Bleghhtooven’s Album of the Month: For I Am King - ‘Crown’

“We are lambs brought to the cosmic slaughter pushed towards mental cancer”

Dutch melodic death metal / metalcore band For I Am King have kicked off the year with an absolute diamond of an album. Crown is a thematic continuation of their previous album I with both albums addressing power and illustrating the corrupting influence it has.

I walked away from this album certain of one thing, and that is that frontwoman Alma Alizadeh’s vocals are almost unrivaled. Time and time again as I listened to this album I was blown away by her performance. Her voice has a guttural edge that I just can’t get enough of.

While her blistering vocals may have been the “crown jewel” (pun intended), the remaining pieces that make up this project are also impeccable. From the technical riffage to the head-bobbing rhythms I found myself loving every aspect. With a relatively short runtime of 36 minutes and change, I can’t help but wish there was just a little bit more meat on this album. Another song or two would really be perfect, but I’d rather an album leave me begging for more than begging for it to end.

For I Am King has everything it takes to become a metal / metalcore household name, all they need to do is to continue on their same trajectory.