Entry 446 - Black Crown Initiate - Selves We Cannot Forgive

 

This is an album I hadn't thought about for many years until it popped up on my feed a few weeks back. Today I finally got it on the turntable to see if it was as cool and diverse as I remembered it.

The first thin I remembered about Black Crown Initiate is that the album started off kind of week and got significantly better as it progressed. That notion has not changed in the slightest. The first two tracks are marginal at best. When I listened to the digital I would skip them regularly, here it's not an option.

The first two songs lack any sort of flow or direction to them, it's a combination of progressive metal and death metal with a smattering of clean vocals. The songs have moments where they are good and show the bands potential, but overall they simply are less engaging than the rest of the album.

As the album continues however the band really taps into their potential. The band leans more into the progressive end with funky time signatures and balance the clean vocals with the harsh ones way more effectively. The band also incorporates more clean guitars that have a bit of funk and jazz elements to them.

With all the added elements comes a heightened emotional awareness as well. The band knows when to pull back and let the clean vocals bare their soul, and when to step up the aggression and let the brutal elements come forward.

It's quite amazing to hear as the album progresses, how much better the band sounds towards the end than where they started with the album. The progression is rare, where many bands will front load the albums with the good songs. Black Crown Initiate have gone for the opposite effect, instead allowing their album to age like a fine wine. By the last sip it is a pleasing meal.