in my life. During this time, I began scouring magazines and websites to try and find a band that embodied this lifestyle I’d grown to love. In an issue of Metal Maniacs that came out in 1999…I found them.

I saw an article on a band called The Crown. I’d seen advertisements for their album “Hell Is Here” online, but I’d never really paid much attention aside from that. When I saw them, the first thing that popped into my mind was “Wow…these guys are like me…and they’re from Sweden?” I say that because, at the time, most Swedish bands were still embracing the black robes, corpse paint, and theatrical images associated with black metal…but not The Crown. As I read their words about “Hell Is Here” and saw what enthusiasm they had for the classics and for metal in general, I knew immediately that this was a band I needed to hear.

Unfortunately, residing in the armpit of Southern America can have some disadvantages. I looked all over for “Hell Is Here” but couldn’t find it anywhere. The closest thing I had was an mp3 of the song “Mysterion”, which I played almost non-stop for close to 3 or 4 months. However, I eventually grew tired of this one song and my mind and attention shifted to other things…until a short while later when the massive album “Deathrace King” was released. For some reason, I had no trouble finding this album and what followed was the beginning of my love for The Crown. After getting “Deathrace King”, I decided to obtain the first three albums as well. The love grew and grew. This was THE band I had been waiting for and upon hearing the opening notes of “The Burning” it became even more obvious.

“The Burning” was the band’s first full-length album, recorded when they still went by the name Crown of Thorns. Out of all their records, this one is definitely the most savage. The brutality, save for a few melodic moments scattered here and there, never lets up. It definitely displays the band at their youngest and most hellacious, but still…the momentum is there. Fueled by all things evil in the world, “The Burning” was an amazing release and yet, it was only the prelude to the next chapter of chaos that would follow.

“Eternal Death” was the moment, I believe, when The Crown (still Crown of Thorns then) realized what they wanted to be as a band. That album, to this day, gives me chills up and down my spine. It was unholy, it was brutal, and it was certainly death metal…but it was also beautifully melancholic. There was an evil on this album that really can’t be explained no matter how hard I try. Marko and Marcus’ riffs were just poisonous to the core on this record, as was the roaring bass of Magnus Olsfelt (which unfortunately, can’t be heard a lot…but when it is, it’s more than worth it) and Janne Saarenpää, the drum lord of Scandinavia. Johan’s vocals were a huge step-up as well from “The Burning”, but so was the entire band’s songwriting and playing. Classics like “Angels Die”, “Beautiful Evil Soul”, “In Bitterness and Sorrow”, and “The Black Heart” are timeless. However, as with every Crown release, the best was yet to come.

Unfortunately, Crown of Thorns could no longer work as a band name. Another, lamer band by the same name had claimed dominion over it and thus a name change had to happen. Therefore, the guys became The Crown and also switched labels. Leaving Black Sun Records for Metal Blade before “Hell Is Here” came out, The Crown’s future looked incredible…and it was.

“Hell Is Here”, the album I had searched for like a madman, was a work of pure insanity. Combining all of the elements from the first two records and then adding more maturity than ever before, The Crown crafted one of the most dominatingly powerful records in extreme metal’s history. Fueled by the ungodly drum performance of a lifetime, courtesy of Janne Saarenpää, as well as the always-amazing guitar skills of Marko and Marcus, the psychotic bass of Magnus and the hellfire vocals of Johan Lindstrand, “Hell Is Here” was truly a metal milestone for The Crown.

Now, more fans than ever before could hear their music and their songwriting had only gotten better. Blazing death metal classics like “1999: Revolution 666”, “The Poison”, “Electric Nights” and “Black Lightning” were complimented with melodic numbers like “Dying of The Heart” and it wall worked perfectly for The Crown. With a newly rejuvenated spirit, the guys returned shortly after with…their masterpiece. An album by which all other death/thrash albums would be measured in my eyes…Deathrace King.

Deathrace King marked the full realization of what The Crown stood for, what they believed in, and who they were as a band. At last, the perfect combination of the band’s old school roots and new school influences were blended together with absolutely perfect ease and what followed was…you guessed it…a rare perfect album. To this day, I can place “Deathrace King” in my stereo and never feel the need to skip a track or remove it. In fact, sometimes I have to force myself to stop playing it…just because of how addictive it was to me. And why wouldn’t it be? The band’s songs now had a very catchy vibe to them, which made it easier to turn new people on to the sound but also please the fans that’d been with them since “The Burning”. When the opening riff of “Death Explosion” begins, you know you’re in for something magical…something life changing. That’s what happened to me…and that’s why I’m still writing this tribute to The Royal Five.

