Currently out and shredding hearts and airwaves, the new release from Royal Thunder, Crooked Doors, is a slab of sad, heavy rock that that tells you exactly what the heart feels in its dark times. WIth copy in computer, Metal Machine brings you the review of Crooked Doors!
Most releases of the more pp oriented nature get passed by, due to the denaturing of music for easy consumption by the masses. The record I have for you today, the aforementioned Crooked Doors by the earlier aforementioned Royal Thunder, breaks through my prejudices like a sledgehammer through a femur. THey have crafted a dark, biting album filled with passionate sadness and rife with beautiful musicianship. Through use of darker sounding instruments, powerful vocals, layering of the vocals, and just pure atmos, Crooked Doors has become my frontrunner of the non-heavy metal bands.
Their sound is akin to a more updated Heart, to my mind, as the band level is way up there, but the vocalist, Mlny Parsonz, absolutely crushes it with a legitimate talent on the microphone. Somewhat hidden for much of the album, but extremely fitting for their music, make no mistake, the track, Forgive Me Karma, is startlingly good. The song has an energy that belies an old school influence, with great pipes laying down in balance with the rhythm and flow set down by the band. However, track 11, The Bear II, is the cut I really pick to show the range these players have. It’s a piano track, with very little production, on both instrument and vocals, and is absolutely my pick on the album, because I adore classical touches, and its JUST THAT GOOD. The rest of the album is no less good, with a dark tone that really recalls heavy 70’s with the slight fuzzy tone, and the production on the vocals would be perfect in a Joan Jett tribute. It’s all slightly dirty, but in a way that in. It’s the kind of album you listen to parked on the side of a backroad, while you watch the sun set. With beer and a date, of course.
Crooked Doors really makes music pretty fun to listen to, and should be on the radar for the savvy audiophile. Pick it up today, on any format, at your local purveyor of rocking rhythmics, or online at any decent retailer!
