“Your silhouette’s all around, it lives inside my head.”
Crown the Empire are one of those bands that was at the forefront of every core kid’s music taste at one point in their life. Whether hot off their debut EP Limitless, or on the leadup to 2014’s Rise of the Runaways, the band was attracting huge headliner crowds and were a favorite at festivals. It’s no secret that the band cooled off a bit shortly after, however. I was a big fan of Retrograde, but fans disliked the stray from typical breakdown centric metalcore. And then came the departure of Dave Escamilla which further fragmented the fan base. Since then, the band released a fairly well received Sudden Sky in 2019. And now, finally, Crown the Empire are back with their 5th studio album, Dogma, out this Friday via Rise Records.
First off, I’m not going to pretend that Crown the Empire are, or have ever written ground breaking music. I mean, the band confirmed after Sudden Sky’s release that they have outside help for a lot of their songs. To what extent, I’m not sure. I’ll give the benefit of the doubt in thinking that the band contributes quite a bit. All that is to say, I was not expecting mind blowing, next level riffs on Dogma. And that is okay. A lot of the band’s current appeal is found in Andy Leo’s voice. He hasn’t missed a beat since the band’s inception, and his voice has always had that theatrical flair that makes Crown the Empire a fun listen.
The album starts with its title track, “Dogma”, evidently not shy to make a statement off the bat. I like a lot of the first half quite a bit; Andy has a measured approach to the verse, allowing the mood of the track to grow. I just wish the performance on the instrumental front was more engaging, to take advantage of the space allowed to it. To its credit, the drums at the forefront do aid in the building feeling of the track, but the guitar sounds very muddled, and I wish it was overall more interesting. Once the song pops as the heavier bit starts, the instrumental does become way more listenable, but positive is brought down by the juxtaposition of quality within the track – it makes it more of a question mark. Nonetheless, the track has good energy and a strong chorus.
The album continues with a duo of solid tracks in “Modified” and “Paranoid”. In the former, Andy sounds great in the chorus, but the rhyme scheming stumbles a bit, and it’s not great during the verses either. The minimalistic bridge doesn’t do anything for me, as well. On “Paranoid”, Andy puts forth perhaps his best grouping of toplines so far. However, most of the track leaves a lot to be desired, like how the instrumental is completely blocked out in favor of Andy’s vocals on the verses.
Then comes “In Another Life (feat. Courtney LaPlante)” which is the best track so far, and probably overall. The instrumental is multiple steps punchier than the rest of the track listing. And it only evolves as Andy comes in with a great, haunting topline, followed by a stellar chorus. I wish I was a bigger fan of Hayden Tree’s screams but they do what they need to do – serve screamed vocals. Courtney LaPlante’s feature, as usual, is a nice addition. I like that she screams as well as sings. That is unfortunately a rarity for vocalist features that are able to do both. Courtney actually takes the final third of the track, which is a treat, and the instrumental ending on a heavy note was a good decision.
“Superstar” might end up being a point of contention for fans, but I don’t mind it. It serves as a nice change of pace, albeit abrupt. I think Andy’s voice aids itself to a poppier cut like this, and Remington Leith of Palale Royale fits in well enough. It’s poppier and lighter, sure, but it’s more interesting to listen to than a by-the-book track such as, say, “Black Sheep”.
“Dancing with the Dead” rumbles in on a high intensity note. This is obviously supposed to be the big heavy track of the album, and it is that, but I don’t think it gets interesting till the 2nd half, as the screamed verse there is more melodically interesting, and the instrumental is even heavier. One downside of a heavier cut is that that leads to an extended featuring of Hayden vocals, which I really, personally, do not enjoy. They’re almost too clean, and very one note.
That’s about it as far as takes worth sharing on Dogma. Unmentioned tracks can safely be characterized as unremarkable at best. I have to say, this is my least favorite Crown the Empire album despite some new turns for the band. This will not be the worst rock centric album you’ll hear this year, as there is a good amount to like, but I must predict that it won’t be a standout either. Fans of the band won’t be disappointed but Dogma does little to push beyond its own confines.
You can pre-order Dogma here before it releases this Friday, April 28th.
5/10