As far as musicianship goes, the band was at their finest here. Johan sounded more lethal than ever before, vocally, while Marcus and Marko gave the guitar clinic to end all guitar clinics for extreme metal fans everywhere. Punctuated by violently heavy riffs, catchy solos, a thunderous bass sound (Finally, Magnus was heard continuously!) and tons of drum madness, “Deathrace King” etched is place as one of metal’s timeless treasures. I’d name songs that I love…but I’d never stop and end up naming every song on the album. However, what followed “Deathrace King” was heartbreaking to any Crown fan…the departure of Johan Lindstrand. I remember the moment I heard this news I thought, “Who on earth could possibly replace Johan?” The answer, of course, was no one. Tomas Lindberg, God bless him, tried on the band’s next release “Crowned In Terror”. The album, which I love just as much as any Crown release before it, displayed the band in a new, volatile, and violent environment…but with a different singer. That’s not to say Tomas did a bad job. He did quite well, actually…but I missed Johan. Apparently, so did the band. When Tomas exited the band, due to personal and professional reasons, Johan was enlisted to help with their scheduled live dates in Europe…a time when I wished I lived in Europe. I wished such a thing because I knew Johan had left to support his family and because of how stressful his economic situation was. I didn’t have much hope that he’d rejoin full time…and yet, hope always remains.

On a freezing night, I received an e-mail from Michelle at Metal Blade Records. She knew how much I loved The Crown and said, “Hey, thought you’d like to be the first to know…Johan’s back with the band…full time. See ya!” I was elated beyond any and all words. I grabbed my copy of “Deathrace King” and played it as loud as humanly possible. The next day, the whole metal world was buzzing with the news. But the question remained…could Johan still do it?

I, of course, was not dumb enough to even question such a thing…and my thinking paid off big time when “Possessed 13” came out. This was The Crown I knew and loved. The thrash extravaganza, with Johan’s signature roar, the twin guitar insanity of Marcus and Marko, Magnus’ brutal bass and Janne’s intense drumming was enough to make me…a metal devotee…giddy. That’s right…giddy. This featured all the elements of a Crown classic. The fast, pummeling numbers like “Zombiefied” and “Face of Destruction/Deep Hit of Death” but it also featured a very odd track…one called “Bow To None”.

The first time I heard “Bow To None” all the way through, I almost shed a tear. This was a deeply personal song, and like everything they’d done before, it hit me emotionally like nothing else could. The band I loved was back, and I couldn’t imagine anything better than that. However, two things would soon happen to make it better.

First of all, the announcement was made of a re-recording of “Crowned In Terror” with Johan on vocals. And then, once again, my dear Michelle offered me a chance to speak with Marko Tervonen…one of my heroes…and I’d be speaking to him as an interviewer. Words couldn’t express the elation in my heart, and especially after talking to Marko and discovering what a genuinely cool dude he was. He was more than happy to answer this fanboy’s dumb questions about his band, and did so very pleasantly. I left that conversation feeling like nothing could possibly end that moment of happiness I felt…until the news.

After 14 years, The Crown suddenly and shockingly announced that they were ending their career as a band. I can still remember that feeling of someone ripping my innards out and throwing them on the floor while still attached to my body. I couldn’t believe it. The Crown, a band that meant so much to me, was finished. Of course, they released “Crowned Unholy” which was the re-recorded “Crowned In Terror” and I enjoyed it a great deal…but with an aura of sadness…a deep aura of sadness. However, the sadness faded a bit once the band announced plans to release a 3-Disc DVD chronicling their entire career as a final tribute to the fans. I purchased the DVD as soon as it was released, and watched it again and again…and again. I still watch it a lot, to remind me of why the band meant so much to me. And of course, I can still listen to the guys’ new bands.

Johan’s doing great in One Man Army and The Undead Quartet, a brutal metal band that I truly believe will own you all before all is said an done. Magnus now plays in Stolen Police car, a high-energy rock band, and they are also quite amazing. Marcus plays in Engel, a melodic metal band that…again…is amazing. Marko and Janne now play in Angel Blake, whom as far as I’m concerned, has recently release the album of the year for 2006. All the bands the guys play in are different from The Crown…but still, the talent each of the guys brought to The Crown remains.

To finish this…I truly loved The Crown. To me, there will never be another band that will eclipse the place they have in my blackened heart and in the end, what made The Crown what they were was the brotherhood that existed between them. There were five important people in this band, and each man brought his own unique style to make this band the amazing force that it was…and it was the reason they meant so much to me.

My confession ends here. For now, The Crown ends here as well…but perhaps one day, the guys will see how much they truly meant to people like me. Perhaps one day we’ll see The Crown reclaim the throne they’ve vacated…but even if we don’t, I can assure you that whatever they do as individual artists will be unbelievably amazing. For now, I’ll still hold my CD’s and my DVD as esteemed pieces of my metal collection.

To Johan, Marcus, Marko, Janne, and Magnus…I send deepest thanks for the music you guys made…and a humble farewell from the metal kid you inspired for close to 10 years. Thank you…always.
 

Josh Thorne
 

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