01/15/2021 13:46

The Crown

The Crown: new album 'Royal Destroyer' out in March

On March 12, Swedish speed-death maniacs The Crown will release their new album, 'Royal Destroyer', via Metal Blade Records.

Track listing:
1. Baptized in Violence
2. Let the Hammering Begin!
3. Motordeath
4. Ultra Faust
5. Glorious Hades
6. Full Metal Justice
7. Scandinavian Satan
8. Devoid of Light
9. We Drift on
10. Beyond the Frail

Having celebrated their thirtieth anniversary in 2020 [their first eight years spent as Crown Of Thorns], The Crown have proven themselves one of the most enduring forces in death metal. In 2021, they further up the ante with 'Royal Destroyer', a record that sets a new standard for the genre. "It is our album number ten, so now we are in the big boys club," says bassist Magnus Olsfelt. "I think it in some ways is our crowning achievement, and it encompasses our sound across all albums on one defining record. It's got it all – the early 90s death metal stuff, the haunting melodies, the thrash, the punk, the grind, the heavy metal and the more epic and doomy stuff."

With 2018's 'Cobra Speed Venom', the band reached the same lofty heights as their 2002 landmark release, 'Crowned in Terror', but they were primed and ready to write its successor. "It surely set the bar up high for a follow up," Olsfelt explains. "But it's more inspiring than daunting. We have a real good vibe in the band, so we know we are capable of creating great stuff if we all just put our hearts to it and work hard." Confident, they pushed ahead, with the idea of making a sequel to 'Cobra Speed Venom' – a sequel meaning "more of everything".

Together with legendary producer Fredrik Nordström, the band tracked the resulting 10 songs at Gothenburg's Studio Fredman. "We push ourselves to the limit, really trying to make everything as good as it can get, trying to make every song as impactful as possible," Olsfelt states. While he believes that people need to hear the album themselves to be able to accurately describe it, Olsfelt also asserts that The Crown have achieved something that makes for a "continuous whole" – while being diverse. There are also some surprises in store for fans. "We have some of the most intense stuff ever, like one song is about one minute long, and we also have a ballad!"

The title of the record can be interpreted in a number of ways, and Olsfelt hopes that this is what happens with their fans, though asserts that it could be said that "The Crown is a Royal Destroyer". While he believes lyrics should ultimately be interpreted by fans so that the "magic" is not lost, he reveals that 'Ultra Faust' is about "the Faustian impulse that is pushing us to explore and conquer new worlds both in history and in the future, both spiritual and worldly. No matter the cost, it is both a blessing and a curse, but it is what we are." Alongside that, 'Let the Hammering Begin!' is a tribute to Slayer's late guitarist Jeff Hanneman, and "'Scandinavian Satan' is "more a song in the style of the first generation of black metal bands like Venom, Bathory, and Hellhammer, which was very barbaric rock n' roll. The lyrics are taken mostly from the Völuspa, the ancient Nordic myth about the end of the world - it's pretty powerful stuff."

'Royal Destroyer' will be available as following editions:
- jewelcase CD
- ltd. digipak 2CD (incl. 'Deathrace 13' bonus disc w/ 13 tracks)
- 180g black vinyl (EU exclusive)
- midnight blue marbled vinyl (EU exclusive – limited to 400 copies)
- red-hot orange marbled vinyl (EU exclusive – limited to 200 copies)
- golden clear w/ blue and white splatter spot vinyl (EU exclusive – limited to 200 copies)
- clear w/ gold splatter vinyl (Kings Road exclusive – limited to 100 copies)
- viole(n)t blue marbled vinyl (US exclusive)

The Crown line-up:
Johan Lindstrand – vocals
Magnus Olsfelt – bass
Marko Tervonen – Guitar
Robin Sörqvist – lead guitar and backing vocals
Henrik Axelsson – drums

(source: Metal Blade Records)