Review Summary: Crown the Empire meets expectations and more with this impressive and well executed album.
The Resistance is finally here, and it is no slouch. I had expectations that were bested by this album, which is a good sign for this band. Let me start off saying that Crown the Empire put together a good rookie album, but the resistance makes them seem like they have been in the music business longer then they have. Which is very impressive for a young band, because they have a long way to go, and it's amazing to think they can get even better. No matter who you are, this album has something in it for you.
Now, the actual album will be talked about! Not many intro's to albums really stick out to people, most of them sound the same, but "The Call To Arms (Act 1)" really surprised me with the slow intro that in a heartbeat turned into a upbeat tone, letting you know you are in the resistance! The next song that really stood out is "Millennia", this song is simple, but in a good way, it is able to slow the pace and make you enjoy the song for what it is and nothing more or less. The next song, "Machines" took a couple listens for me to fully understand what I was hearing, I didn't like the song at first, but if you listen closely to the lyrics, you will enjoy the song for it's creativity and for the band to able to go outside of the box lyrically.
Getting to the real fun now, the overall of the previous songs are really good with the instrumental use and vocals, but it gets even better starting off with the song "Mnstr", the dark tone of the song and the catchy lyrics, with the amazing instrumentals, make this song one of the better songs on the album. To go from that song to the second half of the album, the transition is good from song to song. Though everyone had time to soak in "Rise of the Runaways", it is one of the best songs Crown The Empire have ever made, the lyrics have some deep meaning that most songs didn't show as well. The guitar work is really impressive in this song, with a short and sweet guitar solo, and impressive drum use to match the tone. This is a song people will listen to for a long time to come.
The instrumental style in this song is constantly heard throughout the album as a dark tone, that knows where to show up at the right times, to force the feeling of the album on you, in a good way surprisingly. I liked this aspect of the album really well because it knows how to make you feel involved, and feel like you are with this band going through the war they are facing. The song "Phoenix Reborn" showed great balance in the song with everything you could take into suggestion, the feel of the song especially at the end where the guns are going off and you hear him breathing as he's trying to run, but ultimately dies, is a very nice touch to the song. As we get to the most anticipated song on this album "Johnny's Rebellion", it is more then I expected just like most of the album, the drums were used very well to set the tone, of course the dark tone of the guitar is still there, but the lyrics are the stand out of this song, showing that there is no end, and that even after life itself the war will never end against what you fight for in life. This song is a good ending to a very well put together album.
Crown the Empire, showed great use of lyrics and meaning in this album, that you can only listen to believe. Like I said before, the instrumental was also really good, but at times isn't as good as it could have been, but still really good overall. If you are a person who likes meaning in music, and enjoys upbeat and well placed slow choruses in this album that can go upbeat at any moment, it's a perfect match for you.
Songs to enjoy for a long time to come:
-Mnstr
-Maniacal Me
-Rise of the Runaways
-Johnny's Rebellion
